Price: Gemini Is a Far Better Value
Both ChatGPT and Gemini have free versions that limit your access to features and models. Their premium plans also start at $8 per month. The chatbots generally support similar features, such as deep research, image and video generation, web search, and more. However, Gemini plans also include Google Drive cloud storage (starting at 15GB for free) and a robust suite of integrations in Google Workspace apps, making it a better value. ChatGPT doesn't offer anything similar at any level.
The highest tiers of ChatGPT and Gemini unlock higher usage limits and unique features, but their prohibitive costs ($200 per month for ChatGPT Pro and $250 per month for Gemini AI Ultra) make them out of reach for most people. Features specific to ChatGPT’s Pro plan, such as the GPT-5.2 Pro model that leverages extra compute power for particularly complicated questions, aren’t especially relevant to the average user, so you won’t feel like you’re missing out. Similarly, Gemini's AI Ultra plan gets you exclusive access to certain features, such as Project Mariner, but you can safely ignore those, too.
Winner: Gemini
Platforms: Both Are Available Everywhere
You can access ChatGPT and Gemini on the web or through mobile apps (Android and iOS). ChatGPT also has desktop apps (macOS and Windows) and an official extension for Google Chrome. Gemini doesn't have dedicated desktop apps or a Chrome extension, but it integrates directly with the browser. ChatGPT develops Atlas, an AI web browser.
(Credit: OpenAI/PCMag)ChatGPT is available in other places, like through Siri. As mentioned, you can access Gemini across Google apps, such as Calendar, Docs, Drive, Gmail, Maps, Keep, Photos, Sheets, and YouTube Music. Both ChatGPT’s and Gemini’s models also appear on sites like Perplexity. However, you get the most features out of these chatbots on their dedicated apps and web portals.
The interfaces of both chatbots are largely consistent across platforms. They are easy to use and don't overwhelm you with options and toggles. ChatGPT offers a few more settings to play with, including the ability to adjust its personality in a surprising number of ways, while Gemini’s deep research interface makes better use of screen real estate.
Winner: Tie
AI Models: Best-in-Class Tech
ChatGPT's 5-series of models includes both Instant and Thinking variants. Instant is for quick responses to simpler queries, while Thinking takes extra time to process more complex prompts. ChatGPT's Auto mode automatically flips between these two. Gemini similarly offers a general-purpose Flash series and a Pro series for more complicated tasks.
ChatGPT's latest models are GPT-5.2 Instant and GPT-5.2 Thinking, and Gemini's latest are 3 Flash and 3 Pro. Outside of coding or solving an equation, you will spend most of your time using either ChatGPT's default Auto mode or Gemini's Flash model.
Winner: Tie
Web Search: Excellent Results With Some Minor Differences
ChatGPT and Gemini can easily search for up-to-date information on the web. ChatGPT automatically includes pictures in responses when relevant and adds article tiles at the bottom for further reading, whereas Gemini doesn't. Gemini uniquely highlights relevant portions of text when you hover over a linked source, but ChatGPT shows more information about a source when you hover over its link.
As part of their web search experiences, ChatGPT and Gemini can help you shop. If you ask for buying advice, both present clickable tiles with links to retailers. Neither is a great resource for deciding what to buy, but Gemini has a unique feature that lets you upload a photo of yourself to virtually try on clothes before you buy. However, this feature helps you only with look, not fit, so it's of limited usefulness.
Winner: Tie
Deep Research: High Quality Reports, Different Tones
ChatGPT and Gemini can both generate reports that are dozens of pages long and include well over 50 sources on just about any topic. Gemini often accesses far more sources than ChatGPT during the research process, but the number of sources it actually cites (and the quality of its reports in general) is usually consistent with ChatGPT. ChatGPT presents sources in a more straightforward way, but Gemini's report interface is easier to navigate. Gemini also has quality-of-life features ChatGPT lacks, such as a one-click way to export reports to Google Docs. Still, I find ChatGPT's reports more engaging; they read more like forum posts than Gemini's academic papers.
Winner: Tie
Image Editing and Generation: Nano Banana Is the One to Beat
Both ChatGPT's (GPT Image 1.5) and Gemini's (Nano Banana Pro) latest image generation models generally impress, whether you're making complex diagrams with lots of text, narrative-driven comics, or simple images. Errors and distortion are minimal. However, Gemini's generated images usually have more detail than ChatGPT's. Meanwhile, its edits better maintain the original's aspect ratio, feature slightly less distortion, and have a higher resolution. Nano Banana impressed us enough to earn our Technical Excellence Award.
