Best AI Subscriptions in 2026: ChatGPT vs. Gemini vs. Claude and 5 More AIs

Quick verdict#

There is no single best AI for everyone. Depending on what you need:

If you are not sure, start with a free version and add a paid plan only once you hit a specific limit.

How much does an AI subscription cost in 2026?#

Paid plans usually add higher limits, more advanced models, deeper research, file handling, coding tools and automation. The differences are not only about the AI itself: Google adds cloud storage, Microsoft adds AI inside Office, Claude adds a coding agent and Perplexity adds research with citations.

Price overview#

Prices are shown in euros with the Czech koruna (CZK) amount in parentheses, which is the reference figure for Czech readers. For services priced in USD or CNY, both amounts are approximate conversions, not guaranteed prices at checkout. Google uses its official Czech price list directly. Exchange rate used: about 24.37 CZK per EUR and 1 USD ≈ 0.8926 EUR (ECB, as of the update date). Amounts are before any differences caused by tax or local billing.

How to read the “Yearly” column: rows marked ✓ have a real annual plan with a discount. For the others the yearly figure is simply twelve monthly payments, so there is no saving. Claude Max plans are billed monthly. For Kimi, the final annual price is shown at checkout; the vendor advertises savings of up to 1,680 CNY (about €224 or 5,461 CZK). Official prices change over time, so check them on the linked pages before you buy.

Where annual billing really pays off#

• Claude Pro and Perplexity Pro: the 200 USD annual plan saves about €35.70 (870 CZK) compared with paying monthly.
• Perplexity Max: the saving comes to about €357 (8,700 CZK).
• Microsoft 365: annual billing saves about 17%.
• Mistral Vibe Pro: annual billing includes a 20% discount, a saving of about €32 (782 CZK).

ChatGPT: a general-purpose AI for everyday work#

Official ChatGPT pricing

ChatGPT from OpenAI is a general-purpose assistant for writing, documents, data analysis, voice, images, research and coding. With Plus you get higher limits, advanced models, deeper research, projects, scheduled tasks, custom GPTs and coding tools including Codex (depending on currently available features). The personal plans have no annual discount.

MCP (Model Context Protocol) lets you connect external tools and data sources, but the scope of support depends on the plan and the specific implementation.

Pros: one AI for a huge range of tasks, work with files and documents, projects and custom GPTs.

Cons: limits change by model and feature, no annual discount, and you need to check privacy settings before uploading company data.

Best for: users who want one general-purpose AI for work, content creation, documents and coding.

Google Gemini: AI, cloud and developer tools#

Official Czech Google AI pricing · Google One

Google Gemini is more than a chatbot. The subscription combines AI with cloud storage, Google apps and developer tools. The prices in the table are Google’s official Czech prices converted to euros; no annual discount was confirmed, so the yearly figure is twelve monthly payments.

Why Google AI Pro is interesting

1. 5 TB of cloud storage for Google Drive, Gmail and Google Photos. This is the biggest practical advantage in the whole comparison: if you already pay for cloud storage, 5 TB bundled with the AI plan can offset a large part of the price.
2. Gemini inside Google apps: selected AI features are connected to Gmail, Docs, Sheets and other services.
3. Google Antigravity and Jules: an environment for agent-based development with AI and a tool for working with repositories, with higher limits in the AI Pro plan.
4. Research, images and video: higher limits for Gemini, Deep Research, Google Flow and other tools.

Cons: if you do not need Google’s cloud, the value of the bundle drops; limits vary by plan; Ultra is very expensive for everyday use; some features may not be available in every region.

Best for: Google users, people with large amounts of files and developers who use Antigravity.

Claude: coding, analysis and MCP#

Official Claude pricing

Claude from Anthropic is well suited to writing, analysing long documents, complex tasks and software development. Its main strength is Claude Code, which lets you work on a project directly in the terminal or development environment. Pro includes higher limits, projects, research tools, connections to supported apps and support for remote MCP servers. MCP lets Claude connect to external tools; the exact possibilities depend on the integration and the permissions granted.

Claude Pro costs 200 USD with annual billing before any taxes, which works out to about €14.87 (362 CZK) per month. Max plans with higher limits are billed monthly.

Pros: Claude Code included in Pro, great for complex tasks and code, a real annual discount on Pro.

Cons: heavy use can burn through limits quickly; Max is much more expensive than Pro and has no annual discount.

Best for: programmers and technically minded users who work on larger projects and want to use Claude Code.

Microsoft Copilot: AI inside Word, Excel and Outlook#

Copilot for free · Microsoft 365 plans with Copilot

Microsoft Copilot is an assistant that works both as a standalone app and as AI inside Office. The basic version is free with a Microsoft account. Paid Copilot is no longer sold as a separate subscription: Microsoft discontinued Copilot Pro and built the AI directly into the Microsoft 365 plans.

The prices are conversions of the US price list (9.99 / 12.99 / 19.99 USD per month, 99.99 / 129.99 / 199.99 USD per year). In European stores Microsoft may charge a different, higher amount (media reports put Premium at around €22 per month), so check the price at checkout before you buy.

