Coding agentsChecked 2026-10-19
Choose an AI coding agent by the job, not the demo
Pick inline completion, an editor agent, or a repo agent first. Then match Cursor, Copilot, or Claude Code to privacy, review culture, and the real seat price.
Guides
Verdict first. Then the dated price. Then the buy.
Decision notes for seats people actually pay for. Each guide opens with a take, names who it is not for, and links a compare page plus the listings we copied. Older how-tos still live on the blog.
AssistantsChecked 2026-10-19
Pick ChatGPT for breadth, Claude for long writing, Gemini for Google
One general assistant, one long-context writer, one Google-account seat. The public cards are $20, $17 yearly / $20 monthly, and $4.99 — not a three-way tie.
PricingChecked 2026-10-19
Cursor Plus at $8 buys Grok in the editor — not Claude or GPT
The public Plus card is $8/month with a shared usage pool and Grok models only. Claude or GPT in Cursor is Premium at $30, billed at API list.
PricingChecked 2026-10-22
Pay Claude Pro yearly unless you already know you need Max
Pro is $17/month billed yearly ($200 up front) or $20 monthly. Max starts at $100/month. Claude Code sits on paid seats; usage is one 5-hour pool.
PricingChecked 2026-10-19
Treat free AI tiers as trials with a published cap
Free ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Runway, and Gamma are real — and capped. One-time credits and hidden meters are not 'unlimited GPT'. Score the cap before you build a workflow on $0.
Self-hostChecked 2026-10-19
Self-host with Ollama when control beats frontier quality
Ollama is MIT and $0. A ChatGPT Plus seat is $20/month. Self-host when prompts cannot leave the machine or you want a predictable hardware bill — not when you need the best hosted model.
SlidesChecked 2026-10-20
Use Gamma for a new deck, Plus AI if the slides already live in Google
First-draft slides are a product choice, not a prompt trick. Gamma is $9/seat/year billed. Plus AI starts at $10/user/year billed. SlidesAI Basic is $0 with a tight credit cap.
VideoChecked 2026-10-19
Use Runway for generative clips, HeyGen for creator avatars, Synthesia for L&D
These are not three versions of one video model. Runway Standard is $12/year billed. HeyGen Creator is $29. Synthesia’s live page is credit packs from $89/month — not Starter $29.
How we workChecked 2026-10-19
We copy public prices on a dated check — we do not invent a rank
Every dollar on aitoolsnav comes from a vendor page or Help article we fetched, with a date. Sponsored slots are labeled and never change a verdict. Old 'Pro $20' blurbs get marked stale.
Coding agentsChecked 2026-10-19
Move from Copilot to Cursor only after you accept the Grok-only $8 seat
Copilot Pro is $10/month plus flex credits. Cursor Plus is $8 and Grok-only. Switching editors is the real cost — export rules, keybindings, and review habits before you cancel Copilot.