Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
EDITORS’ NOTE
May 11, 2026: With this update, our lineup of recommended AI chatbots remains unchanged. We have vetted the existing picks for availability and currency.
(Credit: Google)
(Credit: Google)
Pros & Cons
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Best-in-class value, with a generous free plan
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Excellent performance in everything from web search to video generation
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Helpful, robust integrations with Google apps
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Standout image editing and generation
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Occasionally incorrect responses
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Invasive data collection
Why We Picked It
Gemini offers the strongest value of any AI chatbot. It performs well across all types of prompts we test, but its Nano Banana image editing and generation are the best we’ve seen in a chatbot. An impressive suite of useful integrations across pretty much every Workspace app, plus 2TB (or more) of cloud storage for premium users, rounds out the experience.
Who It’s For
Google users: If you already rely on Google apps such as Docs, Drive, Gmail, and Sheets, Gemini is the chatbot for you. Its rich integrations make everything from curating playlists to generating emails as simple as a single click.
Media generators: If your favorite thing to do with chatbots is generate (or edit) images and videos, Gemini’s best-in-class technologies make it the top option.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
3 Flash and 3 Pro
Can Resume Prior Conversations
Learn More
Google Gemini
Review
(Credit: OpenAI)
(Credit: OpenAI)
Best for Customization and Memory
ChatGPT
Pros & Cons
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High-quality responses
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Remarkable complex reasoning and creative writing
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Best-in-class memory
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Peerless customization
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Dubious value
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Occasionally incorrect responses
Why We Picked It
ChatGPT, which has almost become synonymous with AI, runs on OpenAI’s powerful 5-series of LLMs. It produces incredibly comprehensive responses with a friendly attitude. From complex reasoning to creative writing, ChatGPT excels at providing you with a foundation of content to build upon and shape as you see fit. It also stands out for robust customization options that let you make ChatGPT your own, alongside comprehensive memory capabilities.
Who It’s For
Chatters: If the main reason you use AI is for conversation, ChatGPT’s approachable tone and in-depth customization options make it, by far, the best partner you can have among mainstream chatbots.
Independent users: If you don’t use much software within Google’s or Microsoft’s ecosystem, the extra features of Copilot or Gemini won’t matter to you. ChatGPT is much more attractive from a value standpoint if you can get by with just the integrations it supports.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
GPT-5 and GPT-5 Thinking
Can Resume Prior Conversations
Learn More
ChatGPT
Review
(Credit: Microsoft)
(Credit: Microsoft)
Pros & Cons
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Tons of features, encompassing everything from 3D modeling to text-to-speech
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Integrates closely with Microsoft apps and Windows
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Competent creative writing, deep research, document analysis, and web search abilities
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Affordable premium plans
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Underlying models aren’t competitive with ChatGPT and Gemini
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No meaningful video generation
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Occasionally incorrect responses
Why We Picked It
Copilot uses powerful LLMs from OpenAI and blends them with Bing web-scraping data for up-to-date responses to your prompts. It’s available on mobile apps, the web, and Windows. For an extra subscription fee, Copilot also works inside Microsoft 365 apps, suggesting edits or formulas and even generating illustrated presentations based on your text prompts.
Who It’s For
AI web browser fans: Microsoft’s Copilot-powered Edge is one of the best AI web browsers available because it combines AI features and traditional browser conveniences so well. Importantly, it’s the default browser on Windows, too.
Microsoft users: Choose Copilot to leverage AI across the Microsoft ecosystem. It’s an especially good option if you spend a lot of time using Microsoft 365 apps, such as Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and more.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
GPT-4
Can Resume Prior Conversations
Learn More
Microsoft Copilot
Review
(Credit: Perplexity/PCMag)
(Credit: Perplexity/PCMag)
Pros & Cons
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Top-notch web search abilities
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Slick user interface
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Variety of models to choose from
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Competent creative writing, file processing, image generation, and voice chat capabilities
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Not clear which models it uses for media generation
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Unimpressive deep research
Why We Picked It
Although Perplexity brands itself as an “answer engine” rather than an AI chatbot, it has all the features we expect from one, including complex reasoning, deep research, file processing, image recognition, media generation, and more. It’s less conversational than other chatbots on this list, but it excels at web search, thanks to generally accurate responses and an excellent user interface. Meanwhile, Perplexity’s Comet web browser bakes AI right in.
