Character.AI
Millions of community characters with unlimited free text chat
The default starting point: unmatched variety and the most generous free tier in the category.
8 sites worth considering instead of Inworld, pulled from the categories it appears in and ordered by our editorial score. For reference, Inworld costs Free.
| Site | Price | Free tier | Voice | Memory | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Character.AI Millions of community characters with unlimited free text chat | $7.92/mo | Yes | Voice calls | Yes | vs |
| SillyTavern The self-hosted frontend the power users all run | Free | Yes | Voice calls | Yes | vs |
| SoulChat Six hand-written companions with long-term memory, free to try without an account | $9.99/mo | Yes | Voice notes | Yes | vs |
| Coze ByteDance’s no-code bot builder | $9/mo | Yes | No | Yes | vs |
| Kindroid Deep character builders with phone-grade voice calls | $11.67/mo | Yes | Voice calls | Yes | |
| DreamGen Open-ended roleplay and story writing with strong models | $6.26/mo | No | No | Yes | |
| Hakko AI A screen-aware gaming companion that plays along with you | $8.33/mo | Yes | Voice notes | Yes | |
| Joyland AI Anime companion and character chat with built-in image generation | $8.99/mo | Yes | No | Yes |
Millions of community characters with unlimited free text chat
The default starting point: unmatched variety and the most generous free tier in the category.
The self-hosted frontend the power users all run
If you want total control and zero subscription, this is where the advanced users live.
Six hand-written companions with long-term memory, free to try without an account
A deliberately hand-authored cast of six rather than a community character library — you trade variety for characters that keep one consistent voice.
ByteDance’s no-code bot builder
Build and ship custom AI chatbots to 8+ channels with plugins and workflows — a create-your-own toolkit, not a fixed companion.
Deep character builders with phone-grade voice calls
The best pick for people who will actually fill in the backstory — lazy setup buys you a chatbot.
Open-ended roleplay and story writing with strong models
A roleplay and creative-writing tool built on capable open models, with a scenario builder and image generation for the worlds you create.
8 sites from the same categories are listed above, ordered by our editorial score. We match on category rather than on marketing claims, so what you see is what competes with Inworld for the same use case.
Yes — Character.AI, SillyTavern, SoulChat, Coze, Kindroid, Hakko AI, Joyland AI have a free tier you can use before paying anything.
Inworld is Free. The alternatives above range from $0 to $11.67 a month.