# Chai review (2026): is it worth it? > Mobile app for chatting with AI characters that users create Checked Nov 12, 2026 ยท graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA. Chai is a consumer app where people build AI characters and stories and talk to them. It is made by Chai Research Corp., which trains its own language models for the product. The app is adults-only and sold through the iOS and Android stores. - **Category:** AI Assistants - **Made by:** Chai Research Corp. (since 2021) - **Website:** https://chai-research.com - **Runs on:** iOS, Android - **Who should skip it:** Not for you if you're under 18: age is checked by selfie or ID. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 12, 2026 ## Pricing Chai's current pricing could not be confirmed from its own site. ## Key features - **User-made AI characters:** People create their own AI characters and stories and share them with others on the platform. - **Conversations in character:** The Google Play listing says the chatbots reply in character, with a large selection of characters to choose from. - **In-house language models:** The company says it trains its own models for the product rather than relying on open-source ones. - **Safety filters and reporting:** The app has optional filters for mature content and anonymous in-app reporting of characters and messages. ## Good for - Adults who want to role-play or chat with fictional and user-made characters - People who like creating and sharing their own AI characters ## Worth knowing - Prices could not be confirmed: the vendor's site and its Google Play listing show none, which says only that the app has in-app purchases and ads. - The company's Safety Center says that in some regions use of the service requires a paid subscription. - Adults only: users must be 18 or older, and the company says it checks age through selfie estimation or ID verification by a third party. - Runs as an iOS and Android app; the website lists a web version as coming soon. It is a character-chat product, not a general work assistant. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.2 out of 4**, graded Nov 12, 2026. Chai is an iOS and Android app for chatting with characters that users create. No prices are published on the vendor's site or its Google Play listing, and it's adults only. It isn't a work assistant, and the website lists a web version as coming soon. - **Value for money: C.** No price is shown on the vendor's site or the Google Play listing, which says only that there are in-app purchases and ads. - **Free plan and trial: C.** The app carries ads and in-app purchases, and the Safety Center says some regions need a paid subscription. - **Features: C.** User-made characters, in-character chat, in-house models and safety filters. A narrow job: character chat, not general work. - **Ease of use: B.** No rating on record, but it's an app you install and start chatting in, with nothing to set up. Age checks apply. - **Platforms and integrations: C.** iOS and Android only, with no web version yet and no integrations. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Chai's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among AI assistants - Chai's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 9 of the 71 other AI assistants we grade, and level with 10. - It stands best on ease of use (B, above 30 of 71) and worst on features (C, above 0). The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/ai-assistants ## Keep it, or make your own? **Keep it.** To replace Chai you would be making an AI model, which you can rent by the request but not make. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one. That makes this kind of software worth paying for, not this one in particular: 52 of the 71 other AI assistants grade higher. - You could not: An AI model, which you can rent by the request but not make. - You could not: A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. **Tags:** Chat assistant, AI features ## Alternatives - [Character.AI](https://toolgpa.com/tools/character-ai): Chat and voice calls with user-made AI characters. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/chai-vs-character-ai) - [Poe](https://toolgpa.com/tools/poe): One app for chatting with AI models from many different labs. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/chai-vs-poe) - [Pi](https://toolgpa.com/tools/pi): Emotionally intelligent personal AI for talking things through. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/chai-vs-pi) - [ChatOn](https://toolgpa.com/tools/chaton): Multi-model AI chatbot app with image tools and web search. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/chai-vs-chaton) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026: - https://chai-research.com/ - https://chai-research.com/company-facts/ - https://chai-research.com/safety/ - https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.Beauchamp.Messenger.external&hl=en_US&gl=US Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/chai Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).