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ChatGPT vs Perplexity

The short answer. These are different tools. ChatGPT is for creating and thinking things through. Perplexity is for looking things up, with links to the sources so you can check them.

Which one should you pick?

Choose ChatGPT if

  • You want to write, rewrite, plan or brainstorm
  • You want to upload a file and work on it
  • You need images or voice chat

Choose Perplexity if

  • You are researching a question and want to see where the answer came from
  • You compare products or prices before buying
  • You want a quick, sourced summary of recent news

A common setup is Perplexity for finding facts and ChatGPT or Claude for turning them into a text.

Side by side
ChatGPT
Perplexity
Free plan
Yes
Yes
Price
Free plan. Go (price varies by country), Plus $20/month, Pro from $100/month.
Free plan. Pro $17/month and Max $167/month when billed yearly.
Skill needed
No coding
No coding
Made by
OpenAI
Perplexity AI
The details

ChatGPT

by OpenAI

A chat assistant you type or talk to that writes, explains, answers questions and makes images.

People use it to

  • Draft emails, letters and posts
  • Explain a confusing topic in simple words
  • Summarize a long document you upload

What it costs

Free plan. Go (price varies by country), Plus $20/month, Pro from $100/month.

Good to know

It can state wrong facts confidently, so check anything important. Your chats can be used to train models unless you opt out in settings. The Go plan may show ads.

Open ChatGPTHow to start

Perplexity

by Perplexity AI

An AI search engine that answers questions in plain words and shows the web sources it used.

People use it to

  • Research a question and see linked sources
  • Compare products or prices before buying
  • Get a quick summary of recent news

What it costs

Free plan. Pro $17/month and Max $167/month when billed yearly.

Good to know

It shows sources, but the summary can misread them. Open the sources for anything that matters.

Open PerplexityHow to start

Prices as listed by each company when we last checked; they change often and can differ by country. Spotted something wrong?

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