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Gemini Notebook vs Z.ai Chat

Features, pricing, ratings, and pros and cons, side by side.

Gemini Notebook logo

Gemini Notebook

Google's Gemini Notebook, formerly NotebookLM, answers questions and builds summaries from your own sources

Freemium
Visit websiteView details
Z.ai Chat logo

Z.ai Chat

Free GLM-powered AI chatbot and agent from Zhipu AI for writing, coding and research

Freemium
Visit websiteView details

Verdict

Gemini Notebook and Z.ai Chat are both AI Assistants tools. Gemini Notebook scores higher in FinderAtlas's editorial review (8.7 vs 8.0 out of 10). Both have a free plan or trial. Only Gemini Notebook is available on iOS and Android. Only Z.ai Chat offers an API.

Best overall

Gemini Notebook

  • Students
  • Researchers
  • Educators
  • Analysts

Choose Gemini Notebook if

  • You want a tool built for summarizing and questioning your own documents.
  • Answers cite the uploaded sources, so claims can be checked against the original text.
  • Free Standard tier with 100 notebooks and 50 sources per notebook.

Choose Z.ai Chat if

  • You want a tool built for trying GLM models at no cost, drafting and summarizing text, coding questions, low-cost API experimentation.
  • Free web chat with recent GLM models and no subscription needed.
  • Low per-token API prices, such as $0.15 input and $0.50 output per 1M tokens for GLM-5.3-Flash.
Best for beginners
Z.ai Chat
Best for business
Z.ai Chat

Features

17 features compared.

  • Source-grounded chat
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Audio Overviews
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Video Overviews
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Study tools
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Reports, slide decks and infographics
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Multiple source types
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Cloud computer
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Gemini app sync
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • Sharing and public notebooks
    Gemini Notebook
    Available
    Z.ai Chat
    Not available
  • GLM Chat
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Agent Capabilities
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Vision Understanding
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Coding Assistance
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • GLM Coding Plan
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Web Search and Web Reader MCP
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Z.ai API Platform
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available
  • Open-Weights Models
    Gemini Notebook
    Not available
    Z.ai Chat
    Available

Pricing

Plans as listed by each vendor. Check their sites for current prices.

  • Pricing model
    Gemini Notebook
    Freemium
    Z.ai Chat
    Freemium
  • Free plan
    Gemini Notebook
    Yes
    Z.ai Chat
    Yes
  • Starting price
    Gemini Notebook
    $0
    Z.ai Chat
    $0
  • Plans
    Gemini Notebook
    5 plans
    Z.ai Chat
    4 plans

Gemini Notebook plans

  • Standard

    $0

    Free with a Google Account

    • 100 notebooks
    • 50 sources per notebook
    • Audio Overviews
    • Chat with citations

  • Plus

    $4.99/month

    Through the Google AI Plus subscription

    • 200 notebooks
    • 100 sources per notebook
    • Early access to features
    • 2x higher usage than Free

  • Pro

    Most popular

    $19.99/month

    Through the Google AI Pro subscription

    • 500 notebooks
    • 300 sources per notebook
    • Higher Gemini model access
    • Priority access to new features
    • Watermark removal
    • 4x higher usage than Free

  • Ultra 5x

    $99.99/month

    Through the Google AI Ultra subscription

    • 500 notebooks
    • 500 sources per notebook
    • Highest Gemini model access
    • 5x higher usage limits than AI Pro
    • Cloud computer for code execution

  • Ultra 20x

    $199.99/month

    Through the Google AI Ultra subscription at the higher tier

    • 500 notebooks
    • 600 sources per notebook
    • Highest Gemini model access
    • 20x higher usage limits than AI Pro
    • Cloud computer for code execution

Z.ai Chat plans

  • Chat (Free)

    $0

    Web chat with GLM models at chat.z.ai

    • Web chat
    • GLM-5.3-Flash
    • agent features

  • GLM Coding Lite

    $18/month

    Lightweight coding workloads

    • 2,000 credits per 5 hours
    • 10,000 credits per week
    • GLM-5.3 and GLM-5.3-Flash

  • GLM Coding Pro

    $80/month

    Professional coding workloads

    • 12,000 credits per 5 hours
    • 60,000 credits per week
    • Vision
    • Web Search and Web Reader MCP

  • GLM Coding Max

    $168/month

    High-volume coding workloads

    • 28,000 credits per 5 hours
    • 140,000 credits per week
    • Vision
    • Web Search and Web Reader MCP

Our ratings

Scored out of 10 by the Finder Atlas editorial team. Last reviewed November 2026.

Gemini Notebook
8.7overall
Z.ai Chat
8.0overall

Gemini Notebook leads in 0 categories and Z.ai Chat in 1.

