ChatGPT
by OpenAI
OpenAI's flagship assistant. Strong at general reasoning, writing, code. GPT-4o free, GPT-5 + o3 on Plus ($20/mo).
Free / $20+
Chatbot vs AI search engine.
ChatGPT vs Perplexity
Our pick
It depends on the job
Both are free to start, so pick by what you need most:
- ChatGPT: Widest feature set · Huge plugin/GPT ecosystem
- Perplexity: Citations on every claim · Good for research
VS
Perplexity
by Perplexity AI
AI-powered search engine. Every answer comes with sources. Pro ($20/mo) unlocks GPT-5, Claude Opus, and Perplexity Spaces.
Free / $20+
Head-to-head
| Feature | ChatGPT | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|
| Vendor | OpenAI | Perplexity AI |
| Category | Conversational AI | AI Search |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Starting price | Free / $20/mo | Free / $20/mo |
| Strengths | widest feature set, huge plugin/GPT ecosystem, voice mode | citations on every claim, good for research, follow-up threading |
| Weaknesses | rate-limited on free tier, no transparent sources | weaker pure chat, some sources low-quality |