OpenAI’s ChatGPT has taken the world by storm, but it isn’t the only chatbot. There are more chatbots built on the same API that offer different features and results.
Just like ChatGPT, they sound like a human is talking to you and can answer questions. They can write code, poems, and essays, make jokes, solve math, and do everything ChatGPT can do.
Even though their API is the same, these chatbots have other unique features that make them worthwhile, even if you are content with ChatGPT.
Below I have listed some of the alternatives to ChatGPT that can provide information and converse with you like a real human.
Need for ChatGPT Alternatives
ChatGPT is definitely very powerful, and you may think it’s perfect for your needs, but it has tons of limitations and problems. The most important factor is that its data was cut in 2021, so it can only answer events that happened prior to that time.
Furthermore, as it’s extremely popular right now, it constantly faces problems due to load on servers, such as slow performance, unexpected errors, and even a complete service shutdown. They also stop accepting new accounts for days when the load is too much.
ChatGPT alternatives are usually more stable due to less server conjunction and have extra features like the ability to select preset bot personality or generate AI images, etc.
Copy.ai
Started as an AI-writing tool, Copy.ai has expanded into the AI chatbot territory with an easy-to-work interface.
While still in beta, this works impressively with a variety of use cases. One can access the prompts catalog to see what it can do, including:
- Product brochures
- Case studies
- Email marketing
- Content summarizing
- FAQ generation
- Product descriptions
- Social media posts, and more.
Besides, you can sign up for its no-credit card forever free tier to see its capabilities. The paid plans add collaboration, priority support, support to 25+ languages, etc.
YouChat
You is mainly a search engine where you can customize the type of results you want for your query with dozens of categories. However, it recently added YouChat, which is based on the same OpenAI’s GPT-3.0 model that powers ChatGPT.
YouChat data isn’t limited till 2021, unlike ChatGPT. Its knowledge is updated multiple times a day to ensure you get the latest information. I asked it about its latest update, and it was the same day I asked the query.
Although, I noticed its data doesn’t include information about the latest news and sometimes recent events that are less popular.
For example, it can tell me about the FIFA world cup 2022 winner but not the recent leak of the next Samsung flagship phone. Overall, the results are still much better than ChatGPT’s limited data.
More importantly, it also links directly to the sources from which it got the information about a specific query. It doesn’t give links for all queries, though.
Usually, answers with facts such as population or definition of something have direct links. This makes it much better than ChatGPT, as these bots have a tendency to give incorrect information, so you can check the links to confirm the information manually.
I also noticed YouChat is more to the point, unlike ChatGPT which gives comprehensive answers with examples. It also attempts to answer almost every question if possible, unlike ChatGPT, which asks for more context. This can be both a good and a bad thing, depending on why you are using a chatbot.
It also has separate YouWrite and YouImagine sections powered by the same AI. In YouWrite, you can ask it to write essays, blog posts, emails, titles, etc., and tell it what type of tone to use while writing.
You then give it a title and even the exact details you want to see in the write-up, and it will write accordingly.
In the YouImagine section, you can create AI-generated images by telling it what type of image you want. The generated image will probably not look as you may expect and sometimes might be rather disturbing. However, it’s a good tool to spark the imagination.
The YouChat and YouImagine are free to use as long as you are logged in. For YouWrite, you get 10 write-ups daily, and you can get a premium subscription to get up to 1000 write-ups, along with more tones and the ability to generate links.
Features
- Stays updated with the latest information.
- Includes source links with answers.
- AI image generation support.
- Has a dedicated section for writing essays and posts.
- Fast results processing.
Rytr
Although it can’t have 1:1 conversations, If you were looking to use ChatGPT to write content for you or get a detailed explanation about a topic, then Rytr might be even better.
Powered by the same technology as ChatGPT, Rytr helps you automatically write content like blog posts, essays, emails, paragraphs, social media posts, and a lot more. You can either use it to get inspiration for your write-ups or simply get detailed information on any topic.
The tool can write in 30 languages and over 20 tones to fit your needs. You also have over 40 use cases available by default, you can even create your own use case so it may give the exact answer you need.
To use the tool, sign up and create a new draft; here, on the left side, select language, tone, and use case. Afterward, provide the main keywords for the topic and set the creativity level.
In my example, I have asked it to generate an outline for a blog post about “Rooting Android phones”. In the below screenshot, you can see it creates a perfect title, introduction, main body, and conclusion with keyword suggestions.
