# Free AI assistants, November 2026: what each free plan includes

> As of 4 November 2026, every major AI assistant has a free plan, but none publishes a message count. ChatGPT is the most generous on paper, with unlimited text chats and no account needed in supported countries. Duck.ai is the most private: no account, and chats are not used for training.

- This page: https://finderatlas.com/blog/free-ai-assistants
- Published: 2026-11-04
- Facts last checked: 2026-11-04

## Free plans at a glance

Limits are quoted as each vendor states them. "Not stated" means the vendor's own pages don't say.

**Free AI assistant plans, checked 4 Nov 2026**

| Assistant | Use without an account | Free limit | Cheapest upgrade |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [ChatGPT](https://finderatlas.com/tools/chatgpt.md) | Yes, in supported countries | Unlimited text chats; uploads, images and voice limited | Go, $8 |
| [Claude](https://finderatlas.com/tools/claude.md) | Not stated | Limits per five hours and per week | Pro, $20 |
| [Gemini](https://finderatlas.com/tools/gemini.md) | Some features | Limits reset every five hours, with a weekly cap | Google AI Plus, $4.99 |
| [Microsoft Copilot](https://finderatlas.com/tools/microsoft-copilot.md) | Yes | "Subject to available capacity and limits" | Microsoft 365 Personal, $9.99 |
| [Perplexity](https://finderatlas.com/tools/perplexity.md) | Some features | 3 or 5 Pro Searches a day (its help pages differ) | Pro, $17 billed annually |
| [Grok](https://finderatlas.com/tools/grok.md) | Not stated | "Limited" chat, voice and images | Plus, $8 |
| [Le Chat](https://finderatlas.com/tools/mistral-le-chat.md) | Not stated | Limited messages and web searches | Pro, $14.99 |
| [DeepSeek](https://finderatlas.com/tools/deepseek.md) | No | None stated | No paid chat plan |
| [Duck.ai](https://finderatlas.com/tools/duck-ai.md) | Yes | A daily limit | Plus, $9.99 |
| [Poe](https://finderatlas.com/tools/poe.md) | No | Daily points; amount not stated | $4.99 |

## What changed recently

- **ChatGPT shows ads on Free and Go.** OpenAI began testing ads in the US on 9 February 2026 and is rolling them out in more regions; accounts under 18 see none.
- **Claude stays ad-free.** Anthropic said on 4 February 2026 that "Claude will remain ad-free".
- **NotebookLM is now Gemini Notebook.** Google's help pages use the new name; the free plan allows 100 notebooks with 50 sources each.
- **You.com no longer offers a consumer chat app.** Its site now sells only search and inference APIs, so it is not in this list.

## Which model does each free plan use?

- **ChatGPT:** the pricing page lists GPT-6 Luna; OpenAI's help center says GPT-5.6 Luna and notes the default can change.
- **Claude:** Sonnet and Haiku. Opus and Fable are paid only.
- **Gemini:** the Flash-Lite model, with a 32K-token context window.
- **Copilot:** not named; an automatic picker chooses the model.
- **Perplexity:** "basic AI models", picked per query.
- **Duck.ai:** a choice of Claude 4.5 Haiku, GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.4 mini, Mistral Small 4, gpt-oss-120b and Gemma 4 31B.
- **Grok, Le Chat and DeepSeek:** not stated for free chat.

## What can you do for free?

**Free-plan features, as each vendor states them**

| Assistant | Image generation | File uploads | Deep research |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ChatGPT | Limited | Limited | Limited |
| Claude | Not stated | Not stated; can create files and run code | Not stated |
| Gemini | Yes | Not stated | Yes, may pause at busy times |
| Copilot | Yes, when signed in | Not stated | Not stated |
| Perplexity | No | Limited | 1 Research query a month |
| Duck.ai | Yes, daily cap | Images and PDFs up to 15 pages | Not stated |

Gemini's free plan is the most complete on paper: image generation, Deep Research, Gemini Live, Canvas and 15 GB of storage. Video generation is paid only.

## Do free plans use your chats for training?

**Training and ads on free plans**

| Assistant | Chats used for training by default | Ads | How to opt out of training |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| ChatGPT | Yes, depending on location and settings | Yes | Data controls, "Improve the model for everyone" |
| Claude | Only if you allow it | No | Settings, Privacy |
| Gemini | Yes, while Keep Activity is on | Chats are not used for ads | Turn off Keep Activity |
| Copilot | Yes, with exceptions by age and country | Yes, personalized unless you opt out | Copilot privacy controls |
| Perplexity | Yes, AI Data Retention is on | Not stated | Account preferences |
| Le Chat | Yes | Not stated | Data & Account Controls |
| DeepSeek | Yes, de-identified | Not stated | "Improve the model for everyone" |
| Duck.ai | No | Not stated | Not needed |

Copilot does not train on chats from users who are not signed in or are under 18. Gemini keeps chats for 72 hours even with Keep Activity off. [Gemini Notebook](https://finderatlas.com/tools/notebooklm.md) does not train on your notebooks unless you send feedback.

