The numbers below are what the services said about themselves on their official pages on September 29, 2026. If a fact wasn't on their pages, we say so. Limits change often in this niche: one service rewrote its free plan twice in a month and a half.

"20 messages" can mean three different things

People usually read the number on the homepage as "that's roughly what I'll get." But it can mean three things:

  • Every dayThe limit resets, so you can use it as long as you like, just a little at a time.
  • OnceA starter pack. When it runs out, you pay. Twenty one-time messages is one evening, not a month.
  • Lots at first, then littleGenerous for the first few days, then the limit drops. Check whether the lower number is stated up front.

There's a fourth option that's hidden best of all: unlimited messages, but at some point she starts remembering less. More on that in the memory section. A general breakdown of what free plans usually include is in free AI chat: what you get