A comparison of free versus paid AI plans in 2026 finds that ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Claude, and Perplexity are all useful without paying, with free plans handling writing, summarising, searching, file analysis, and everyday questions. Around $20 per month is now the standard price for a mainstream premium AI plan, with ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, Google AI Pro, and Perplexity Pro near that level, though they offer different value. The comparison uses official plan information checked on July 30, 2026. ChatGPT Plus costs $20/month, buying advanced reasoning, expanded messages and uploads, more image creation, deeper research, projects, tasks, custom GPTs, and Codex access. Google AI Pro costs ₹1,950/month in India, providing expanded Gemini limits, Deep Research, Gemini inside Google apps, creative tools, 5TB storage, and family sharing. Claude Pro costs $20/month, or about $17/month billed annually, offering at least five times more session usage, more models, Research, unlimited projects, Claude Code, and specialist Claude apps. Perplexity Pro costs $20/month or $200/year, providing more Pro Searches and Research, model selection, more citations, file analysis, image/video generation, and advanced creation tools. Except for Google’s verified Indian price, amounts are official US-dollar prices before local taxes. Free tiers include limited access, such as ChatGPT Free with limited access to its current general model,