## Which free AI assistant should you use?

- **No account, most usage:** [ChatGPT](https://finderatlas.com/tools/chatgpt.md), with ads and training on by default.
- **Privacy first:** [Duck.ai](https://finderatlas.com/tools/duck-ai.md) needs no account and does not train on chats. [Claude](https://finderatlas.com/tools/claude.md) trains only if you allow it.
- **Research with sources:** [Perplexity](https://finderatlas.com/tools/perplexity.md), but Pro Searches are capped at a few a day.
- **Images, research and storage in one:** [Gemini](https://finderatlas.com/tools/gemini.md).
- **Studying your own documents:** [Gemini Notebook](https://finderatlas.com/tools/notebooklm.md), free for 100 notebooks of 50 sources.
- **No paid plan to push you toward:** [DeepSeek](https://finderatlas.com/tools/deepseek.md), though it needs an account.

[Qwen](https://finderatlas.com/tools/qwen.md) and [Z.ai](https://finderatlas.com/tools/z-ai.md) also show a chat box before you sign in, but neither publishes its free limits, and [Kimi](https://finderatlas.com/tools/kimi.md)'s pricing page shows no free tier at all. For paid plans, see [AI subscription prices](https://finderatlas.com/blog/ai-subscription-prices.md); for more options, browse [all AI assistants](https://finderatlas.com/categories/ai-assistants.md).

## How we checked

Every fact comes from the vendor's own pricing, help center or privacy pages, opened on 4 November 2026. We did not count messages ourselves, since limits change with demand. Where two official pages disagree, we show both.

## Frequently asked questions

**Which AI assistant has the best free plan?**

On paper, ChatGPT: unlimited text chats, no account needed in supported countries, and limited uploads, images, voice and deep research. It shows ads and uses chats for training by default. Gemini's free plan adds image generation, Deep Research and 15 GB of storage.

**Can I use an AI chatbot without signing up?**

Yes. ChatGPT (in supported countries), Microsoft Copilot and Duck.ai work without an account, and Gemini and Perplexity offer some features logged out. DeepSeek and Poe require an account.

**Is the free version of ChatGPT unlimited?**

Text chats are unlimited, subject to OpenAI's abuse guardrails. File uploads, image generation, voice and data analysis have separate limits, and the reset time is shown in the app.

**Which free AI chatbot does not use my data for training?**

Duck.ai says conversations are not used to train chat models. Claude uses chats for training only if you allow it. ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, Le Chat and DeepSeek train on free-plan chats by default, with an opt-out.

**Does Claude have a free plan?**

Yes. Claude Free includes the Sonnet and Haiku models, web search, file creation, code execution and memory, with usage limits that reset every five hours and weekly. Claude Code is not included.

## Sources

- [ChatGPT pricing](https://chatgpt.com/pricing/)
- [ChatGPT Free tier FAQ](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/9275245-chatgpt-free-tier-faq)
- [Ads in ChatGPT](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001047-ads-in-chatgpt)
- [Claude pricing](https://claude.com/pricing)
- [Anthropic: Claude is a space to think](https://www.anthropic.com/news/claude-is-a-space-to-think)
- [Claude: is my data used for training?](https://privacy.claude.com/en/articles/10023580-is-my-data-used-for-model-training)
- [Google AI plans](https://gemini.google/us/subscriptions/)
- [Gemini Apps privacy](https://support.google.com/gemini/answer/13594961?hl=en)
- [Microsoft Copilot privacy FAQ](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-copilot/privacy-faq-for-microsoft-copilot)
- [Perplexity plans](https://www.perplexity.ai/help-center/en/articles/11187416-which-perplexity-subscription-plan-is-right-for-you)
- [Perplexity data collection](https://www.perplexity.ai/help-center/en/articles/11564572-data-collection-at-perplexity)
- [Grok plans](https://x.ai/pricing)
- [Mistral pricing](https://mistral.ai/pricing)
- [Mistral: opting out of training](https://help.mistral.ai/en/articles/455207-can-i-opt-out-of-my-input-or-output-data-being-used-for-training)
- [DeepSeek terms of use](https://cdn.deepseek.com/policies/en-US/deepseek-terms-of-use.html)
- [Duck.ai usage limits](https://duckduckgo.com/duckduckgo-help-pages/duckai/usage-limits)
- [Duck.ai privacy](https://duckduckgo.com/duckduckgo-help-pages/duckai/ai-chat-privacy)
- [Poe FAQs](https://help.poe.com/hc/en-us/articles/19944206309524-Poe-FAQs)
- [Gemini Notebook plans](https://support.google.com/notebooklm/answer/16213268?hl=en)
- [You.com pricing](https://you.com/pricing)