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The PocketPal AI Insider’s Guide

Everything we know about PocketPal AI in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.

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ToolGPAOctober 2026

PocketPal AI

The Insider’s Guide

Open-source app for running AI models offline on phones and tablets

Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among AI assistants, read from PocketPal AI’s own pages.

Made by Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt) · checked Oct 9, 2026 · toolgpa.com

2.8GPA

Contents

  1. 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
  2. 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
  3. 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
  4. 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
  5. 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
  6. 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
  7. 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

ToolGPA put this guide together from PocketPal AI’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on PocketPal AI’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 9, 2026.

Part 01 · Overview

Welcome

What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first

2.8

GPA, above 30 of the 57 other AI assistants we grade

PocketPal AI is a free, MIT-licensed app for iPhone, iPad and Android that runs open language models on the device itself. Models in GGUF format are downloaded from Hugging Face inside the app and then work with no connection and no account. Assistants called Pals carry their own model, system prompt and personality, and the PalsHub marketplace sells some community-made Pals as in-app purchases.

To get you started, here are 9 things to know about PocketPal AI, taken from its own pages and our grades.

No rating on record, and no account to make, which helps.
From our grade for ease of use
  1. 1

    Best for running AI models offline on your phone

    PocketPal runs open AI models on your iPhone, iPad or Android phone, so once a model is downloaded it works with no signal and no account, and the app is free and open source.

  2. 2

    What it costs

    Paid plans start at $0.99 per premium Pal, one-time (US App Store in-app purchase).

  3. 3

    There is a free plan

    The app is free, ad-free and open source, with no subscription or paid tier for the AI itself. Only premium Pals from the PalsHub marketplace cost money.

  4. 4

    It runs on 2 platforms

    iOS and Android.

  5. 5

    On-device chat with GGUF models

    Runs open models such as Gemma, Qwen, Phi and Llama through llama.cpp on the phone's CPU, GPU or, on Qualcomm chips, NPU. Nothing is sent to a server.

  6. 6

    Hugging Face downloads

    Search, bookmark and download GGUF models from the Hugging Face Hub inside the app, picking a quantization that fits the device. Gated models work with your own access token.

  7. 7

    Pals and PalsHub

    A Pal is an assistant with its own default model, system prompt and personality, in Assistant or Roleplay form. PalsHub lists Pals made by other people, both free and paid.

  8. 8

    A 2.8 GPA, above 30 of 57

    That is against the other AI assistants we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.

  9. 9

    Keep it

    To replace PocketPal AI 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.

PocketPal AI at a glance

Pricing
Free plan, from $0.99 per premium Pal, one-time (US App Store in-app purchase)
Free plan
Yes
Free trial
None stated
Runs on
iOS, Android
Made by
Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt)
Category
AI Assistants
Our grade
2.8 GPA, good

The report card

Best for running AI models offline on your phone

PocketPal runs open AI models on your iPhone, iPad or Android phone, so once a model is downloaded it works with no signal and no account, and the app is free and open source. You pick each model yourself in a size your phone's memory and chip can handle, the built-in tools stop at a calculator, the date and HTML, and it's phones and tablets only.

ToolGPA report cardPocketPal AIGraded Oct 10, 2026
SubjectGradeComment
Value for moneyAThe app costs nothing and there's no subscription for the AI at all. The only things for sale are optional premium Pals at $0.99 to $2.99 each, paid once, where this category's middle plan wants about $12 every month.
Free plan and trialAThe whole app is free, ad-free and MIT-licensed: offline chat, model downloads from Hugging Face, text-to-speech, your own Pals, benchmarking. Nothing about the AI itself sits behind a paywall.
FeaturesCIt does its one job fully — running open models like Gemma, Qwen, Phi and Llama on the phone itself, with replies read aloud by on-device voices — and that one job is a narrow slice of what this category does. The built-in tools stop at a calculator, the date and time, and rendering HTML.
Ease of useCNo rating on record, and no account to make, which helps. But before the first chat you pick a GGUF model off Hugging Face in a quantization that fits your phone's memory and chip, and those are words most people have to go and look up.
Platforms and integrationsCiPhone, iPad and Android, and that's the lot: phones and tablets only, with the App Store listing marked not verified for macOS. Hugging Face is the one thing it connects to.
Grade point averageGood, out of 4.02.8

An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.

