Best AI assistants (October 2026)
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General AI assistants for writing, research, analysis and everyday work, compared on price, free plans and team options.
Only want free? See the best free AI assistants, with what each free plan includes.
The ranking
- 1
Google Gemini
by GoogleLowest entry priceGoogle's assistant, built into Gmail, Docs and Android, with image generation and Google storage on paid plans.
Free planImage generationTeam or business planPros
- Free plan
- Image generation
Cons
- US prices; they vary by country
- 2
Microsoft Copilot
by MicrosoftBest free starting pointMicrosoft's assistant, free on its own and built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook with Microsoft 365.
Pros
- Free plan
- Image generation
Cons
- Team or business plan: check on Microsoft Copilot's site
- Business Copilot prices are on a separate page and were not checked
- 3
Claude
by AnthropicBest free starting pointAnthropic's assistant for writing, analysis and coding, with file creation and long documents; does not generate images.
Free planImage generationTeam or business planPros
- Free plan
- Team or business plan
Cons
- No image generation
- 4
ChatGPT
by OpenAIBest free starting pointOpenAI's assistant for writing, research, analysis, coding and image generation, with free, personal and business plans.
Free planImage generationTeam or business planPros
- Free plan
- Image generation
Cons
- Go, Pro and Business prices were not shown on OpenAI's pricing page when checked; Business needs at least 2 users
Not yet ranked
We could not confirm these prices on the vendors' pages; they join the ranking automatically once we do.
- Perplexity: AI answer engine that searches the web and cites its sources, with Pro, Max and Enterprise plans. See prices on Perplexity's site Alternatives to Perplexity
Compare all in a table
| Rank | Product | Score | Entry price (USD) | Free plan | Image generation | Team or business plan | Action |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Google Gemini | 100 | 4.99 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Visit site |
| 2 | Microsoft Copilot | 78 | 9.99 | Yes | Yes | Not confirmed | Visit site |
| 3 | Claude | 71 | 20.00 | Yes | No | Yes | Visit site |
| 4 | ChatGPT | 68 | 20.00 | Yes | Yes | Yes | Visit site |
Entry price is the cheapest paid plan, converted to USD where the vendor prices in another currency. Usage-based prices are not compared.
What to check
Free plan. 4 of 4 confirm it.
Image generation. 3 of 4 confirm it.
Team or business plan. 3 of 4 confirm it.
Score: features 30, free plan or trial 20, pricing transparency 25, entry price value 25. Commissions are never part of it. Full method.
Questions
What is the cheapest option?
Google Gemini, from USD 4.99 per month.
Is there a free option?
4 of the 4 ranked products have a free plan.