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Side-by-side comparison · AI Assistants & LLMs

ChatGPT vs Duck.ai vs GPT-6 Astra

Everything that matters when choosing between them, in one place: our rating, what each can do, what they cost, and the trade-offs.

Best overall

ChatGPT

4.3

From $8/mo

Duck.ai

4.0

From $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr

GPT-6 Astra

3.8

From $20/mo

Comparing 3 tools, the maximum.

At a glance

Best overall

Pick it if: Anyone who wants one general-purpose assistant that handles most everyday jobs.

Best value

Pick it if: Anyone who wants quick AI help without an account or a record of what they asked.

Pick it if: Power users and editors who want an AI that can operate their software for them.

ChatGPT scores highest overall, but Duck.ai gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.

Overview

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
In one lineOpenAI's all-rounder: chat, images, voice, web search and agents in one app.DuckDuckGo's private AI chat: no account, no stored prompts, free to use.OpenAI's top model, built to work your computer for you across long, multi-step jobs.
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemiumPaid
Starting price$8/mo$9.99/mo or $99.99/yr$20/mo
Free plan Yes Yes No
Works with Claude Code No No No

Rating breakdown

Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Overall rating4.3Winner4.03.8
Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it.
4.5
4.5
3.0
FeaturesHow completely it covers the job it's built for, and how well the pieces fit together.
5.0
3.0
4.5
Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them.
4.0
3.5
5.0
Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan.
4.0
4.5
3.0
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.

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Access & platform
Free plan Yes Yes No
Mobile app Yes Yes Yes
Desktop app Yes Yes Yes
Browser extension Yes Yes Yes
API access Yes No Yes
Teams & business
Team workspace Yes No Yes
Enterprise plan or SSO Yes No Yes
Connects to other apps Yes No 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 Yes Yes
Makes video No No No
Writes code Yes Yes Yes
Runs agents or automations Yes No Yes
Learns your brand or style Yes No Yes
Works in many languages Yes Yes Yes
Capabilities score15/ 179/ 1714/ 17

Pricing

Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Plans

Free

Free

Trying it out and everyday questions.

FreeOur pick

Free

Quick private questions with no sign-up.

ChatGPT Plus

$20/mo

Trying Astra in Codex and ChatGPT Work.

Go

$8/mo

Casual users who hit the free limits.

Plus

$9.99/mo or $99.99/yr

Regular users who also want a VPN.

ChatGPT ProOur pick

From $100/mo

People who want Astra and Astra Pro everywhere.

PlusOur pick

$20/mo

Anyone using it most days for work.

Pro

$19.99/mo or $199.99/yr

People who want the top models privately.

ChatGPT Business

See website

Teams that want Astra Pro with admin controls.

Pro

From $100/mo

Heavy users and people living in Codex.

API

$10 per million input tokens, $50 per million output

Developers building Astra into their own software.

Business

See website

Teams from 2 people up.

Which plan to pickThe 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: Pro 200 now comes with a smaller allowance than it did before 29 September.Stay on Free unless you also want a VPN. Plus is good value if you'd pay for a VPN anyway. Pro is $19.99, the same as ChatGPT Plus or Claude Pro, so only pick it if anonymity matters more to you than features.Don't buy a plan for Astra alone. If you're on Plus, try it in Codex first. Move to Pro only if you've got real computer-use or long agent jobs for it, and start on the $100 tier. For most writing and research, GPT-6.1 Sol or the standard models are faster and good enough.

Key features

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Standout features
  • Image generation and editing
  • Voice mode
  • Deep research
  • ChatGPT Work
  • Plugins and connectors
  • Codex and Sites
  • No account needed
  • Anonymised prompts
  • Choice of models
  • Voice chat and images
  • Local chat history
  • Built into the browser
  • Computer use
  • Long multi-step jobs
  • Astra Pro
  • Codex
  • API access

Pros and cons

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Pros
  • The widest set of built-in tools of any assistant
  • Free plan includes unlimited text chat with GPT-6 Luna
  • Image generation and voice mode are the best in the category
  • Huge ecosystem of plugins, connectors and guides
  • One subscription covers the Codex coding agent too
  • No account, and prompts are anonymised and not used for training
  • Free access to models from OpenAI, Anthropic and Mistral in one place
  • Fast, clean and easy for anyone to use
  • Paid plans bundle a VPN and identity protection
  • The strongest computer-use and agent model available
  • Works through long jobs without hand-holding
  • Included in paid ChatGPT plans rather than sold separately
  • Best coding results of any OpenAI model to date
Cons
  • Writing sounds generic unless you work hard on the prompt
  • Plans and limits change often, and Pro now runs to $500 a month
  • Free and Go plans may show ads
  • It's confident when it's wrong, so check facts before you publish
  • Custom GPTs are being retired, so anything built on them needs moving to plugins
  • Free models are the small versions, so answers trail paid ChatGPT or Claude
  • No projects, connectors or spreadsheet uploads, and PDFs are capped at 15 to 50 pages
  • Usage limits aren't published as numbers
  • Privacy rests on DuckDuckGo's contracts with the AI companies, and some users report chat sync errors between devices
  • Only on paid plans, and full access needs Pro from $100 a month
  • Slower and far more expensive per token than the standard models
  • Already overtaken for most tasks by the cheaper GPT-6.1 Sol
  • Computer use is still fiddly and results depend heavily on your setup
  • Rollout and plan access keep changing, so what you get varies week to week

Who each one is for

AttributeChatGPTDuck.aiGPT-6 Astra
Best for
  • Everyday questions and brainstorming
  • Making and editing images in the chat
  • Voice conversations on your phone
  • Quick research with web search
  • Quick private questions
  • Using AI without signing up
  • A shared or work computer
  • Voice chat and simple image making
  • Driving editing software from instructions
  • Long research and build tasks
  • Computer-use automation
  • Coding through Codex
You'll find it used by
  • Marketers
  • Small business owners
  • Students
  • Developers
  • Privacy-minded professionals
  • DuckDuckGo users
  • Casual AI users
  • Students
  • Power users
  • Video editors
  • Developers
  • Analysts

Questions people ask

Which is better, ChatGPT, Duck.ai or GPT-6 Astra?

ChatGPT scores highest overall in our ratings (ChatGPT 4.3/5, Duck.ai 4.0/5 and GPT-6 Astra 3.8/5). ChatGPT is best for everyday questions and brainstorming and making and editing images in the chat. Duck.ai is best for quick private questions and Using AI without signing up. GPT-6 Astra is best for driving editing software from instructions and long research and build tasks.

Which is cheaper, ChatGPT, Duck.ai or GPT-6 Astra?

ChatGPT: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $8/mo. Duck.ai: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $9.99/mo or $99.99/yr. GPT-6 Astra: There's no free plan. Paid plans start at $20/mo.

How we compare

Ratings are our own, from using each tool, across ease of use, features, output quality, value for money, speed & reliability.

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