Who It’s For
Comparison shoppers: Perplexity supports models from a range of AI companies, including Google and OpenAI, making it a great place to try out models and see which work best for your needs.
Researchers: If using AI to find answers to all the questions you might have on a topic sounds interesting, Perplexity specializes in AI search. Just don’t expect casual conversations at the level of ChatGPT and Gemini.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
Sonar and Third-Party Models
Can Resume Prior Conversations
Learn More
Perplexity
Review
(Credit: Anthropic)
(Credit: Anthropic)
Pros & Cons
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Intuitive design
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Proficient in complex reasoning, creative writing, deep research, and web search
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Intriguing build-your-own-app feature
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Missing features such as image and video generation
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Occasionally incorrect responses
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Now trains on user data by default
Why We Picked It
Claude offers a host of interesting integrations, but its defining attribute is how it handles your data. It might now train its models on user data by default, but you can turn this off, and it automatically deletes your conversation history within a month. Claude also encrypts user data, and Anthropic employees can’t access it outside a narrow set of use cases. In a sense, Claude is the opposite of DeepSeek, which allegedly funnels your data to the CCP.
Who It’s For
Coders: Many people love Claude (Claude Code in particular) for its helpfulness as a programming tool. In fact, Claude Code is easy enough to use that it doesn’t require any programming experience.
The privacy-conscious: If you’re especially wary of funneling your data into Google, Microsoft, or OpenAI servers, Anthropic’s policies are straightforward and give you meaningful control over your personal information.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
Opus 4 and Sonnet 4
Can Resume Prior Conversations
(Credit: xAI)
(Credit: xAI)
Best for Searching X
Grok
Pros & Cons
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Unique features, such as virtual companions and X searches
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Good at complex reasoning, file processing, and web searches
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NSFW content, if that’s your thing
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Expensive
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Lackluster image and video generation
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Limited research and sourcing abilities
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Occasionally incorrect responses
Why We Picked It
Grok automatically searches X when responding to prompts, providing a deeper integration with social media than competitors. It’s also loose in its moderation, meaning you can chat about a taboo subject or get a relatively neutral evaluation of a hot topic. Grok performs competently in complex reasoning, file processing, and web searching. Grok also has NSFW features, including dateable companions and permissive image and video generation.
Who It’s For
NSFW content fans: Grok’s dateable AI companions, along with its generally lax guardrails, separate it from other chatbots.
Social media searchers: If you want responses that consider what the general populace thinks, Grok automatically includes X posts as sources. That makes it the premier AI chatbot for community feedback.
Specs & Configurations
AI Model
Grok 3 and Grok 4
Can Resume Prior Conversations
The Best AI Chatbots for 2026
Compare Specs
Buying Guide: The Best AI Chatbots for 2026
What Are AI Chatbots?
‘AI chatbot’ is somewhat of an umbrella term. An AI chatbot can describe ChatGPT just as it can a customer service bot you talk to before reaching a human. We use the term here to refer to services built on top of large language models (LLMs). LLMs enable you to do everything from efficiently searching the web to having chats with what feels like an actual person.
What Is a Large Language Model?
LLMs are, at their most basic level, artificial neural networks that companies train on massive quantities of data. Think of a large language model like a very complicated, very long equation that you can plug just about any request into and get a response from, whether that’s the answer to a question or a generated image. For example, GPT-5.5 is the LLM that powers OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
What Can AI Chatbots Do?
AI chatbots go far beyond simple question-and-answer text chats. In 2026, AI chatbots can complete tasks for you, such as adding ingredients to a virtual grocery cart, and serve as personal assistants that help organize your life. They can also build apps from scratch, write dozens of pages of research reports, and generate lifelike images and videos. If you prefer, you can interact with most chatbots by voice rather than text.
Some chatbots integrate with apps you already use to provide unique functionality, such as Copilot in Microsoft 365 and Gemini in Google Workspace. As an example, Gemini can answer questions based on your Gmail history.
A new crop of AI web browsers goes all in on AI chatbot features, including AI agents, meaning you can take advantage of AI capabilities on every web page you visit.
How Much Do AI Chatbots Cost?
All the chatbots we test have free versions. Paid plans usually range from $10 to $20 per month, depending on the chatbot, and almost every chatbot offers them. Many chatbot features are available for free, albeit with usage limits; however, you need to pay extra for certain features, such as integrating Copilot or Gemini across their respective app ecosystems.
What’s the Best Free AI Chatbot?
