In May 2023, ZDNET curated the list of best AI chatbots and AI writers. The author reviewed each program’s capabilities and which individual uses each program would excel at. Other factors included reliability, availability, and cost.
|
Best AI chatbot |
Price |
Language model |
Current events capability |
Key features |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT | Free ($20-a-month Plus premium plan) | OpenAI's GPT-4o (GPT-4o mini when at capacity) | Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet | Can generate text, solve math problems, and do coding. Offers conversational capabilities. |
|
Copilot (formerly Bing ChatGPT) |
Free ($20/month Pro plan; additional 365 integration plans) |
OpenAI's GPT-4 Turbo |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Works like a search engine with information on current events. |
|
Claude |
Free (Pro $20/month for five times the usage limit) |
Claude 3 |
Limited current events capability |
Users can upload documents such as PDFs to receive summaries and get questions answered. |
| Perplexity.ai | Free ($20/month for unlimited Pro searches and advanced features) | OpenAI's GPT-3 and GPT-4 (for subscribers) | Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet | Can provide prompt suggestions based on current events. |
|
Jasper |
Starts at $49/month |
Uses different LLMs, including GPT-4 |
Focuses on written text; has copyediting features and plagiarism checker |
Can summarize texts and generate paragraphs and product descriptions. Has over 50 different writing templates including blog posts, Twitter threads, and video scripts. |
|
You.com (formerly YouChat) |
Free (Pro $20/month to access premium AI models and advanced features) |
Most leading LLMs |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet. |
Outputs an answer to anything you input including math, coding, translating, and writing prompts. Lists sources for the text it generates. |
|
ChatSonic |
Starts at $12/month, depends on words and users |
Powered by GPT-3.5. or GPT-4, depending on subscription |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet |
Offers voice dictation, AI image generation, and more. |
|
Gemini (formerly Google Bard) |
Free (Advanced $20/month) |
Gemini 1.5 Flash |
Up-to-date on current events; has access to the internet via Google |
Can provide relevant and useful writing assistance. |
|
Socratic |
Free |
From Google |
Kid-friendly; can help with homework |
Children can type in any question and Socratic will generate a conversational, human-like response with fun unique graphics. |
| HuggingChat | Free | HuggingFace | Can have access to the internet if you'd like to. | You can build your own chatbot using HuggingChat that suits your needs. |
More information about each AI chatbot is provided on each tab listed above.
Source: The best AI chatbots of 2024: ChatGPT and other noteworthy alternatives | ZDNET
The blueprint for chatbots, encompassing a wide range of skills beyond writing, including coding, conversation, and math equations, and is available to the public at no cost.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Writing skills | Limits to GPT-4o |
| STEM knowledge | Boots free users down to GPT-4o-mini when at capacity |
| Conversational |
ChatGPT is a conversational AI chatbot by OpenAI that can produce text for you based on any prompt you input, generating emails, essays, poems, raps, grocery lists, letters, and much more. It was released in November 2022. Due to its massive success, it became the blueprint for many of chatbots to enter the scene, including Copilot (formerly Bing Chat).
The best ChatGPT, an AI chatbot that works like a search engine with up-to-date information on current events, links back to sources, and is free and easy to use. This tool runs on GPT-4 Turbo.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Access to the internet | Grounded in Bing |
| Links back to sources | Not as strong as ChatGPT |
| Uses Open AI’s most advanced LLM |
**Note: The Bing plugin gives ChatGPT the ability to index the internet and provide citations. Currently, it is limited to ChatGPT Plus subscribers but will be free for everyone to use in the future.
Launched in February 2023 by the company Anthropic, Claude can conversationally respond to prompts for a variety of tasks.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Upload document support | Unclear usage cap |
| Chat controls | Knowledge cut off |
| Light and dark mode |
An AI chatbot connected to the internet often seen as a better academic research assistant compared to other AI assistants, such as ChatGPT.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Links to sources | Paid subscription required for GPT-4 access |
| Access to internet | Some irrelevant suggestions |
| Simple UI |
An AI chatbot that is the best choice for businesses and marketers, with more than 50 different writing templages, copyediting features, and a plagiarism checker, making it an investment worth the monthly cost.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| 50 different writing templates | Need a subscription to try |
| Copyediting features | Steep costs, starting at $49/month |
| Plagiarism checker |
Like ChatGPT, Jasper also uses natural language processing to generate human-like responses.
With Jasper, you can input a prompt for what you want to be written and it will write it for you, just like ChatGPT would. The major difference with Jasper is that it has an extensive amount of tools to produce better copy. Jasper can check for grammar and plagiarism and write in over 50 different templates including, blog posts, Twitter threads, video scripts, and more.
A ChatGPT alternative that is readily available, always accessible, sources information from Google, and lacks cost, making it ideal for those who need a ChatGPT-like experience without annoying capacity blocks.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Readily available | Some answers stronger than others |
| Source citing | Subscription required for GPT-4 access |
| Free |
An AI chatbot that is the best choice for article writers, with its ability to offer up-to-date news and stories related to current events, and its additional features, including void dictation, AI image generation, and more.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Up-to-date | Need to sign in |
| Variety of use cases | A bit of a lag |
| Free trial |
ChatSonic is a dependable AI chatbot, especially If you need an AI chatbot that is up-to-date on current events. Because ChatSonic is supported by Google, it is aware of current news and can provide you answers and stories that relate to it.
ChatSonic also includes footnotes with links to the sources so you can verify the information it is feeding out to you.
Other features include voice dictation, which lets you speak prompts as you would with Alexa, and AI image generation. If you want to try it, you get a convenient free trial for 2,500 words with no credit card required. The monthly cost starts at $12 per month but goes all the way up to $249 per month depending on the number of words needed.
Google's AI chatbot that can give you free, specific writing advice and generate text for essays, resumes, cover letters and more.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Access to Google | No sources |
| Good text editing skills | Can’t help much with code |
| Free |
An AI chatbot that can give you free, specific writing advice and generate text for essays, resumes, cover letters, and more.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Easy to use | Doesn’t write text |
| Educational | No desktop version |
| Free |
With Socratic, children can type in any question they may have about what they are learning in school and Socratic will generate a conversational, human-like response with fun unique graphics to help break down the concept.
The app, available on the App Store and the Google App Store, also has a feature that lets your kid scan their worksheet to get a specially curated answer. The app does have some limitations; for example, it will not just write an essay or story when prompted. However, this could be a positive thing because it curbs your child's temptation to get a chatbot, like ChatGPT, to write their essay for them.
An open-source chatbot that can be used regularly or customized to fit your needs.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Customizable | Intermediate/advanced skills needed |
| Clean UI | Have to create an account |
| Free |
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