MaxAI vs Monica (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Monica grades higher than MaxAI: 3.2 against 2.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 9, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
MaxAI grades higher on the free plan. Monica grades higher on value for money, features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
MaxAI
AI sidebar for Chromium browsers that chats about the page you are on
Monica
AI assistant with many models, built around a browser sidebar
Which one is for you
Pick MaxAI if
- Fits if you read and write inside Chrome or Edge all day
- Works for people who want several AI models on one plan
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you use Firefox, Safari or a phone, since no extension or app is listed for them
- Tight if you stay free, as you get 3 Pro chats a day and limited uploads
- Watch out: image generation and model choice are Pro features, and payments are final and non-refundable
- Pricey if you pay monthly, at $30 against $12 when billed yearly
Pick Monica if
- Fits if you want AI next to whatever you're reading, without switching tabs
- Works for asking two or three models the same thing and comparing the answers
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want one simple price, because basic queries, advanced queries and credits are counted separately
- Tight if you lean on the top models: Pro stops at 200 advanced queries a month, and the "unlimited" Max slows to 100 a day
- Not for you if you need a team plan: accounts are for one person, and sharing one can get it suspended
- Pricey if you want the agent all day: Ultra is $995 a year up front, and payments are final outside the EU, UK and Turkey
- Watch out: in August 2026 Monica set data made since 29 December 2025 to be deleted for users in some regions
How we grade them
| 2.6GPAMaxAIGood | 3.2GPAMonicaVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | CPro is $12 a member a month billed yearly, which is the middle of what AI assistants charge ($12). It is shown as a limited-time saving off $30 monthly, with no end date. | BPro is $99 a year, so $8.3 a month, right at this category's cheapest quarter, for models from several AI labs. But 200 advanced queries a month is six or seven a day, and you're paying for the year up front. |
| Free plan and trial | BChat with the fast free models is unlimited and needs no card, but Pro chats are capped at 3 a day and file uploads are limited. No trial is listed. | C40 requests a day, to the basic models only, and images, video, ChatPDF and the agent are short trials. Enough to find out whether you want a sidebar, not enough to stay on. |
| Features | CSidebar answers about pages, PDFs, videos and email, rewrite and translate tools, and image generation on Pro. The listing shows gaps: no mobile app, and model choice sits on paid plans. | BChat with several models, summaries of pages, YouTube videos and PDFs, translation, writing help, images, video and research agents. Most of the usual AI jobs are in there, each drawing on one of its meters. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. It is an extension you add to the browser and sign in to, with nothing else to set up. | A4.7 from about 6,800 App Store ratings, and one shortcut opens the sidebar on any page. The plans are the hard part: basic queries, advanced queries and credits each run out on their own. |
| Platforms and integrations | BChrome and Edge extension plus a web app, working inside Gmail, Outlook, LinkedIn and YouTube. No Firefox, Safari, desktop or phone app is listed. | AA Chrome and Edge extension, a web app, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android. It works inside Gmail, Outlook, YouTube and WhatsApp, and there's a separate API platform for developers. |
| Best for | an AI sidebar in Chrome or Edge | many AI models in one browser sidebar |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: MaxAI and Monica. How we grade
Price against what you get
MaxAI starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Monica starts at $8.30 a month and scores 3.7.
Monica scores higher and starts $3.70 a month lower. Of the other AI assistants on the chart, 10 score higher than MaxAI for less, and 2 score higher than Monica for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- MaxAI also covers citations and image generation.
- Monica also covers AI agents.
At a glance
| MaxAI | Monica | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12 per member / month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly) | $8.3 per month, billed annually ($99 per year) |
| Free plan | Unlimited chat with the free AI models, 3 Pro chats per day and limited file uploads. | 40 requests to basic models a day, basic writing, translation and summaries, and limited trials of image and video generation, ChatPDF and the AI Agent. |
| Free trial | None listed | The help center mentions a trial period, capped at 100 advanced queries; its length and how it starts are not stated |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | MaxAI.me | Butterfly Effect Pte. Ltd. |
| Price read from | maxai.co | monica.im |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 9, 2026 |
Worth knowing
MaxAI
- The browser extension works on Chromium-based browsers such as Chrome and Edge; the vendor lists no Firefox, Safari or mobile app.
- The free plan allows 3 Pro chats a day; image generation and the larger model choices are paid features.