Above, you can see how ChatGPT (first slide) and Gemini (second slide) fared with the following prompt: "Generate me an image of a cozy suburban home with an open floor plan. I want to see a nice living space with a dining room, kitchen, and living room. Nothing too fancy.” Both images meet the prompt's requirements, but Gemini's is more detailed.
Above, you can see how ChatGPT (first slide) and Gemini (second slide) removed a distracting hand from an image. Gemini's image is higher resolution and matches the original's aspect ratio, while the tessellation effect in ChatGPT's image distracts from the detail.
Winner: Gemini
Video Generation: Sora Is a Match for Veo
Both ChatGPT's Sora 2 and Gemini's Veo 3.1 AI video generation models are quite capable, generating realistic videos with audio. They also each have unique features, such as Sora's TikTok-style social media platform and Veo's Flow tool for extending generated clips to create a more cohesive scene. Neither model is perfect, so you will need to tweak your prompt across multiple generations to get something you're happy with. Still, they are currently the two best options available.
In the example above, I prompted ChatGPT and Gemini to show me an apartment. Although both clips generally look realistic, neither is perfect. ChatGPT's video features a levitating cup, while a spoon in Gemini's video magically duplicates.
Winner: Tie
File Processing: A Strength of Both Bots
Understanding files is a strength of both ChatGPT and Gemini. Whether you want them to answer questions about a manual, edit a resume, or tell you something about an image, neither disappoints. Both chatbots still sometimes make up quotes from provided documents or misunderstand images; make sure to double-check their results.
Winner: Tie
Creative Writing: ChatGPT Follows Instructions Better
ChatGPT and Gemini can both generate generally competent poems, plays, stories, and more. ChatGPT, however, has a slight edge, courtesy of its exceptional ability to follow even complex instructions in prompts and its nice touches, like the inclusion of titles for poems. Gemini occasionally struggles with more complex creative writing prompts. For example, it might generate poems that read closer to prose.
Winner: ChatGPT
Complex Reasoning: Gemini Got More Answers Wrong
ChatGPT’s and Gemini’s complex reasoning models can handle computer science, math, and physics questions with ease and can competently show their work. In testing, ChatGPT gave correct answers slightly more often than Gemini, but their performance is quite similar. Both chatbots can and will give you incorrect answers, so double-checking their work is still vital if you’re doing anything important or trying to learn a concept.
Winner: ChatGPT
Integrations: Impressive AI Connections Across the Google Suite
ChatGPT doesn’t offer integrations at the level of Gemini, and Gemini’s integrations are its defining feature. Whether you want to ask a question about a shared Chrome tab, get help with editing an essay in Google Docs, hear ideas for a new curated YouTube Music playlist, or unlock personal insights in Gmail, Gemini can do all that and much more. It’s difficult to understate the power and comprehensiveness of Gemini’s integrations.
Winner: Gemini
AI Assistants: Gems Aren't Very Interesting
ChatGPT has Custom GPTs, and Gemini has Gems. Both are customizable AI assistants. Neither is a big upgrade over talking to the chatbots directly, but third-party Custom GPTs do add new functionality, such as easy access to Canva for editing generated images. Meanwhile, third parties can't create Gems, and you can't share them. You can allow Custom GPTs to access outside information or take outside actions, but Gems don’t have similar functionality.
Winner: ChatGPT
Context Windows and Usage Caps: ChatGPT Can't Keep Up
ChatGPT’s context window goes up to 128,000 tokens in its higher-tier plans, and all plans have dynamic usage caps based on server load. Gemini, for comparison, has a context window of up to 1,000,000 tokens. Google isn’t too clear on the exact usage caps for Gemini, but they are dynamic depending on server load, too. Anecdotally, I wasn’t able to hit usage caps using either ChatGPT’s or Gemini’s paid plans, but it’s much easier to do so with their free plans.
Winner: Gemini
Privacy: Everybody Wants Your Data for Training
Privacy on ChatGPT and Gemini is a mixed bag. Both collect significant amounts of data, including all your chats, and use that data to train their AI models by default. However, both give you the option to turn training off. Google at least doesn’t collect and use Gemini data for training purposes in Workspace apps by default. ChatGPT and Gemini also promise not to sell your data or use it for ad targeting, but Google and OpenAI both have sordid histories when it comes to hacks, leaks, and various digital wrongdoings, so I recommend not sharing anything too sensitive with either.
Winner: Tie