Small Town Sysadmin
Free CJIS checklist

AI guidesCompareFor everyone11 min read

ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot compared

The major AI assistants side by side as of October 2026: plans and prices, whether they train on your chats by default, business versions, features and where they run. Facts only, from the vendors' own pages.

Last checked:

This guide compares the major AI assistants using only what each company publishes on its own pricing, help and privacy pages. It deliberately avoids “which one is smartest” opinions, which change with every release and depend on the task. Instead it covers the things you can check: what each costs, what happens to your conversations, what the business versions add, and where each one runs.

Everything here was checked on October 23, 2026, except where noted below. A few vendor pages (OpenAI’s Business and model pages, Microsoft’s business Copilot page, and xAI’s pricing page) could not be opened during this check, so those details are as last confirmed on October 3. Prices are US list prices before tax and change often, so confirm on the linked page before you buy. This guide is re-checked every two weeks.

Disclosure: Small Town Sysadmin uses Claude, made by Anthropic, to help research and draft its content. That’s one reason this comparison sticks to facts each vendor publishes rather than opinions. No AI company sponsors this site or pays for placement.

At a glance

ChatGPT Claude Gemini Microsoft Copilot
Made by OpenAI Anthropic Google Microsoft
Free version Yes Yes Yes Yes (limited)
Main paid plan for one person Plus, $20/mo Pro, $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly) Google AI Pro, $19.99/mo Included in Microsoft 365 Personal, $9.99/mo
Business version ChatGPT Business, $25/user/mo ($20 billed yearly) Claude Team, $25/seat/mo ($20 billed yearly) Gemini in Google Workspace; Gemini Enterprise from $21/seat/mo (Business edition) Copilot Chat included with eligible Microsoft 365 business plans; full Microsoft 365 Copilot is extra
Personal chats used to train models by default? Yes, unless you turn it off You choose in privacy settings Yes, while “Keep Activity” is on Yes for signed-in personal accounts, with exceptions; you can turn it off
Business chats used for training by default? No No No No
Makes images? Yes No (makes charts and diagrams) Yes Yes

ChatGPT (OpenAI)

Plans. Free; Go at $8 a month; Plus at $20 a month; and Pro starting at $100 a month (with $200 and $500 tiers). ChatGPT Business is for teams of 2 or more people: a standard seat is $25 per user per month billed monthly, or $20 billed yearly. Enterprise pricing is by quote. OpenAI announced in January 2026 that it would test ads on the Free and Go plans, with paid plans above them staying ad-free.

Models. OpenAI’s help center says GPT-5.6 Luna is becoming the default on Free and Go, and GPT-5.6 Sol is the standard model on Plus, Pro and Business, with GPT-6 models available on higher tiers.

Your data. On Free, Go, Plus and Pro, conversations are used to train OpenAI’s models by default. To turn that off, go to Settings → Data controls and switch off Improve the model for everyone. Temporary Chat keeps a conversation out of your history and out of training, though OpenAI may keep it up to 30 days for safety. OpenAI says it does not train on Business, Enterprise or Edu workspace content by default. Deleted chats are scheduled for permanent deletion within 30 days.

Features. Paid plans include voice, image generation, file uploads and in-depth research reports. Connectors can link ChatGPT to services such as Google Drive, SharePoint, Outlook, Teams, Slack and GitHub, depending on plan and admin settings.

Where it runs. Web, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android.

Age. 13 and up; under 18 needs a parent’s or guardian’s permission.

Claude (Anthropic)

Plans. Free; Pro at $20 a month or $17 a month billed yearly; and Max, starting at $100 a month, for heavy use. Claude Team is for 2 to 150 people: a standard seat is $25 per month billed monthly, or $20 billed yearly. Enterprise is $20 per seat per month billed yearly, with a 20-seat minimum, plus usage billed at API rates.

Models. The Free plan uses Anthropic’s Sonnet and Haiku models. Paid plans add the larger Opus model and the newer Fable model (on Pro, Fable uses extra credits). Anthropic’s current lineup includes Claude Opus 5.5, Sonnet 5.5, Haiku 5.5 and Fable 5.1.

Your data. For Free, Pro and Max, Anthropic says it’s your choice whether your chats are used to improve Claude. Check Settings → Privacy for the model improvement setting. Incognito chats aren’t used for training even if that setting is on. Anthropic says it does not train on Team, Enterprise or API data by default. Deleted conversations are removed from its back-end systems within 30 days.

Features. Web search and voice mode are on all plans. Claude can create documents and run code, and it connects to Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace (on Team and Enterprise, an admin has to enable these). Anthropic says Claude doesn’t generate photos or illustrations, though it can make charts and diagrams. Coding tools (Claude Code) start at the Pro plan.

Where it runs. Web, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android.

Age. 18 and up.

