Pick Kagi Assistant if…
privacy and ad-free search matter to you, and you want AI chat bundled in rather than paid for separately.
Kagi sells two things on one plan: an ad-free, private search engine and Kagi Assistant, a multi-model AI chat. Perplexity is search-first AI, where every answer comes with citations. Kagi is pitched at people who want to replace both Google and a ChatGPT-style subscription; Perplexity at people who want answers rather than result pages.
Pick Kagi (from $5/mo) if you want a private, ad-free search engine first, with AI chat included; flagship models and Research mode need Ultimate ($25/mo). Pick Perplexity if you mostly want cited AI answers: it has a usable free tier, and Pro is $20/mo.
| App | Free tier | Paid from | Top plan | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kagi Assistant | No | $5/mo | $25/mo | Privacy-minded users who want to replace both Google and a ChatGPT-style subscription with one bundle |
| Perplexity | Yes | $20/mo | $200/mo | Research with verifiable sources, fact-checking, exploring unfamiliar topics |
Monthly prices in US dollars before tax, from each vendor's official pricing (US list price; weekly-billed plans converted to a monthly figure). Updated November 2, 2026
| Kagi Assistant | Perplexity | |
|---|---|---|
| Core product | Ad-free search engine + Kagi Assistant | AI answers with citations |
| Free option | Trial only: 100 searches, 100 Assistant interactions | Free plan: unlimited Quick searches, 5 Pro searches/day |
| Entry plan | Starter: 300 searches/mo, Quick mode with standard models | Pro: 300+ Pro searches/day, unlimited file uploads |
| Flagship models | Ultimate: Claude Opus 5.5, GPT-6.1 Sol, Gemini 4 Argon, Grok 4.7 | Pro: GPT-5.6, Claude Sonnet 5; Max adds Claude Opus 5 |
| AI usage cap | Token allowance equal to your plan price | 300+ Pro searches/day on Pro; unlimited advanced models on Max |
privacy and ad-free search matter to you, and you want AI chat bundled in rather than paid for separately.
you'd rather ask a question and get a cited answer, and want a free tier you can use every day.
Kagi's AI allowance is tied to what you pay: your Assistant usage is capped at your plan's value in tokens, including Kagi's 20% margin, and annual plans get the full year's allowance up front. Starter and Professional only get Quick mode with standard models such as Claude Haiku 5.5, Qwen, DeepSeek and Mistral. Kagi's prices also exclude sales tax, and Kagi Assistant has had native iOS and Android apps since July 2026.
No, only a trial with 100 searches and 100 Assistant interactions. Paid plans start at $5/mo. Perplexity has an ongoing free plan.
To start, yes: Kagi Starter is $5/mo and Professional (unlimited searches) is $10/mo, against $20/mo for Perplexity Pro. For flagship models on Kagi, you need Ultimate at $25/mo.
If you want classic search results plus an AI chat, it can. Perplexity's citation-first answers and Labs on Max are its own thing, and Kagi's research mode is limited to Ultimate.
How we choose: prices come from each vendor's official pricing page and are re-checked every week. We take no affiliate fees, so rankings aren't for sale.