Generally, Google Gemini is the best free chatbot. Gemini provides access to its latest models, including 3 Pro and Veo 3.1, along with deep research and voice chat features, all for free. You also get 15GB of cloud storage via Google Drive. Many other services put their most advanced models behind paywalls, while luxuries like cloud storage are a rarity, even with paid plans.
Are AI Chatbots Conscious?
You can chat with an AI chatbot like you would a person, so some think chatbots are conscious, but they absolutely are not. An AI chatbot is akin to a video game character with different dialogue options. Our point is that chatbots are merely complicated prompt-response machines and not sentient in any way. So, you can’t have real relationships with them, nor can they truly be your friend or therapist.
Where Can You Learn More About AI?
You can query any of the chatbots on this list to find information about how AI (or AI chatbots) works, but a number of more formal resources are available online for you to check out. Ironically, AI chatbots themselves aren’t great at explaining how they work, so make sure you verify what they tell you with other sources.
Are Alexa or Siri AI Chatbots?
Alexa is not a chatbot, but the web version of Alexa+ is similar to one. That version currently lacks many features found in other chatbots, such as deep research, model selection, video generation, and more. Nonetheless, an LLM powers Alexa+, just like LLMs power chatbots, so there is significant overlap.
Siri isn’t a chatbot, but Apple has promised a conversational and chatbot-like Siri for a while now. This seems closer than ever to happening, given Apple’s partnership with Google to bring Gemini technology under the Apple Intelligence umbrella.
How Can You Tell If Something Is AI-Generated?
The unfortunate answer is that you often simply cannot. Many online services attempt to analyze text to determine if it was generated by AI, but they are imperfect. Some quirks, such as a heavy reliance on em dashes, are hallmarks of AI generation, but just seeing an em dash isn’t enough to tell if something is AI-generated. In general, we recommend sticking with sources you trust to avoid AI-generated content. If you want to know whether an image or video is AI-generated, we have tips and tricks for spotting both fake images and videos.
Are AI Chatbots Censored?
Yes, every AI chatbot has some amount of censorship. This ranges significantly, though. For example, DeepSeek has some absolutely egregious censorship where it won’t talk about certain historical events, such as the Tiananmen Square massacre, to keep its responses in line with Chinese propaganda. Meanwhile, Grok is extremely permissive, allowing you to generate images and videos of real people.
Which AI Chatbot Allows Explicit Content?
Of all the chatbots on this list, Grok is the only one that truly allows explicit content. You can use Grok to generate NSFW images and videos, as well as have explicit relationships with its virtual companions, such as the anime character Ani. That said, Grok isn’t the best place on the internet for either AI companionship or porn, even though it’s the only full-service chatbot on this list to allow that. You’re better off looking for a dedicated AI service if you primarily want to generate explicit content.
Recommended by Our Editors
Can the Law Use AI Chats Against You?
Yes, courts can and will use your conversations with chatbots against you, so don’t act as if you’re anonymous. If you talk to a chatbot about committing a crime or mention crimes you committed, the law might compel AI companies to hand over your conversations. Even if you haven’t committed a crime but end up in a lawsuit, your conversations might come up.
How We Choose the Best AI Chatbots
We focus on full-service web-based chatbots, rather than those that you can run locally on your computer. The latter requires a fairly significant time investment and relatively powerful hardware. We also exclude single-use chatbots that specialize in a particular use case at the expense of most others, such as AI companion chatbots.
To test AI chatbots, we provide each with a series of prompts and compare their responses, evaluating accuracy, consistency, complexity, and depth. Each chatbot is different, though, so we tailor our testing to the specific features it offers. That said, we generally evaluate AI chatbots based on their ability to perform complex reasoning, creative writing, deep research, file processing, image editing, image generation, video generation, voice chat, and web search.
Of course, it’s impossible to fully vet the scope of an AI chatbot. One person might have a niche use case related to their work, while another might have zero use for that same functionality. It would require an army of experts in every field to fully evaluate these tools, and even then, what works well one day might not the next after an update. That said, we notice some clear differences in testing, and we routinely update our reviews as chatbots evolve. Keep in mind that our reviews are accurate as of their publication date.
While coding-related features are often a focus of AI chatbots, you can test out a chatbot’s coding ability for yourself.
Disclosure: Ziff Davis, PCMag’s parent company, filed a lawsuit against OpenAI in April 2025, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.
