Claude: a limited free tier; full use is paid. The 3 options below are free to start or open source; for each one, what you gain and what you lose is written from its official sources.
Output quality is not compared here. The differences come from each tool's own pages: setup, hardware, license, free limits, commercial use. To see which one suits you, try both on the same task. How tools are selected
| Claudepaid | Gemini Notebook (formerly NotebookLM) | DeepSeek | Ollama | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Access | Free tier | Free tier | Free | Open source |
| Where it runs | In the browser / app (cloud) | In the browser / app (cloud) | In the browser / app (cloud) | On your own computer |
| Free limit | Chat on web, desktop and mobile, web search, file and Artifact creation, memory, connectors, Claude Design/Slides/Docs, 5 projects; usage is limited, no Research or Claude Code | 100 notebooks, up to 50 sources per notebook; audio overviews, video overviews and presentations included | Free; no limit stated | The software is free |
| Price | Pro: $20/month ($17/month billed annually); Max from $100; taxes not included | Monthly, with Google AI Plus (100 sources per notebook); prices are listed on the official pricing page | Free | Local use is free; optional cloud Pro: $20/month |
| Info as of | Nov 1, 2026 | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 1, 2026 | Oct 1, 2026 |
— : not checked. Details are in the cards below.
Difference: Answers based on the documents you upload and links each answer to its source; the free plan allows up to 50 sources per notebook. It is not a general chat assistant; it works from your documents.
Best for: People who summarize long PDFs, reports and contracts
Formerly NotebookLM: answers from the PDFs and documents you upload; makes audio overviews and presentations.
What sets it apart: Relies on your uploaded sources and shows the part the answer came from. It can still misread; check important answers against the source.
For: Students, lawyers, anyone who reads long documents.
Difference: Free chat and web search. Data is stored in China; do not upload confidential documents.
Best for: People who want a free assistant for non-sensitive text
A completely free chat assistant: writing, code and logic questions.
What sets it apart: No subscription; strong on questions that need reasoning.
For: People looking for a free assistant.
Difference: Documents and text never leave your computer. For long documents, usable model size is limited by your computer's memory; setup is required.
Best for: People with a powerful computer who work with confidential documents
Runs open AI models on your own computer; sends no data to the internet.
What sets it apart: Download and run a model with one command; your chat never leaves your computer.
For: People with a powerful computer who don't want to send customer data out.
An AI assistant that reads long documents, writes naturally and writes code.
What sets it apart: Strong with long documents and code; builds working pages and small tools right in the chat.
For: People who work with long texts, writers, developers.
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