Gemini (Google)

Plans. Free; Google AI Plus at $4.99 a month; Google AI Pro at $19.99 a month; and Google AI Ultra from $99.99 a month. Google’s paid AI plans are for ages 18 and up. For businesses, Gemini is built into Google Workspace plans (Business Standard and higher get it in Docs, Sheets, Gmail, Meet and Drive; Business Starter gets a smaller set), and Google sells a separate Gemini Enterprise product: $21 per seat per month for the Business edition and $30 for the Standard and Plus editions.

Models. Google lists Flash-Lite on the free tier, Flash (plus Gemini 4 Argon) on Google AI Plus, and Gemini 4 Argon, Pro and Flash on Google AI Pro.

Your data. With a personal Google account, Gemini chats are used to improve Google’s services by default while Keep Activity is on, and activity is auto-deleted after 18 months by default (you can change that). With Keep Activity off, chats are still kept for 72 hours to respond to you and protect the service. Some chats are read by human reviewers, and Google itself advises not to enter anything confidential you wouldn’t want a reviewer to see. For Google Workspace, Google says it doesn’t use customer data to train models without permission and that chats aren’t reviewed by humans.

Features. The free version includes image generation, in-depth research reports and Gemini Live (voice). Paid plans add video generation and Gemini inside Gmail, Docs and other Google apps.

Where it runs. Web, Android and iPhone, plus desktop apps for Windows and Mac.

Age. 13 and up for the free app with a personal account (higher where local law requires); 18 and up for paid plans and work accounts.

Microsoft Copilot

Microsoft uses the Copilot name for two different things, and the difference matters at work.

Copilot for personal accounts. There’s a limited free version. Microsoft 365 Personal ($9.99 a month or $99.99 a year), Family ($12.99 a month or $129.99 a year, Copilot in Office apps for the owner only) and Premium ($19.99 a month or $199.99 a year) add Copilot features in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Microsoft says it trains on signed-in personal Copilot conversations unless you opt out, except for users under 18 and some other groups. To opt out, open your profile, then Privacy, and turn off Training on conversation activity and Training on voice conversations. Conversation history is kept for 18 months unless you delete it.

Copilot for work (Microsoft 365). Anyone signing in with a work account (Microsoft Entra ID) on an eligible Microsoft 365 business subscription gets Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat at no extra cost. Microsoft says prompts and responses there aren’t used to train its foundation models. The full Microsoft 365 Copilot, which works with your organization’s email, files and Teams data, is an add-on: $18 per user per month billed yearly ($25.20 billed monthly), or bundled into Business Standard with Copilot ($23.50 billed yearly) and Business Premium with Copilot ($32 billed yearly), for organizations up to 300 users.

Models. Microsoft says the Copilot app lets you switch between OpenAI and Anthropic models.

Where it runs. Windows, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android, the web, Edge, and inside Microsoft 365 apps like Outlook, Teams and Word.

Age. 13 and up for personal Copilot (higher in some countries).

Other assistants worth knowing

  • Perplexity is built around web search with cited sources. Free, Pro ($17 a month billed annually) and Max ($167 a month billed annually); Enterprise Pro is $40 per seat per month. Perplexity’s help center says data retention for AI improvement is on by default for Free, Pro and Max (you can turn it off in account settings), and that Enterprise data is never used for training.
  • Grok (xAI) has a free tier and SuperGrok at $30 a month. xAI says consumer chats are used for training by default and can be turned off in data controls; its business plans say no training.
  • Meta offers AI assistants inside its own apps. As of this check, we couldn’t confirm Meta’s training and retention settings on an official page, so it’s left out of the details here.

What’s the same everywhere

  • Every assistant can be wrong. Each vendor warns about inaccurate answers. Check its work (see how to check AI’s work).
  • Free and personal plans are not the place for work data. On most of them your chats can be used for training by default, and some may be read by reviewers.
  • Business versions are different. ChatGPT Business, Claude Team and Enterprise, Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat with a work account all say they don’t train on your organization’s data by default, and they give an administrator control.

Choosing, using facts instead of opinions

  1. Start with what your office already pays for. If you’re on an eligible Microsoft 365 business plan, Copilot Chat is already included for work accounts. If you’re on Google Workspace, Gemini may already be in your plan.
  2. For work, use a business or work account, not someone’s personal login. That’s what keeps company data out of training and under an admin’s control.
  3. Check your rules first. If you handle criminal justice information, bank customer data or health records, ask your compliance contact before using any AI tool with that data. See Using AI safely.
  4. Try the free versions on non-sensitive tasks. Which one “feels” best depends on the kind of work you do, and they change often.

Sources

Pages accessed October 23, 2026 (pages that could not be opened are noted at the top of this guide).

Last checked October 23, 2026. AI products change quickly, so this guide is re-checked against official sources every two weeks.

Back to the AI guides