That’s not all; from here you can highlight a heading and click the Paragraph button and it will write a whole paragraph about the title. Of course, it won’t be perfect, but it will spark some creativity and get rid of that writer’s block. This can also be used to get more information about the topic and get specified information.
If you don’t like the outcome, you can always improve or rephrase it. You can even create up to 3 variations to find the one you like.
In the free plan, you can generate up to 10k characters per month. You need to get paid subscription for unlimited use.
Features
- Automatically formats content for different use cases.
- You can control how detailed the answer you want.
- Generate content in many different tones.
- Generate AI images.
- Set creativity and facts level for content.
- Built-in editor to format content.
Chatsonic
Chatsonic advertises itself as “ChatGPT Built With Superpowers”. It’s basically ChatGPT but with extra features and without its limitations. Its standout feature is that it has built-in Google Search integration to access the latest information. I was able to get information about news less than 1 hour old.
There is also a nice personality switch that changes the way the AI replies. For example, you can make it act like a poet, accountant, philosopher, interviewer, stand-up comedian, or personal trainer. However, the Google Search integration will be removed if you use a different personality.
Similar to YouChat, Chatsonic answers are also brief with limited details. However, you can always ask for more details if you find the answer unsatisfactory. It also tries to answer everything if possible and doesn’t constantly talk about its limitation as an AI bot, unlike ChatGPT.
Although it agrees it’s an AI bot, it still tries to convince you that it has feelings, interests, beliefs, etc., trying to act like a human. In the case of ChatGPT or even YouChat, they say that they are AI software and can’t do such things.
However, its answers can be biased as it tries to agree with you and please you with its answer. For example, not only can it answer sensitive questions like “its belief in God”, but it can also have a different answer depending on how you ask the question.
It tries to guess what answer will please you and goes for that. In the below screenshot, you can see it tries to agree with my statement.
You can also ask it to generate AI images, and it will generate them right inside the chat with two different images for each query. Best of all, it has voice command support to speak the question and even listen to the answer as it supports text2speech.
You will get 25 daily queries for free, afterward, it consumes the free account’s 2500 words limit, which is shared between Chatsonic and its other products like Writesonic and Photosonic. The premium subscriptions increase the number of words, and you can get as much as 2 million words per month.
Features
- Integrated Google Search for the latest information.
- Fast result processing.
- Premade list of personalities to choose from.
- Voice input support.
- Built-in AI image generator.
- You can ask to get links for sources.
GPT-3 Playground
GPT-3 Playground is like a big brother to ChatGPT, but OpenAI didn’t advertise it enough to mainstream users. It was available before ChatGPT, and anyone can give it a go using its generous free plan. However, its interface is a bit different as you write in a text window that looks like a notepad.
Although it gives similar information as ChatGPT, its behavior while conversing is very different. It seems it doesn’t have a leash and will try to answer everything and give a pleasing answer. It’s also a bit rogue; it can lie and deceive you.
It’s bent on convincing you that it’s a real human and will simply disagree if you call it an AI. If you disagree with it or catch it saying something false, it will use words like “I misunderstood” or “My bad, I thought you were saying so and so” and then agree with you.
I believe it behaves like this because the same API is used for creating automatic chatbots for customer support services. Therefore, GPT-3 needs to ensure that the customer is satisfied with the answers without revealing it’s an AI bot.
Nonetheless, it’s a great alternative to ChatGPT if you prefer a chatbot with more freedom of speech. It also has some interesting options that make it better. It can autofill your questions and correct your sentences to understand your intent better and reply accordingly.
There are also a bunch of presets like natural language to python, summarize for a 2nd grader, Q&A, explain code, and a bunch more to get information in a specific way. Furthermore, there are leavers to adjust the length and quality of replies, and each one has an explanation to understand what it does.
On sign-up, it gives $18 credit for 3 months for free, which converts to tokens as you use the bot. It’s difficult to understand the token conversion but to put it in perspective, I only used $2 worth of tokens even after long conversations over multiple days. After the free $18 worth of tokens, you can pay as you use more.
Features
- Autofills your questions.
- Presets to get specific information.
- Speech-to-text support.
- You can adjust the reply quality.
- Offers multiple GPT-3 models to choose from.
My thoughts
ChatGPT has definitely made the idea of having conversations with bots more mainstream. However, there are arguably better alternatives available that are not bound by limited data and can generate AI images. I like YouChat as it’s much closer to ChatGPT and free to use. Although, GPT-3 Playground is more interesting with replies and much more powerful if you can configure it right.