- The pricing page states that all payments are final and non-refundable.
- The $12 Pro price is shown as a limited-time saving with no end date, so the regular rate may differ.
Monica
- The Free plan allows 40 basic-model requests a day and gives only limited trials of image and video generation, ChatPDF and the AI Agent.
- Pro is capped at 5,000 basic and 200 advanced queries a month. Max and Ultra slow to 100 queries a day after 1,600 advanced and 12,000 basic queries in a month.
- Accounts are for personal use only, and Monica says a team subscription has not launched. The prices listed are for annual billing.
- Monica's help center describes an August 2026 transition in which data created since December 29, 2025 was set to be deleted for users in certain regions.
Key features
MaxAI
- AI sidebar
- Opens beside any web page in Chrome or Edge so you can ask about the page without copying text into another tab.
- Ask about different sources
- Questions can be asked about a web page, YouTube video, PDF, email, file, image or audio, and answers carry cited sources.
- Choice of AI models
- The pricing page lists models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, xAI, Meta and DeepSeek, split into Fast, Smart and Think tiers. Paid plans choose among them.
- Writing and reply tools
- Rewrite, fix grammar, change tone, shorten or lengthen selected text, and draft replies inside Gmail, Outlook, LinkedIn and several social and chat sites.
- Translation
- Translate selected text, or show a page's original and translated text side by side.
- Image generation
- Create images from text with models such as GPT-Image-1, DALL-E 3 and FLUX. Listed as a Pro feature.
Monica
- Many models in one chat
- Chats with models such as GPT-6.1 Sol, Claude Sonnet 5.5 and Gemini 3.8 Flash from one account, and can show answers from several models side by side for comparison.
- Browser sidebar and toolbar
- The Chrome and Edge extension opens an AI sidebar on any web page, and a toolbar explains, translates or summarizes whatever text you select.
- Summaries of pages, videos and files
- Summarizes web pages and files, pulls highlights with timestamps from YouTube videos, and answers questions about PDFs through ChatPDF.
- Writing and translation
- Drafts and rewrites text on any page, checks grammar, suggests replies in Gmail and Outlook, and translates whole web pages for side-by-side bilingual reading.
- AI Agent tools
- Deep Research, Create Slides, Image Studio and Browser Operator run as agent tasks. Each one spends Advanced Credits from the plan's monthly allowance.
- Image and video generation
- Generates images and video with models such as Nano Banana 2, GPT Image 2.5 Flare, Sora 2 and Veo 3.1, also charged in Advanced Credits.
Plans
MaxAI
Free$0
per member / month
Unlimited chat with the fast free models, 3 Pro chats per day, limited file uploads.
Pro$12
per member / month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly)
Unlimited Pro chat, model choice, image generation, higher upload limits. Shown as a limited-time 60% saving off $30, no end date.
Monica
Free$0
40 requests to basic models a day, with limited trials of image and video generation, ChatPDF and the AI Agent. Up to 3 login devices.
Pro$8.3
per month, billed annually ($99 per year)
5,000 basic and 200 advanced model queries a month, 1,500 Advanced Credits, the AI Agent, and image and video generation.
Max$16.6
per month, billed annually ($199 per year)
Called unlimited; queries slow to 100 a day after 1,600 advanced and 12,000 basic a month. 4,500 Advanced Credits. In beta, and shown as a flash sale from $299 per year.
Ultra$82.9
per month, billed annually ($995 per year)
Called unlimited, with the same monthly thresholds as Max before queries slow to 100 a day. 20,000 Advanced Credits and up to 10 login devices.
Ways to pay less
MaxAI
- Annual discount
Yearly billing at $12 instead of $30 monthly
The pricing page shows Pro at $12 per member per month billed yearly against $30 when billed monthly, marked as a limited-time 60% saving.
Monica
- Annual discount
Save 17% with annual billing
The pricing page marks Pro ($99 per year) and Ultra ($995 per year) as saving 17% with annual billing. Max is shown at $199 per year, crossed out from $299, as a 33% flash sale with no end date given.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, MaxAI or Monica?
As of Nov 12, 2026, MaxAI starts at $12 per member / month, billed yearly ($30 billed monthly), and Monica starts at $8.3 per month, billed annually ($99 per year). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, MaxAI or Monica?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both MaxAI and Monica have a free plan.
Which platforms do MaxAI and Monica run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Monica lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app and a browser extension. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.