Side-by-side comparison · Presentations & Docs
ChatPDF vs Gamma vs Quadratic
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 needs quick answers from a PDF, like a manual, report or contract, without reading the whole thing.
Pick it if: Anyone who dreads building slides and would rather start from a finished draft than a blank template.
Pick it if: Analysts, finance staff and founders who outgrow Excel and want AI to write the analysis in a sheet they can check.
Overview
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
|---|---|---|---|
| In one line | Upload a PDF and ask it questions, with answers that point to the page they came from. | Paste an outline and get a well-designed deck, doc or web page in minutes. | A spreadsheet where AI writes the formulas, Python and SQL to analyse your data. |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $0 | Free | $18/user/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Works with Claude Code | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Rating breakdown
Our scores out of 5. The higher bar in each row is highlighted.
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 3.9 | 4.5Winner | 4.0 |
| Ease of useHow quickly someone non-technical gets value from it. | 5.0 | 5.0 | 3.5 |
| FeaturesHow completely it covers its own job, and how well the pieces fit together. | 3.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 |
| Output qualityHow good the results are before you fix them. | 3.5 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
| Value for moneyWhat you get for the price, including the free plan. | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.0 |
| Speed & reliabilityHow fast it is and how often it falls over. | 4.0 | 4.5 | 4.0 |
Feature comparison
A tick means it does this today. A dash means we haven't checked.
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Access & platform | |||
| Free plan | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | No | Yes | No |
| Desktop app | Yes | No | No |
| Browser extension | No | No | – |
| API access | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Teams & business | |||
| Team workspace | No | Yes | Yes |
| Enterprise plan or SSO | – | Yes | Yes |
| Connects to other apps | No | Yes | Yes |
| Open source or self-hosted | No | No | Yes |
| AI abilities | |||
| Works with your files | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Understands images | – | – | – |
| Makes images | No | Yes | No |
| Makes video | No | No | No |
| Writes code | No | No | Yes |
| Runs agents or automations | No | Yes | Yes |
| Learns your brand or style | – | Yes | – |
| Works in many languages | Yes | Yes | – |
| Capabilities score | 5/ 17 | 11/ 17 | 9/ 17 |
Pricing
Plans as listed on each vendor's site when we last checked. Confirm before you buy.
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plans | Free $0 The occasional document. | Free Free Testing whether the output suits you. | Personal Free Trying it out or light personal analysis. |
PlusOur pick About $19.99/mo, cheaper billed yearly People who read lots of documents. | PlusOur pick See website Individuals who make a few decks a month. | ProOur pick $18/user/mo billed yearly Individuals and small teams doing regular analysis. | |
Pro See website People who present weekly or want analytics and the API. | Business $36/user/mo billed yearly Teams that lean on the AI every day. | ||
Ultra See website Heavy users running Gamma all day. | Enterprise Custom Larger companies with security and hosting rules. | ||
Business See website Companies that need admin controls and single sign-on. | |||
| Which plan to pick | Free is fine for a document or two a day. Before paying for Plus, try NotebookLM, which is free, or use Claude or ChatGPT if you already pay for one. | Use the free credits to make two or three decks and judge the output. If you'll keep using it, Plus is the sensible step because it removes the badge and refreshes credits monthly. Only move to Pro if you want the API, custom domains or viewer analytics. | Start on the free Personal plan with a real data set. If you use it every week, Pro is enough for most people; move to Business only if you keep running out of AI credits. Monthly billing costs about 10% more than the yearly prices shown. |
Key features
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
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Pros and cons
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
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Who each one is for
| Attribute | ChatPDF | Gamma | Quadratic |
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Questions people ask
Which is better, ChatPDF, Gamma or Quadratic?
Gamma scores highest overall in our ratings (ChatPDF 3.9/5, Gamma 4.5/5 and Quadratic 4.0/5). ChatPDF is best for quick questions about a single PDF and summarising reports and manuals. Gamma is best for pitch decks from notes and internal updates and proposals. Quadratic is best for asking big data sets questions in your own words and pulling live data from a company database.
Which is cheaper, ChatPDF, Gamma or Quadratic?
ChatPDF: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $0. Gamma: It's free to use. Quadratic: There's a free plan, and paid plans start at $18/user/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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