Research & searchFree tier with limits

Perplexity

An AI answer engine that searches the web and cites its sources.

Official site: perplexity.ai ↗

Is it actually free? Free tier with limits

Free plan: use the automatic 'Best' model in Search plus a limited number of Pro Searches; you cannot pick advanced models manually.

Pricing

Free; Pro $17/month billed annually; Max $167/month billed annually.

Best for

Research questions where you want to click through to the sources.

Not great for

Long creative writing or work that does not need web search.

Comparisons

Alternatives

AssistantsFree tier with limits

ChatGPT

OpenAI's general-purpose AI chat assistant for questions, writing, files, images and voice.

Free? Free plan: unlimited everyday text chats (subject to abuse guardrails), with limited file uploads, image creation, voice chats, deep research, memory …

AssistantsFree tier with limits

Gemini

Google's AI assistant, built into the Gemini app and Google's apps.

Free? Free ($0 with a Google Account): Gemini app with a Flash-Lite model, image generation and editing, Deep Research, Gemini Live, Canvas and Gems. Paid p…

Research & searchFree trial only

Kagi

A paid, ad-free search engine with an AI assistant.

Free? Trial: 100 searches to try Kagi Search and Assistant. No ongoing free plan.

Research & searchFree tier with limits

Consensus

An AI search engine for peer-reviewed research with cited answers.

Free? Free: basic paper search without AI analysis, plus a small allowance of Pro messages.

Last checked 2026-10-13 · Source: perplexity.ai pricing ↗ · How we verify · Report an error