What these tools do and who needs them
An AI chatbot is a helper you talk to by typing. It can draft an email, tidy your notes, translate, explain the news, plan a trip or look things up like a search engine. If you have never used an AI tool, this is the easiest place to start: nothing to install, no commands to learn. This category covers three kinds: general assistants such as ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini; search-style tools that cite their sources, such as Perplexity and Felo; and hubs that let one account switch between many models, such as Poe, Monica and OpenRouter.
Three common free-tier traps
1. The free “limit” often has no number. Many pricing pages just say “limited”. ChatGPT’s official page has never published a daily message count for the free plan, and Grok’s free usage is not published either. AMPM does not guess when a vendor does not publish, so “not published” on a tool page means exactly that.
2. The free model is usually not the best model. Free plans typically give a lighter or slower version; the flagship is paid. Gemini’s page says free access to its Pro model “may change”. For short questions and emails the free tier is fine; the gap shows up on long documents and hard reasoning.
3. Credit systems run out faster than “messages per day”. Hubs bill in credits, and different models cost different amounts. Poe’s daily free credits dropped from about 3,000 to about 300 at the end of March 2026, so a few calls to an expensive model empty it. Also check how the limit resets: Claude’s free tier uses a rolling five-hour window, not a fixed daily reset.
How to choose: three plain rules
- Decide whether you need cited sources. For chatting and drafting, a general assistant is enough; for facts and reports, pick a tool that links its sources.
- Use the free tier for two weeks first. All 14 tools here have one. Run your real daily tasks through it and upgrade only when you actually hit the wall.
- Check whether you are paying a subscription or per use. 11 tools here are fixed monthly subscriptions; 3 (DeepSeek, OpenRouter, Groq) bill by usage, which suits occasional users who do not want a fixed monthly fee.
Category numbers (from the AMPM database, computed 2026-09-12)
- Tools listed: 14, all active.
- With a free tier: 14 (100%).
- With a fixed monthly plan: 10; the cheapest monthly plan per tool ranges from US$4.99 to US$20 (lowest: Gemini and Poe at US$4.99; highest: Claude at US$20).
- Billing model: subscription 11, usage-based 3.
- Card requirement: Groq’s official docs state no card is needed for the free plan; for the others, see the free-tier field on each tool page.
Read on
How we read every pricing page ourselves and why we ignore second-hand numbers: guides. Side-by-side plans: price comparison. Tools you can use without paying: free list.
