Compare · free plans
ChatGPT vs Gemini vs Claude vs Grok: which free plan should you use?
All four are free to start and work in your browser or phone. They differ in how much you get before you hit a limit, and in what each does best.
✓ Limits checked Oct 19, 2026How we check
Our pick for everyday chat
ChatGPTBeginner-friendly (skill level 1 of 3)
ChatGPT is the only one of the big four whose free plan states unlimited text chats (subject to abuse guardrails). Gemini, Claude and Grok are free too, but their chat use is capped by usage limits with no fixed number.
Pick by what you need
- ChatGPT: ask anything, write and rewrite text, brainstorm ideas.
- Gemini: google's assistant for questions, writing and images.
- Claude: writes and edits long text clearly; good with documents.Long documents: the free plan's context window is up to 1M tokens (varies by model), vs about 12 pages of input on ChatGPT Free.
- Grok: chat assistant with live news from X; makes images too.Live news: searches the web and X in real time (per xAI). Free use is limited.
Free plans side by side
Every line comes from the vendor's own pricing page. "Limited" means the vendor doesn't publish an exact number.
★ Our pick
ChatGPT
- Best for
- Ask anything, write and rewrite text, brainstorm ideas.
- Skill level
- Beginner-friendly (skill level 1 of 3)
- What's free
- Unlimited text chats with GPT-6 (subject to abuse guardrails)
- Limited messages with uploads
- Limited image creation
- Limited voice chats
- Limited deep research
- Limited memory and context
- Limited Codex access
- Limited ChatGPT Work access on desktop
- Input up to ~12 pages of text per message (GPT Instant)
- The catch
- Uploads, images, voice and deep research are limited, and input is about 12 pages of text per message.
- When to pay
- Upgrade to Go or Plus when you keep hitting upload, image or deep-research limits. US college students: check the free 4-month Plus offer first.
- Checked
- ✓ 2026-10-19
OpenAI pricing page
Gemini
- Best for
- Google's assistant for questions, writing and images.
- Skill level
- Beginner-friendly (skill level 1 of 3)
- What's free
- $0/month with a Google Account
- Access to the Flash-Lite model
- Image generation and editing
- Deep Research, Gemini Live, Canvas, Gems
- Limited access to Nano Banana Pro in Google Flow
- 15 GB cloud storage
- The catch
- Free uses the Flash-Lite model; Google's bigger Flash and Pro models need a paid plan.
- When to pay
- Google AI Plus is $4.99/month (2x Free usage); Google AI Pro is $19.99/month (4x Free usage). US college students can get AI Pro free for a year.
- Checked
- ✓ 2026-10-19
Google pricing page
Claude
- Best for
- Writes and edits long text clearly; good with documents.
- Skill level
- Beginner-friendly (skill level 1 of 3)
- What's free
- $0, free for everyone
- Chat on web, desktop and mobile
- Search the web, create files, and run code
- Memory across conversations
- Connect your apps and tools
- Create Artifacts
- Claude Design, Slides and Docs
- Context window up to 1M tokens (varies by model)
- Usage resets on a rolling 5-hour window; no fixed message count
- The catch
- Usage resets on a rolling 5-hour window with no fixed message count; Research and Claude Code are paid-only.
- When to pay
- Pro is $20/month billed monthly ($17/month billed annually) with at least 5x Free's usage per 5-hour session, plus Claude Code. Upgrade when you hit the free usage cap mid-task.
- Checked
- ✓ 2026-10-19
Anthropic pricing page
Grok
- Best for
- Chat assistant with live news from X; makes images too.
- Skill level
- Beginner-friendly (skill level 1 of 3)
- What's free
- $0/month Free plan on the web and in the apps
- Limited Chat requests (xAI publishes no fixed number)
- Limited agent requests
- Limited image generation (Imagine)
- Modes for search, reasoning, voice and imagery
- The catch
- Chat and agent requests are limited, and xAI doesn't publish how many you get.
- When to pay
- Plus is $8/month for a shared usage pool across Grok Chat, Voice, Imagine and Build; Premium is $30/month with 4x Plus usage and the latest Grok models. Upgrade when the free limit stops you mid-task.
- Checked
- ✓ 2026-10-19
xAI pricing page