Gemini vs Grok
Gemini and Grok side by side: what each one is, what it costs to start, and whether you can try it free. Everything below comes from the vendors' own sites and other public sources, not from hands-on testing.
At a glance
| Gemini | Grok | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Writing & Copy | Writing & Copy |
| Starting price | $4.99/mo (checked October 2026) | Free; paid plans from $8/mo (checked October 2026) |
| Free tier | Yes | Yes |
| Profile | Read profile | Read profile |
Prices are in US dollars unless shown otherwise. Confirm the current price on the vendor's site before you buy.
Key differences
Both list a free tier, so you can try each before paying.
Gemini has the lower starting price ($4.99/mo against $8/mo for Grok). The cheapest plan rarely has the same limits or features, so compare plans before choosing on price.
Both are in our Writing & Copy category.
About each tool
Gemini
Google's AI assistant app for text, image and voice tasks, with a free plan and paid Google AI plans that add higher usage limits and Google storage.
Who it is for
People who already use a Google Account and want an assistant for summarising, drafting, coding help and image generation. Paid Google AI plans add higher usage limits and bundled Google storage.
Strengths
- Free plan with a Google Account, including Deep Research, Gemini Live, Canvas, Gems and image generation and editing
- Paid plans raise usage limits: 2x the free allowance on Google AI Plus and 4x on Google AI Pro
- Larger context window on paid plans: 32k tokens on Free, 128k on AI Plus, 1M on AI Pro and Ultra
- Paid plans bundle Google storage: 400 GB (AI Plus), 5 TB (AI Pro), from 20 TB (AI Ultra)
Limitations
- Free usage is compute-based rather than a fixed prompt count; limits reset every 5 hours until a weekly cap is reached
- Features that need more compute, such as Deep Research, can be unavailable to free users at busy times
- Plan availability and age requirements vary by country
Grok
AI assistant from xAI for chat, voice, file analysis, web and X search, and image and video generation. Has a free tier; x.ai/pricing lists Plus at $8 per month and Premium at $30 per month (checked 2026-10-15).
Who it is for
People who want a general chat assistant with live web and X search plus image and video creation. Business and Enterprise plans add team workspaces and organisation controls.
Strengths
- Free version available on web and mobile apps
- One sign-in across web, iOS and Android, with synced conversations and subscription
- Live web and X search with source citations
- Grok Imagine creates images and video from text prompts
- Listed connectors include Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar, Outlook, SharePoint, OneDrive, Microsoft Teams and Salesforce, plus custom MCP
Limitations
- Paid plans share one weekly usage pool across Chat, Imagine, Voice, Build and API; paid features pause until the weekly reset when it runs out
- Video output is capped at 720p on each tier
- xAI's official pages do not give numeric free-tier limits
- X Premium access is sold and refunded through X, not xAI
