Choosing and Using the Tools

A straight, comparative look at the AI tools people actually use — ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot, and the open models you can download. What genuinely separates them, what each free tier really gives you, when paying is worth it, what happens to what you type, and how to re-check all of it in six months when the answers have moved.

1. 1What you are actually choosing7 minYou are choosing three things at once: a model, the product wrapped around it, and the route you reach it by.
2. 2Where they differ, and where it is marketing8 minYour five real tasks tell you more than any leaderboard, because a benchmark measures the test and not your work.
3. 3The free tiers, and their traps8 minA free tier shows you a product's floor, not its ceiling, and it will downgrade you without saying so.
4. 4When paying is worth it8 minPay when a cap is blocking work you would have done anyway, not to own the best model.
5. 5The open models8 minOpen weights means you can download and keep it; it rarely means open training data, and the licences differ.
6. 6Running a model on your own machine9 minA local model buys privacy, offline access and zero marginal cost, and charges you capability and speed for it.
7. 7Who reads what you type8 minNot training on your data and not storing it are different promises, and most providers only make the first.
8. 8Two tools, and a date in your calendar7 minKeep a default and a checker, and re-run your own five prompts twice a year.