Who PocketPal AI is for

  • Fits if you want an AI that keeps working on a plane, with nothing sent to a server
  • Works for people who want to try lots of open models, since Hugging Face is searchable inside the app

Who it is not for

  • Not for you if you want it to work straight away, since you pick each model in a size your phone can handle
  • Skip it if you want the same chats on your laptop, as it's built for phones and tablets only
  • Too light for jobs that need tools, with only a calculator, the date and time, and HTML rendering built in
  • Watch out: premium Pals cost $0.99 to $2.99 each on the App Store, and prices differ on Google Play and PalsHub

Good to know

Good for

  • Running open models privately on an iPhone, iPad or Android phone
  • Trying many GGUF models from Hugging Face on a mobile device
  • Checking how fast a particular phone runs local models

Worth knowing

  • It is built for phones and tablets only; the App Store listing marks it as not verified for macOS.
  • Which models run, and how fast, depends on the device's memory and chip, so each model's quantization has to be chosen to fit.
  • The built-in tools are limited to a calculator, date and time, and HTML rendering.
  • Premium Pals are paid extras, and prices differ between the App Store, Google Play and the PalsHub website, which charges in euros.

Part 02 · Pricing

What it costs

Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved

$0.99 one-time

To start. There is a free plan too

PocketPal AI has a free plan. Paid plans start at $0.99 per premium Pal, one-time (US App Store in-app purchase).

The app costs nothing and there's no subscription for the AI at all.
From our grade for value for money

  • Free

    $0

    The full app: offline chat with GGUF models, Hugging Face downloads, text-to-speech, your own Pals, built-in tools and benchmarking.

  • Premium Pals

    $0.99 to $2.99

    per Pal, one-time in-app purchase (US App Store)

    Optional community-made assistants from PalsHub. Google Play's US listing shows $1.39 to $2.79 per item, and the PalsHub website prices paid Pals from €1.49.

The free plan

The app is free, ad-free and open source, with no subscription or paid tier for the AI itself. Only premium Pals from the PalsHub marketplace cost money.

Read from apps.apple.com on Oct 9, 2026.

What the app costs elsewhere

Each country’s App Store price for “SketchPal”, against $2.99 in the United States, in dollars at the day’s rate. The four cheapest and the four dearest of 11.

CountryPrice thereIn dollarsAgainst the US
Canada$3.99$2.806% less
Turkey₺149,99$3.05about the same
India₹ 299$3.09about the same
Philippines₱ 199.00$3.176% more
South AfricaR59.99$3.6321% more
Mexico$69.00$3.7927% more
United Kingdom£2.99$3.9532% more
BrazilR$ 19,90$3.9833% more

Part 03 · Features

What it does

Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it

2

Places it runs: iOS and Android

Open-source app for running AI models offline on phones and tablets. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: open source, works offline, local-first, AI features, chat assistant.

The built-in tools stop at a calculator, the date and time, and rendering HTML.
From our grade for features
On-device chat with GGUF models
Runs open models such as Gemma, Qwen, Phi and Llama through llama.cpp on the phone's CPU, GPU or, on Qualcomm chips, NPU. Nothing is sent to a server.
Hugging Face downloads
Search, bookmark and download GGUF models from the Hugging Face Hub inside the app, picking a quantization that fits the device. Gated models work with your own access token.
Pals and PalsHub
A Pal is an assistant with its own default model, system prompt and personality, in Assistant or Roleplay form. PalsHub lists Pals made by other people, both free and paid.
On-device text-to-speech
Replies can be read aloud by neural voice engines such as Kokoro that run on the phone, so speech needs no cloud service either.
Built-in tools
Capable Pals can call tools in the middle of a conversation: a calculator, the current date and time, and rendering of HTML that the model writes.
Benchmarking and leaderboard
Measures tokens per second and memory use for a model on your device. Results can optionally be submitted to the public AI Phone Leaderboard.

Where it runs

  • iOS
  • Android

What it works with

  • Hugging Face

PocketPal AI is made by Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt).

Part 04 · Standing

Where it stands

Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own

30/57

Other AI assistants it is graded above

PocketPal AI's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 30 of the 57 other AI assistants we grade, and level with 8.

It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 43 of 57) and worst on features (C, above 0).

Each grade against the category

Every bar is all 58 AI assistants we grade, cut by the letter each got. PocketPal AI’s own letter is outlined.

  • AValue for moneyAbove 38 of 57
  • AFree plan and trialAbove 43 of 57
  • CFeaturesAbove 0 of 57
  • CEase of useAbove 3 of 57
  • CPlatforms and integrationsAbove 2 of 57

Keep it, or make your own?

Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.

Keep it

To replace PocketPal AI 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.

It costs $0.99, paid once. PocketPal AI is open source, so there is a third way: take its code and run it yourself.

What you could not

  • An AI model, which you can rent by the request but not make.
  • A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.

What this rests on. PocketPal AI’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.

Part 05 · Alternatives

The alternatives

The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side

Private LLM, Locally AI, LM Studio, Jan and Cherry Studio

The 5 tools PocketPal AI is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.

  • 2.0GPA

    Private LLM

    From $4.99 one-time

    Offline AI chat app for iPhone, iPad and Mac with a one-time price.

    • PocketPal AI has a free plan. Private LLM does not.
    • Only PocketPal AI lists an Android app.
    • Only Private LLM lists a macOS app.
    PocketPal AI and Private LLM compared in full
  • 3.2GPA

    Locally AI

    Free

    Free app that runs open AI models offline on iPhone, iPad and Mac.

    • Only PocketPal AI lists an Android app.
    • Only Locally AI lists a macOS app.
    • PocketPal AI is open source, according to its own site.
    PocketPal AI and Locally AI compared in full
  • 3.0GPA

    LM Studio

    Free plan · from $20/mo

    Desktop app for running open AI models on your own computer.

    • Only PocketPal AI lists iOS and Android apps.
    • Only LM Studio lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps.
    • PocketPal AI is open source, according to its own site.
    PocketPal AI and LM Studio compared in full
  • 3.0GPA

    Jan

    Free

    Open-source desktop app for running local and cloud AI models.

    • Only PocketPal AI lists iOS and Android apps.
    • Only Jan lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps.
    • Jan also covers AI search.
    PocketPal AI and Jan compared in full
  • 3.2GPA

    Cherry Studio

    Free plan

    Open-source desktop AI client for 50+ model providers.

    • Only Cherry Studio lists macOS, Windows and Linux apps.
    • Cherry Studio also covers AI agents.
    PocketPal AI and Cherry Studio compared in full

Part 06 · Questions

Quick answers

The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two

12

Questions, each answered in a line or two

The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.

Is PocketPal AI free?

PocketPal AI has a free plan. The app is free, ad-free and open source, with no subscription or paid tier for the AI itself.

How much does PocketPal AI cost?

PocketPal AI lists 2 plans. Free: $0.

What platforms does PocketPal AI work on?

PocketPal AI is available on iOS and Android.

Does PocketPal AI have a Windows app?

No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 9, 2026. PocketPal AI is listed for iOS and Android.

Does PocketPal AI have a macOS app?

No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 9, 2026. PocketPal AI is listed for iOS and Android.

Is PocketPal AI open source?

Yes. PocketPal AI is open source, according to its own site.

Does PocketPal AI work offline?

Yes, according to its own site. What works without a connection differs by plan and platform, so check the vendor's page for the detail.

What does PocketPal AI integrate with?

PocketPal AI's listing names Hugging Face. A listing names up to eight integrations, so it may connect to more.

Who makes PocketPal AI?

PocketPal AI is made by Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt).

What are the alternatives to PocketPal AI?

The closest alternatives to PocketPal AI in our directory are Private LLM, Locally AI, LM Studio, Jan and Cherry Studio.

How does PocketPal AI compare with other AI assistants?

PocketPal AI's GPA of 2.8 is higher than 30 of the 57 other AI assistants we grade, and level with 8.

Could I make my own version of PocketPal AI?

To replace PocketPal AI you would be making an AI model, which you can rent by the request but not make.

Where this guide comes from

The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from PocketPal AI’s own pages on Oct 9, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from PocketPal AI's own pages on 9 October 2026. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-04-27.

Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt). Prices change, so check pocketpal.dev before you buy.

Part 07 · About

About ToolGPA

Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it

3,189

Tools graded, in 94 categories

ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.

Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.

  • 3,189

    tools graded

  • 94

    categories

  • 426

    price changes on record

  • 579

    apps priced in 12 countries

What else is on toolgpa.com

Scan for the live page

Prices and grades as they are today

Quoting this guide?

Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:

ToolGPA, "PocketPal AI: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 9, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/pocketpal-ai

Know someone choosing between AI assistants?

Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/pocketpal-ai/guide

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See our other guides

The best-graded AI assistants after PocketPal AI, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.

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Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.

Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›

Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what PocketPal AI’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. PocketPal AI is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Gooya UG (haftungsbeschränkt). Prices and plans change: check pocketpal.dev before you buy.