Personal and Family include Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook with limited usage. Premium adds the highest limits and exclusive features such as Researcher, Analyst and Actions. Storage is 1 TB per person. Copilot features are tied to the subscription owner and cannot be shared with other family members.

Pros: AI directly in the apps many people already use; the full Office suite and 1 TB of storage per person; a free version; Premium is cheaper than the former Microsoft 365 plus Copilot Pro combination.

Cons: the whole family cannot share Copilot; without Office the value is lower; as a standalone chatbot or coding tool it is not as strong as ChatGPT or Claude.

Best for: people who work in Word, Excel and Outlook every day. If you already pay for Microsoft 365, Copilot is included in your plan and the only question is whether an upgrade to Premium is worth it.

Kimi: AI agents and automation of complex tasks#

Official Kimi pricing

Kimi from Moonshot AI combines everyday assistance with tools for deep research, document work, website building and coding through Kimi Code. Its Agent Swarm, which runs several agents in parallel, is especially interesting. Prices are approximate conversions from the official price list in Chinese yuan; check the exact annual prices at checkout.

Pros: a wide set of agent tools, some tasks run in parallel, annual billing can bring a significant saving.

Cons: features share a credit pool, so one demanding task can use up capacity for other tools; the top plan is expensive.

Best for: users who want to automate multi-step tasks and make use of AI agents.

Grok: up-to-date information and multimedia creation#

Official Grok pricing

Grok from xAI focuses on up-to-date information from the web and the X platform. It also offers voice features and image and video generation. Prices are converted from USD, and the price list shows no separate annual discount.

Pros: searches current information from the web and X, voice features, image and video generation.

Cons: without X and multimedia features the advantages are limited; the higher plan is expensive; current information still needs to be verified.

Best for: users who follow current events and want multimedia features together with an AI assistant.

Perplexity: research and search with sources#

Official Perplexity pricing

Perplexity focuses on search and research. Its answers include links to sources, so it is easier to check where the information comes from. Pro costs 20 USD per month or 200 USD per year, which works out to about €14.87 (362 CZK) per month. Max is meant for intensive use; confirm the final price at checkout.

Pros: citations and links to sources, advanced models, work with files and documents, a real annual discount.

Cons: citations do not guarantee that every conclusion is correct; some features overlap with ChatGPT and Gemini; Max is very expensive for ordinary use.

Best for: people who search for information regularly, compare sources and prepare research.

Mistral Vibe: a European AI for work and coding#

Official Mistral pricing · Annual billing information

Mistral Vibe combines everyday AI assistance with agent-based coding and multi-step tasks. It supports working with code in the editor and terminal as well as connectors to other apps. The amounts are based on the official price of 14.99 USD per month converted at the ECB rate; Mistral confirms a 20% discount for annual billing of Pro and Team, and the final price in euros may differ at checkout.

Pros: a European provider, a work assistant and a coding agent in one, a 20% annual discount.

Cons: paid plans have usage limits; some integrations are still in development; without coding, part of the value goes unused.

Best for: users who want to combine work with AI, agent tasks and coding.

Is it worth paying for more than one AI, and is annual billing better?#

Two AIs make sense if you use each for a different purpose. ChatGPT Plus plus Claude Pro works when you want a general-purpose assistant and also develop heavily with Claude Code. Google AI Pro wins if you also need 5 TB of cloud storage. Microsoft 365 with Copilot makes sense if you work in Office every day. Two general-purpose AIs used for the same tasks, on the other hand, are a waste of money.

Annual billing pays off where the vendor really offers a discount (Claude Pro, Perplexity, Mistral, Microsoft 365) and where you use the service regularly. With a new service it is sensible to start with monthly billing so you can check quality and limits. A yearly cost calculated as 12 monthly payments is not the same as a discounted annual plan.

Conclusion: don’t pay for an AI you don’t use#

ChatGPT Plus is the all-round choice for everyday work. Google AI Pro stands out with AI plus 5 TB of storage, Claude Pro suits coding and integrations, Microsoft 365 with Copilot suits Office work, Kimi suits agent tasks, Grok suits current information, Perplexity suits research and Mistral Vibe suits a mix of work and development. The most expensive plan is not necessarily the best, and annual billing only pays off if you use the service often enough.

If your company keeps retyping data, processing documents or connecting different tools, the next step may be automation or a custom internal app.

Need to connect AI to a business process or build a custom tool? Let’s talk about it with SEMAKOD.

Official sources#

• ChatGPT: official pricing
• Google AI: Czech subscriptions
• Google One: storage and AI benefits
• Claude: pricing
• Microsoft Copilot
• Microsoft 365: plans for home
• Kimi: membership pricing
• Grok: official pricing
• Perplexity: pricing
• Mistral: pricing
• Mistral: annual billing
• ECB: euro foreign exchange reference rates

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed editorially by SEMAKOD, including verification of the technical information’s accuracy as of the publication date.