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What people are choosing this week
These results come from people voting at thisorthis.ai: one vote per person per week, no accounts. They show preference, not test scores.
What do you want AI for?
Week 42 · from real votes- 1Claude12 votes
- 2ChatGPT8 votes
- 3Gemini3 votes
- 4Copilot2 votes
- 5FLUX1 vote
All 28 votes this week. Early results: percentages appear at 100 votes. Preference, not test scores. Full leaderboard →
And by job, from voters who told us which AI they use for what:
This week's top pick, by job
From real votes · updates every few minutes- CODINGClaude Opus 5.5Anthropic · 3 of 4 votes
- WRITINGGPT-6.1 SolOpenAI · 2 of 4 votes
- RESEARCHClaude Opus 5.5Anthropic · 2 of 3 votes
- VIDEOFLUX 3 VideoBlack Forest Labs · 1 of 1 votes
- EVERYDAY CHATClaude Sonnet 5.5Anthropic · 1 of 2 votes
- MARKETINGClaude Fable 5.1Anthropic · 1 of 2 votes
Step 1: Start with your task
Most people need one general assistant and, sometimes, a specialist. Use this table to know what to look for.
| If you mainly want to… | Look for | Good starting points |
|---|---|---|
| Ask questions, plan, get everyday help | A general chat assistant with web search | ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Meta AI, Grok |
| Write and edit | Strong writing, follows your style, handles long documents | General assistants; compare two on your own draft |
| Research with sources | Web search with links you can check, "deep research" modes | Perplexity, and the research modes of the big assistants |
| Code | Coding assistants inside your editor, plus a strong chat model | Cursor, GitHub Copilot, and the coding tools of the big assistants |
| Make images | Image quality, text in images, editing | Midjourney, FLUX, Ideogram, Firefly, and image tools built into chat assistants |
| Make video | Clip length, consistency, control over camera and motion | Runway, Kling, Luma, Pika, Hailuo and the big labs' video tools |
| Voice and music | Natural voices, languages, song quality | ElevenLabs for voice; Suno and Udio for music |
| Work inside your apps | AI built into your email, documents and spreadsheets | Copilot in Microsoft 365, Gemini in Google Workspace |
The exact leaders change month to month. Use the weekly results above to see who's ahead now, and the full leaderboard to filter by activity.
Step 2: Six questions to ask before you choose
- What does the free plan allow? Most AIs have one. Check usage limits and which features are paid.
- Are my chats used to train the AI, and can I turn that off? Most consumer AIs let you opt out. See ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini. For work data, follow your employer's rules.
- Where will I use it? Phone, browser, desktop app, or inside tools you already use, such as your email, documents or code editor.
- Does it show sources? For facts, an AI that searches the web and links its sources is safer than one answering from memory.
- What can I give it? Long documents, spreadsheets, photos, screenshots, voice. Check it handles what you work with.
- Does it work well in my language and region? Quality and availability vary by country and language.
Step 3: The 15-minute test
Rankings tell you what's good on average. You care about what's good for you. Run this quick test with two or three AIs:
- Pick three real tasks from your life or work: something you'd actually ask. For example, an email you need to write, a document to summarize, a problem you're stuck on.
- Give every AI the exact same prompt, with the same material. (Our prompting guide shows how to write a good one.)
- Score each answer from 1 to 5 on four things:
Your scorecard
Score both AIs on all four to see which one wins for you.
- Pick the winner, and keep the runner-up. A second opinion from another AI is the fastest way to catch mistakes on important work.
How AIs are compared
You'll see three kinds of ranking. Each answers a different question.
- Benchmarks: "How does it score on a test?" Standard question sets in math, coding, science or reasoning. Objective and repeatable, but top models ace many of them, and good test scores don't always mean a good experience. Independent sites such as Artificial Analysis and Epoch AI track them.
- Blind head-to-head votes: "Which answer do people prefer?" People compare two anonymous answers to the same prompt and pick the better one. Arena (formerly LMArena) ranks models this way on a public leaderboard.
- Popular votes: "Which AI do people think is best?" That's us. Once a week, people vote for the AI they rate highest overall and say what they use it for. It captures the whole experience (app, speed, tools, trust), not just one answer. It shows preference, not accuracy.
Use all three: benchmarks for raw ability, blind votes for answer quality, and popular votes for what works in real life.
Free or paid?
Paid plans usually add more usage, the strongest models, bigger files, longer memory, and extra tools such as deep research, video or agents. They don't make an AI honest; paid models can still be wrong.
A good rule: use a free plan for two weeks, notice where you hit limits, then pay for the one you kept reaching for.
One AI or several?
Many people use one general assistant for most things, plus a specialist for images, video, voice or coding. There's no prize for loyalty: if another AI handles a task better, use it for that task.
Watch: how an AI expert uses them
A founding member of OpenAI tours the AI apps and features he uses day to day, and which he picks for what.
Use AI safely
- Verify anything important. Every AI can make things up. Ask for sources and open them.
- Keep private things private. Don't paste passwords, ID numbers or other people's personal data. Check the training settings linked above.
- Know who's behind it. Read where an AI's company is based and how it handles your data, especially for work.
- Watch for AI-made fakes. Voices, photos and videos can be generated. Be wary of urgent requests for money, even from a familiar voice.
Go deeper
TRY IT · ARENA (FORMERLY LMARENA)Blind head-to-head rankings(opens in a new tab) TRY IT · ARTIFICIAL ANALYSISIndependent quality, speed and price comparisons(opens in a new tab) TRY IT · EPOCH AIHow models score on hard tests(opens in a new tab) TRY IT · STANFORD HAIThe yearly state of AI report(opens in a new tab)Questions people ask
Which AI is best right now?
It changes, and it depends on the task. Our weekly vote shows which AI people think is best overall and for each activity, updated every few minutes. Use it to shortlist two or three, then test them on your own work.
Is ChatGPT or Claude better for coding?
Both are strong and they leapfrog each other often, so any fixed answer goes stale. Check the coding results in this week's vote, then give each the same real task from your project and compare the code you get.
What is the best free AI?
Most major assistants, including ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, Meta AI and DeepSeek, have a free tier. Free tiers usually limit how much you can use them or give a lighter model. Try two or three free before paying for any.
Which AI is the most accurate?
None is accurate all the time; every AI can make things up. Accuracy is higher when the AI searches the web and shows sources, or works from documents you give it. Independent benchmark sites compare accuracy on tests, but check important facts yourself.
Should I pay for an AI subscription?
Pay when the free tier's limits get in your way: you hit usage caps, need a stronger model for hard work, or want features like longer files, deeper research or video. Use a free tier for a couple of weeks first so you know what you'd use.
Can I use more than one AI?
Yes, and many people do: one general assistant for everyday work plus a specialist for images, video, voice or coding. Comparing two AIs' answers to the same question is also a quick way to catch mistakes.
How we made this
Parth Amin runs thisorthis.ai and has spent over a decade building software products, most recently enterprise generative-AI systems. @_aminparth on XHow we made this: drafted with AI assistance, then fact-checked against the linked sources and edited by hand. Reviewed . Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
How to write prompts
How AI works
AI glossary