  • Grounded Citation Fidelity

    Gemini Notebook
    8.8
    Z.ai Chat
    Not rated

  • Audio Overview Quality

    Gemini Notebook
    8.7
    Z.ai Chat
    Not rated

  • Source Handling

    Gemini Notebook
    8.6
    Z.ai Chat
    Not rated

  • Output Formats

    Gemini Notebook
    8.8
    Z.ai Chat
    Not rated

  • Value for Money

    Z.ai Chat leads by 0.3
    Gemini Notebook
    8.5
    Z.ai Chat
    8.8

  • Ease of Use

    Gemini Notebook
    Not rated
    Z.ai Chat
    8.0

  • Feature Depth

    Gemini Notebook
    Not rated
    Z.ai Chat
    7.8

  • Performance & Speed

    Gemini Notebook
    Not rated
    Z.ai Chat
    8.0

  • Documentation & Support

    Gemini Notebook
    Not rated
    Z.ai Chat
    7.5

Scores weigh documented features, plan value, platform coverage, integrations and user feedback. A missing score means we have not rated that area yet.

Pros and cons

Gemini Notebook

Pros

  • Answers cite the uploaded sources, so claims can be checked against the original text
  • Free Standard tier with 100 notebooks and 50 sources per notebook
  • Wide range of outputs, including Audio Overviews, Video Overviews, mind maps, flashcards, quizzes and slide decks
  • Accepts PDFs, websites, YouTube videos, audio files, Google Docs and Google Slides
  • Available on web, iOS and Android, and synced with the Gemini app

Cons

  • Works from the sources you add and is not built for live web news search
  • Higher limits require a Google AI subscription; Ultra starts at $99.99 per month
  • The cloud computer for code execution started with Ultra and Workspace AI Ultra Access customers, with Pro rollout still described as upcoming
  • No public API for the consumer product, and the renamed brand can make older guides and app listings confusing

Z.ai Chat

Pros

  • Free web chat with recent GLM models and no subscription needed.
  • Low per-token API prices, such as $0.15 input and $0.50 output per 1M tokens for GLM-5.3-Flash.
  • Many GLM models are open-weights, so they can be self-hosted.
  • The Coding Plan works with 20+ existing coding agent tools rather than locking users into one editor.
  • Vision, search and reader tools are included in Coding Plan tiers.

Cons

  • No confirmed official native iOS or Android app for the chat.
  • Coding Plan terms have changed several times (legacy plans replaced by credits on July 30, 2026), which makes usage harder to predict.
  • Service is operated by a China-based company, which may be a concern for data-residency-sensitive users.
  • Free chat usage limits are not publicly documented.

Platforms

  • Web
    Gemini Notebook
    Supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Supported
  • Windows
    Gemini Notebook
    Not supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Not supported
  • macOS
    Gemini Notebook
    Not supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Not supported
  • iOS
    Gemini Notebook
    Supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Not supported
  • Android
    Gemini Notebook
    Supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Not supported
  • API
    Gemini Notebook
    Not supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Supported
  • Browser Extension
    Gemini Notebook
    Not supported
    Z.ai Chat
    Not supported

Integrations

Gemini Notebook

4 integrations
  • Google Docs
  • Google Slides
  • YouTube
  • Gemini app

Z.ai Chat

7 integrations
  • Claude Code
  • Codex
  • Cline
  • Kilo Code
  • OpenCode
  • ZCode
  • OpenClaw

Company

  • Company
    Gemini Notebook
    Google LLC
    Z.ai Chat
    Z.ai (Zhipu AI)
  • Founded
    Gemini Notebook
    1998
    Z.ai Chat
    2019
  • Headquarters
    Gemini Notebook
    Mountain View, CA
    Z.ai Chat
    Beijing, China
  • Monthly users
    Gemini Notebook
    30M+
    Z.ai Chat
    Not listed
  • Listing
    Gemini Notebook
    Claimed
    Z.ai Chat
    Claimed

Frequently asked questions

Is Gemini Notebook better than Z.ai Chat?

It depends on your workflow. Gemini Notebook is built for summarizing and questioning your own documents. Z.ai Chat is built for trying GLM models at no cost, drafting and summarizing text, coding questions, low-cost API experimentation.

What are the key feature differences between Gemini Notebook and Z.ai Chat?

Gemini Notebook: Google's Gemini Notebook, formerly NotebookLM, answers questions and builds summaries from your own sources. Z.ai Chat: Free GLM-powered AI chatbot and agent from Zhipu AI for writing, coding and research.

Does Gemini Notebook or Z.ai Chat have a free plan?

Yes, both do. Gemini Notebook is freemium and Z.ai Chat is freemium, and each has a free plan or trial.

Which is cheaper, Gemini Notebook or Z.ai Chat?

Both can be used for free. Paid plans differ in limits and features, so compare the tiers in the pricing table above.