The best Claude alternatives

If you want work handed off rather than done with you: Cicada's agents sit in iMessage, WhatsApp, Slack and email, run on schedules and app events, and join your Meet, Zoom, Teams and Webex calls. In a group chat they keep every message and file and remind people of the deadlines they set, and an answer taken from a file cites the page.

What it is

AI agents you text on iMessage and WhatsApp, mention in Slack or email, and add to your group chats, where they keep every message and file and follow up on what people promised.

Where it works

iMessage and WhatsApp (one-to-one and group chats), Slack, email and a web app

What it costs

300 free credits to start with a card at sign-up, then $25 for 200 credits when you run low, or plans from $99 a month. Credits are shared across the workspace and roll over.

Worth knowing

Built for work rather than personal shopping and errands, and phone calls are switched off for now.

The other big general assistant, with images, Codex for code, and dots on its top plans; Plus is $20 a month.

What it is

OpenAI's general AI assistant for writing, research, images and code, with scheduled tasks, plugins for 4,000+ apps and always-on dots on its top plans.

Where it works

Web, desktop and mobile apps; Slack and Microsoft Teams on business plans; WhatsApp in the EEA only; a phone line in the US and Canada

What it costs

Free; Go $8, Plus $20 and Pro from $100 a month; Business priced per seat, with dots on its Premium seats

Worth knowing

You open it to use it: no iMessage, WhatsApp only in the EEA, group chats were retired in July 2026, and personal plans train on your chats unless you opt out.

Built into Gmail and Docs on paid plans, if your work runs on Google's apps.

What it is

Google's AI assistant, in its own app and on the web, and inside Gmail, Docs and other Google apps on paid plans.

Where it works

The Gemini app (Android and iOS), the web, Gmail and Docs on paid plans, and Google Messages on Android

What it costs

Free; Google AI Plus $4.99, AI Pro $19.99 and AI Ultra from $99.99 a month; Gemini Enterprise from $21 a seat a month

Worth knowing

Its texting is Google Messages on Android only (no iMessage or WhatsApp that we could find), and Google gives Ultra subscribers first access to Agent Mode.

For research with citations, choosing between models from several labs, Anthropic's included.

What it is

An answer engine that searches the web and answers with citations, plus Computer, an agent that builds documents and apps and can run on your Mac.

Where it works

perplexity.ai, its Mac and iPhone apps, and its Comet browser

What it costs

Free; Pro from $17 a month and Max from $167 a month, billed yearly; Enterprise plans for teams

Worth knowing

Built for answers and research rather than your chats, and its Pro and Max plans are for personal use.

If you use Claude for code in Cursor: Grok Bot comes with Cursor's paid plans and X Premium, with bots that operate software on a computer of their own.

What it is

Always-on bots on a shared cloud computer, reached through their own apps, by email and on X.

Where it works

Its own apps (desktop and mobile), @bot on X and email; Slack on Team plans

What it costs

Included in X Premium ($30), Super ($100) and Ultra ($200) a month, and in Cursor's paid plans; not in X Plus or Free

Worth knowing

Launched in beta on 11 August 2026, not in your texts, and meetings aren't in its docs yet.

Run an agent on your own machine with any model, Claude included, and reach it from 29 chat apps. Free and open source.

What it is

A free, open-source AI assistant you install on your own machine or server and reach from the chat apps you already use.

Where it works

29 chat apps, including WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, Signal and iMessage, in DMs and group chats

What it costs

Free and open source (MIT), with no hosted or paid tier; you pay for your model, your machine and any extra services

Worth knowing

You install, secure and update it yourself, there is no hosted version, and its docs say people who don't trust each other need separate gateways.

Another open-source agent you run yourself, with a memory, skills it writes as it goes, and an optional cloud host.

What it is

A free, open-source agent that runs on your computer or server, keeps a memory, writes its own skills and talks to you through your chat apps.

Where it works

Telegram, Discord, Slack, WhatsApp, Signal, SMS, email, Microsoft Teams and more; iMessage through BlueBubbles or Photon

What it costs

Free and open source (MIT) with your own model; Nous Portal plans from $20 a month for model and tool credits, and optional cloud hosting

Worth knowing

You set it up and keep it running yourself, and iMessage goes through a third-party bridge.