Exploring free and paid options with ChatGPT!

• (opens in new tab)
• (opens in new tab)
• (opens in new tab)
• (opens in new tab)

(Image credit: Ebru-Omer Via Shutterstock )

ChatGPT is the latest and most popular AI chatbot in the game right now and has captured the interest of many in the few months it’s been available to the public. It’s so popular, in fact, that tech giants like Microsoft and Google (and more recently Twitter and Facebook) have engaged in a mad scramble to integrate AI into their systems as fast as possible.

To quickly break down what it’s all about: ChatGPT is a chatbot developed by OpenAI that is designed to act as a supercharged virtual assistant, drawing upon a huge bank of information and machine learning processes to answer questions, curate recipes, help create and edit content, and much more - all in a friendly, conversational way. There’s so much you can do with ChatGPT, and the current limitations are few and far between. Imagination and creativity - sprinkled with a bit of patience here and there - is key to really getting the most out of the tool. 

In terms of where you can use it, you now have a few more options than previously, though we recommend heading over to OpenAI’s official website and creating an account there. Microsoft has integrated ChatGPT into its Bing search engine and curated Bing Chat, though to use that you’ll need Microsoft Edge.

Google’s answer to AI-enhanced searching is Google Bard, which doesn’t use OpenAI’s ChatGPT but is more of an answer (and rival) to it, based on Google’s LaMDA AI model and currently only available to select beta testers. So using the official OpenAI site is probably best right now if you’re just dipping your toes into everything. 

Do I have to pay for ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is free - for now. OpenAI has launched a new paid option for it that basically acts like priority access, allowing you to skip waiting times and get earlier access to new features for $20 a month. So far we’ve been using the free option and it works just as well; you don’t lose features or feel like you’re missing out, though it can be frustrating when you’re trying to hop on and the servers are super busy. If you’re just starting out we don’t recommend purchasing any paid plans yet, but rather waiting and seeing how you get on with the free version.

How long ChatGPT will remain free is at this point a mystery. There’s not a lot of concrete evidence out there to suggest it’s a departure into the realm of paid-only access, but like most applications and software with technology so advanced and demand so high, it could be likely that ChatGPT becomes a paid service. There’s a definite possibility that the base version may turn into a free-with-ads situation, perhaps with query limits or time constraints since maintenance must be pretty expensive.

There’s no wrong way to use ChatGPT, and there are some safeguarding limitations you might encounter. However, if you want to make the most out of your time with ChatGPT and get more meaningful responses, there are a few things you want to avoid. These include being clear and concise, avoiding typos, and having patience. Remember, ChatGPT is a tool and is always learning so expect a few errors.

So, while ChatGPT is currently free, take the opportunity to play around with it, make travel itineraries, proofread papers, and get help with day-to-day tasks. AI is an evolving industry and regulation from bodies like the US government and the European Union is still in the early stages, so enjoy it while you can without spending a dime!

See more Computing news