Side-by-side comparison · AI Assistants & LLMs
ChatGPT vs LMArena vs Perplexity
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
Pick it if: Anyone who wants one general-purpose assistant that handles most everyday jobs.
Pick it if: Anyone choosing between AI tools, and people who want to know which model is leading right now.
Pick it if: Anyone who researches as part of their job and is sick of having ten tabs open.
ChatGPT scores highest overall, but LMArena gives you more for your money. Which one is right comes down to what you value most.
Overview
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | OpenAI's all-rounder: chat, images, voice, web search and agents in one app. | Free site where you compare AI models side by side and see which ones people rate best. | Ask a question and get a short answer from the web, with links to every source. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Free | Freemium |
| Starting price | $8/mo | Free | $17/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | No | No | Yes |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.3Winner | 3.8 | 4.2 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 4.5 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 5.0 | 4.0 | 3.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 4.0 | 3.5 | 4.5 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 3.0 | 4.5 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | No | Yes |
| Desktop app | Yes | No | Yes |
| Browser extension | Yes | No | 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 | Yes | Yes |
| Writes code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | Yes | No | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | Yes | No | No |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Capabilities score | 15/ 17 | 7/ 17 | 15/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free Free Trying it out and everyday questions. | FreeOur pick Free Everyone. | Free Free Everyday questions and quick fact-checks. |
Go $8/mo Casual users who hit the free limits. | ProOur pick $17/mo billed yearly Anyone who researches as part of their job. | ||
PlusOur pick $20/mo Anyone using it most days for work. | Max $167/mo billed yearly Power users running the Computer agent all day. | ||
Pro From $100/mo Heavy users and people living in Codex. | Enterprise Pro $34/seat/mo billed yearly Teams that need admin controls and data protection. | ||
Business See website Teams from 2 people up. | Enterprise Max $271/seat/mo billed yearly Research teams working with large datasets and files. | ||
| 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: Pro 200 now comes with a smaller allowance than it did before 29 September. | There's nothing to buy. Use it free, and pay for whichever assistant comes out best for your work. | Start free and see how often you hit the Pro search limit. If you research most days, Pro pays for itself in saved tabs. Its 4,000 bonus Computer credits are a one-off and run out after about 30 days, so don't count them as a monthly allowance. Max only makes sense if you're using the Computer agent heavily enough to burn through the credits. |
Key features
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | ChatGPT | LMArena | Perplexity |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, ChatGPT, LMArena or Perplexity?
ChatGPT scores highest overall in our ratings (ChatGPT 4.3/5, LMArena 3.8/5 and Perplexity 4.2/5). ChatGPT is best for everyday questions and brainstorming and making and editing images in the chat. LMArena is best for choosing between AI models with your own prompts and checking which model leads after a launch. Perplexity is best for fact-checking and quick research and competitor and market research.
Which is cheaper, ChatGPT, LMArena or Perplexity?
ChatGPT: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $8/mo. LMArena: It's free to use. Perplexity: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $17/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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