Bientôt disponibleHonest comparison of free AI chatbots including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and self-hosted options. Limits and catches explained.
Molted Team
molted.cloud
You want an AI chatbot but don't want to pay $20/month for ChatGPT Plus or $20/month for Claude Pro. Good news: there are legitimate free options. This guide compares them honestly, including the catches.
"Free" in AI usually means one of:
| Model | GPT-4o mini (limited GPT-4o) |
| Limits | Rate limited during peak times |
| Features | Web browsing, basic image generation |
| Catch | Conversations may train future models |
Verdict: Best for casual use. Quality is good, limits are reasonable for personal use.
| Model | Claude 3.5 Sonnet (limited) |
| Limits | ~20 messages per conversation, resets daily |
| Features | 200K context, file uploads, artifacts |
| Catch | Strict rate limits, no API access |
Verdict: Best for long documents and coding. The 200K context is valuable.
| Model | Gemini Pro (Gemini Ultra limited) |
| Limits | Generous for most users |
| Features | Google integration, multimodal |
| Catch | Data feeds Google's ecosystem |
Verdict: Best if you're in the Google ecosystem. Good for research with web access.
| Model | Mix of models with search |
| Limits | 5 Pro searches/day, unlimited basic |
| Features | Real-time web search, citations |
| Catch | Pro features paywalled |
Verdict: Best for research and fact-checking. Citations are genuinely useful.
| Model | GPT-4 Turbo |
| Limits | 30 messages per conversation |
| Features | Image generation (DALL-E 3), web search |
| Catch | Microsoft account required, Edge preferred |
Verdict: Underrated. You get GPT-4 and DALL-E 3 for free. The Microsoft branding is the main downside.
| Model | Multiple (Claude, GPT, Llama, etc.) |
| Limits | Daily compute credits |
| Features | Model switching, custom bots |
| Catch | Best models cost credits fast |
Verdict: Best for trying different models. The credit system is confusing but workable.
Use your existing subscription smarter
OpenClaw lets you use Claude Pro or ChatGPT Plus across all your devices and apps.
Coming soonIf you have hardware (or want to rent it), you can run AI models for the cost of electricity/compute:
| Model | Llama 3 70B (or smaller) |
| Requirements | 16GB+ VRAM for good experience |
| Cost | Electricity only |
| Catch | Need beefy GPU or Apple Silicon Mac |
# Install Ollama
curl -fsSL https://ollama.ai/install.sh | sh
# Run Llama 3
ollama run llama3
# Or the smaller version for weaker hardware
ollama run llama3:8bVerdict: Best for privacy enthusiasts with hardware. Quality is surprisingly good.
GUI app for running local models on Mac/Windows/Linux. Easier than Ollama for non-technical users.
Another local option, optimized for running on CPU (slower but no GPU needed).
| Models | Various free/cheap models |
| Limits | Varies by model |
| API | OpenAI-compatible |
OpenRouter aggregates models and some are free (Llama, Mistral variants).
| Model | Llama 3, Mixtral |
| Speed | Extremely fast (custom chips) |
| Limits | Rate limited but generous |
Groq's free tier is great for testing. The speed is genuinely impressive.
New accounts get $5 free credits. Enough for significant testing.
Extend your free credits
OpenClaw works with any API. Use Groq free tier, OpenRouter, or your existing subscription.
| Option | Best model | Limits | Privacy |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT Free | GPT-4o mini | Rate limited | Low |
| Claude Free | Claude 3.5 Sonnet | ~20/day | Medium |
| Copilot Free | GPT-4 Turbo | 30/conv | Low |
| Gemini Free | Gemini Pro | Generous | Low |
| Perplexity Free | Mix | 5 Pro/day | Medium |
| Ollama (local) | Llama 3 70B | None | High |
| Groq Free | Llama 3 | Rate limited | Medium |
For casual users: Rotate between ChatGPT, Claude, and Copilot free tiers. When one hits limits, switch to another.
For developers: Use Groq free tier for development, Anthropic/OpenAI free credits for testing production code.
For privacy: Ollama with Llama 3 on your own hardware. Nothing leaves your machine.
For power users: Pay the $20/month. The time saved is worth it. Or use OpenClaw to stretch that subscription across all your devices and messaging apps.
"Free" AI services typically:
If AI is important to your workflow, budget for it. The paid tiers are genuinely better, and your data stays more private.
OpenClaw connects your Claude/ChatGPT subscription to all your devices. No extra API costs.
24-hour free trial · no credit card · cancel anytime
Run ChatGPT or Claude on WhatsApp with Baileys. Complete self-hosted setup guide with code examples and deployment options.
The best Sintra alternatives compared: Marblism, Lindy, Delos, Agentova and more, plus the case for one flat-priced OpenClaw agent instead of stacked helpers.
The best Lindy alternatives if credits and workflow building wear you out: Sintra, Marcus, Taskade, Gumloop and a flat-priced always-on OpenClaw agent.
ENCORE DEBOUT ?