Best AI for Chat (2026)
Ranked by Text Arena overall, the main LMArena leaderboard, built from blind votes on everyday questions, advice, explanations and writing help.
Best quality
Highest Text Arena score. Shown as a 0 to 100 relative score.
Highest Text Arena rating of the 25 models we price. $4.00 per 1M tokens blended.
Ranked 2 of 25, relative score 74. $8.00 per 1M tokens blended.
Ranked 3 of 25, relative score 72. $8.00 per 1M tokens blended.
Best value
Relative score divided by blended price. Only models at or above the median of the models we price qualify.
Relative score 52 for $1.50 per 1M tokens, 3x cheaper than Gemini 4 Argon.
Relative score 100 for $4.00 per 1M tokens, close to Gemini 4 Argon on price.
Relative score 48 for $2.00 per 1M tokens, 2x cheaper than Gemini 4 Argon.
About the 0 to 100 score: Relative score: 100 is the top model we price on Text Arena, 0 is the 50th ranked model on the full leaderboard. Raw scores differ by leaderboard, so we rescale them.
Run it locally
Open models from our local finder, ranked on the same leaderboard. Private, no API bill.
Highest score of the open models in our local finder on this leaderboard.
15 points behind the top open model here.
100 points behind the top open model here.
Leaderboard used: Text Arena overall.
Scores: LMArena Text Arena, leaderboard published Oct 15, 2026, via the LMArena leaderboard dataset (CC BY 4.0). Prices: our API prices table. Checked Oct 16, 2026.
How we pick
Quality is the LMArena score for each task, built from blind side by side human votes. Where a model is listed at several effort levels we use its best one. Value divides the score above the 50th ranked model on that leaderboard by the blended price, (3 x input + output) / 4 per 1M tokens, and only counts models at or above the median score of the models we price. Local picks use the same Text Arena score and the Q4 download size. Close scores are often inside the margin of error, so treat ranks 1 to 3 as a shortlist, not a final verdict.
Other good references: SWE-bench for fixing real code issues, Aider leaderboards for code editing, and each provider's model card.
FAQ
Which AI is best for everyday chat?
Gemini 4 Argon has the top Text Arena score among the models we price. Gemini 3.8 Flash is the best value pick.
Is the free version of a chatbot the same model?
Not always. Free tiers often use a smaller model or a lower effort setting. Check the plan pages for what each tier includes.
Other tasks
Coding · Creative writing · Roleplay and characters · Reasoning and math · Vision · Long documents · Cheap bulk and agents · Local and private
Compare every price on API prices, or find what runs on your own hardware with the local model finder.