Side-by-side comparison · AI Assistants & LLMs
ChatGPT vs Claude vs Microsoft Copilot
Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.
Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.
At a glance
ChatGPT
4.3Pick it if: Anyone who wants one general-purpose assistant that handles most everyday jobs.
Claude
4.6Pick it if: Anyone who writes, researches or makes decisions for a living, plus anyone curious about Claude Code.
Microsoft Copilot
3.6Pick it if: Businesses and people who spend their day in Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams.
Overview
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | OpenAI's all-rounder: chat, images, voice, web search and agents in one app. | Anthropic's chat assistant, at its best on careful writing and long documents. | Microsoft's assistant, free on Windows and built into Word, Excel and Outlook. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $8/mo | $20/mo | $9.99/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | No | Yes | No |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.3 | 4.6Winner | 3.6 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.5 | 4.5 | 3.5 |
| FeaturesHow much it can do, and how well the pieces fit together. | 5.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 5.0 | 3.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.5 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.5 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Desktop app | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Browser extension | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| API access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Connects to other apps | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | No | No |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Makes images | Yes | No | Yes |
| Makes video | Yes | No | No |
| Writes code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | Yes | No |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 16/ 17 | 14/ 17 | 14/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Trying it out and everyday questions. | Free Free Trying it out and light daily use. | Free Free Trying Copilot chat on Windows or your phone. |
Go $8/mo Casual users who hit the free limits. | ProOur pick $20/mo, or $17/mo billed yearly Anyone who uses it most days. | Microsoft 365 Personal $9.99/mo, or $99.99/yr One person who wants Office plus some Copilot. | |
PlusOur pick $20/mo Anyone using it most days for work. | Max From $100/mo Heavy users and people living in Claude Code. | Microsoft 365 PremiumOur pick $19.99/mo, or $199.99/yr Sole traders and households who want the full Copilot in Office. | |
Pro From $100/mo Heavy users and people living in Codex. | Team From $20/seat/mo billed yearly Businesses with 2 to 150 people. | Microsoft 365 Copilot (business add-on) $30/user/mo billed yearly Businesses already on a Microsoft 365 business plan. | |
Business See website Teams from 2 people up. | |||
| Which plan to pick | The free plan is now good enough to use properly, so stay on it until the image, voice or research limits annoy you. Plus is the sensible upgrade. Only look at Pro if you run Codex or deep research all day, and read the current tier details first because they keep changing. | Start on Free to see if the writing suits you. Most people who stick with it move to Pro within a month; only go to Max if you hit the Pro limits every day or you're running Claude Code for hours at a time. | If you're a sole trader or a household already paying for Microsoft 365, Premium is the easy upgrade. For a business, the $30 add-on only makes sense for the people who live in Excel, Outlook and Teams meetings; give everyone else the free Copilot Chat and a Claude or ChatGPT seat. |
Key features
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | ChatGPT | Claude | Microsoft Copilot |
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How we compare
Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability. The "Visit" buttons may use affiliate links, which never affect a score.
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