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There’s an AI chatbot for nearly every purpose, but subscription fees can quickly add up. Luckily, you can spread out your workload across different AI chatbots and combine them so you never have to pay a dime.
For Brainstorming
OpenAI recently introduced GPT-5, and it’s a game-changer. Besides offering significant upgrades to the chatbot, it’s now accessible for free-tier ChatGPT users. This means for the first time, you can leverage the latest OpenAI models without any cost.
There are some limits on this free access, so it’s not like you can produce top-tier outputs from ChatGPT endlessly. However, these limits are pretty generous and should suffice for casual use. If you notice ChatGPT’s responses becoming less accurate or helpful, it might be time to consider a paid subscription.
Still, with GPT-5 you gain access to a core model capable of handling everything from academic essays to social media posts. Its output is more natural, and responses are 45% less prone to factual errors.
What I find most appealing about GPT-5 is that it simplifies the model selection process. It’s a unified platform that automatically determines the best way to handle your query, eliminating the confusion caused by multiple models like GPT-4, GPT-4o, or GPT-4o mini. GPT-5 uses a real-time router to make those decisions for you.
This makes GPT-5 not only one of the top tools for brainstorming and content creation but also a versatile all-in-one solution. It can generate images, write code, analyze or summarize documents, craft social media captions, and much more.
For Coding
You can access a free version of GitHub Copilot for Visual Studio Code, which offers 2,000 code completions each month and 50 chat requests. That’s about 80 completions daily—more than enough for learning, side projects, or light development tasks.
The free plan provides access to multiple AI models from OpenAI, Google, and Anthropic, giving you top-tier AI without paying a dime. No trial periods, no credit cards—just sign up with your GitHub account to get started.
GitHub’s Copilot is available as a web tool and as a plugin for Visual Studio Code, one of the most popular coding platforms globally. You can generate complete projects using simple prompts and receive code snippets or ready-made repository structures within minutes. When used in Visual Studio Code, it’s fully aware of the whole project and can work across multiple files simultaneously.
If you’re a student, instructor, or maintain an active open-source project, you might qualify for free Copilot Pro—which is a fantastic perk for anyone in tech education or development.
For Research
If rapid research on a topic is your goal, Perplexity is one of the best tools available. It won’t replace traditional research methods, but even with basic knowledge on a subject, Perplexity’s responses—especially with sourcing—are quite useful for quick fact-checking and summaries.
The free tier allows unlimited basic searches and five Pro searches daily. You can also upload three documents for analysis each day, making it handy for quick research, fact-checking, or document summaries. The free tier automatically selects the best model for your query, including options like Sonar, Claude Sonnet 4.0, GPT-5, and Gemini 2.5 Pro. Sometimes, this automatic choice isn’t perfect, leading to responses that are less ideal.
On the upside, you get three research sessions per day. While ChatGPT’s Deep Research can still improve, Perplexity’s search functionality often provides more accurate and current information.
For Image Generation
Leonardo.AI ranks among the best online multi-model image generators. Its free tier provides 150 tokens per day, which can produce up to 25 images in a 16:9 ratio (1184×672 pixels) using the Flux Schnell model.
There are additional models, such as GPT-Image-1, although the token cost varies depending on the image quality needed. Currently, the most affordable images are created with Flux Schnell, costing six tokens each. This allows you to experiment with prompts before committing to higher-quality models.
Features include an AI prompt enhancer that adds detail to your input and several preset styles for image creation. You can quickly generate everything from YouTube thumbnails to business logos at no cost. With basic editing programs like Canva or PhotoPee, you can refine your images easily.
For Video Generation
FlexClip is an online platform loaded with AI-powered tools that can generate images, videos, and voices. It’s also a complete AI video creator, offering editing features to streamline your projects.
The free plan includes HD 720p downloads, a maximum of 12 projects, 10-minute video limits, and one stock video plus audio per project. You also get 10 free uses of FlexClip’s AI tools, including an AI video generator and scriptwriter, which work together seamlessly.
This setup allows you to create scripts from a single prompt, which are then turned into AI-generated videos. The catch is that these videos mainly consist of AI-created images with a narration, so they may not be suitable for professional-quality projects.
Unlike image or chatbot services, AI video generation usually isn’t free or producing highly usable results. FlexClip uses a credit system similar to Leonardo.AI’s tokens. You can purchase credits starting at nearly $15 for 300, which varies by region. If you just need to use one of FlexClip’s many AI features, you don’t need a subscription.
For local AI
If you really want to experience free AI firsthand, try Ollama. It lets you run powerful, open-source AI models directly on your computer at no cost—no internet needed, no usage caps, and no data shared with external servers.
You can run models like Llama 3.2, DeepSeek-R1, or Mistral — if your hardware is powerful enough. A full list of supported models is available on Ollama’s Library page. Recently, Ollama announced a partnership with OpenAI to bring its latest open-weight models to the platform.
The setup is straightforward: download Ollama for Windows, Linux, or macOS, then launch any supported model with a simple command. For example, to run and chat with Google’s open-weight AI model Gemma 3, use:
ollama run gemma3
You’ll need at least 8 GB of RAM for 7B models, 16 GB for 13B models, and 32 GB for 33B models.
There are some constraints, such as running in your command prompt without features like chat history or file uploads. You can, however, integrate local files with some effort, but it requires programming knowledge.
Despite the hurdles, running your own AI locally with minimal setup makes Ollama a top choice for experimenting and developing AI apps. It’s especially useful for developers working on AI-integrated projects.
The real trick to maximizing free AI tools is knowing which one suits each task best and combining them effectively. You can often replicate the capabilities of paid plans by layering multiple specialized free tools.
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