AI search engines are changing the way people research online. Instead of only showing a list of links, these tools can read current web sources, summarise findings, provide citations, answer follow up questions, and help users move from search to writing, planning, coding, and analysis.
Many of the leading options are free to start, although advanced features, higher usage limits, faster models, or enterprise controls may require paid plans.
Quick Comparison
| AI search engine | Best for |
|---|---|
| Perplexity | Fast search first answers with real time sources and inline citations. |
| ChatGPT Search | Conversational web search combined with writing, coding, file analysis, and deeper research workflows. |
| Google AI Mode | Google Search with Gemini based reasoning, multimodal queries, follow ups, and links to web sources. |
| Microsoft Copilot Search | Bing powered AI search with summaries, citations, links, images, videos, and related topics. |
| Claude with web search | Source based synthesis, long document reasoning, and research conversations. |
| Gemini with Google Search | Research that benefits from Google services, images, files, multimodal input, and app integrations. |
| Grok with web and X search | Current web information and content from X when search tools are enabled. |
| Felo Search | Multilingual and cross language research with traceable sources, content summarisation, and document search. |
| Andi Search | Private, ad free conversational search with direct answers and a visual results feed. |
1. Perplexity
Perplexity is one of the clearest examples of a search first AI answer engine. It is designed to research the open web in real time and return concise, source backed answers with citations, making it useful for fact checking, market research, learning, and quick comparisons. It is free to start and is available through its web app, iOS and Android apps, Windows and macOS apps, and Perplexity’s Comet browser.
Official URL: https://www.perplexity.ai.
- Pros: Search first experience; inline citations make verification easy; fast answers from current web sources; practical basic search access on the free plan.
- Cons: Advanced research, premium sources, model choice, and larger file allowances are limited or paid; concise synthesis can overlook nuance, so important claims still need source checking.
2. ChatGPT Search
ChatGPT Search brings web search into a conversational assistant that can also write, code, analyse files, generate images, and support deeper research workflows. It can answer with links to relevant web sources and continue the research through follow up questions that keep the context of the conversation.
Official URL: https://chatgpt.com.
Apps are available for mobile and desktop, including iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux download options.
- Pros: Combines live web search with writing, coding, image and file analysis in one conversation; supports follow up questions and broader research to output workflows; useful free tier.
- Cons: Search is one capability within a general assistant rather than a dedicated search interface; advanced tools, uploads, deep research, memory, and higher capacity models have tighter free limits.
3. Google AI Mode
Google AI Mode is Google’s AI powered Search experience built around Gemini reasoning. It supports text, voice, images, and file based queries, then organises results into AI generated responses with links for further exploration. It is especially useful when a search benefits from Google’s web index, multimodal search, local information, shopping, maps, or follow up exploration.
Official URL: https://search.google/ways-to-search/ai-mode/.
It is available through Google Search on desktop/mobile and through the Google app.
- Pros: Draws on Google’s broad search ecosystem; supports text, voice, images, and files; handles complex questions through subtopic searches and follow ups; provides links for further exploration.
- Cons: AI responses can still contain mistakes; some features depend on country, language, account, history settings, or staged rollout; generated summaries may reduce traffic to or visibility of individual sources.
4. Microsoft Copilot Search
Microsoft Copilot Search in Bing combines traditional search with generative AI summaries, cited sources, related topics, images, videos, and follow up exploration. It is helpful for users who want a quick overview plus a path back to the original web results.
Official URL: https://explore.microsoft.com/en-us/bing/copilot-search.
Apps are available through Microsoft Bing, Microsoft Copilot on web and desktop, Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.
- Pros: Blends Bing results with concise summaries, cited sources, related topics, images, and videos; offers strong pathways from an overview to original links; follow up suggestions support exploration.
- Cons: The experience is spread across Bing and Copilot entry points, which can be confusing; answer quality depends on retrieved sources; it may offer less integrated document and creation tooling than a full general assistant workflow.
5. Claude with Web Search
Claude is strong for source based synthesis, long document analysis, careful writing, coding, and research conversations. Its web search capability can provide up to date, cited information when the question benefits from current sources.
Official URL: https://claude.com.
Claude is available on the web, iOS, Android, and desktop app, with free access available and paid plans for higher usage and advanced capabilities.
- Pros: Strong at careful synthesis, long context analysis, writing, and discussing multiple sources; web search provides current information with direct citations; web search is available across plans.
- Cons: Free usage capacity is limited; retrieving or analysing long web pages can consume a substantial part of the available context; team and enterprise web search may require administrator enablement.
6. Gemini with Google Search
Gemini is Google’s AI assistant and is useful when research also involves Google apps, images, files, YouTube, Gmail, Calendar, Photos, or multimodal input. It can help with planning, writing, brainstorming, document analysis, and search grounded research depending on the available features in a user’s region and account.
Official URL: https://gemini.google.com.
The Gemini app is available on Android and iOS, and Gemini can also be accessed on the web.
- Pros: Uses Google Search grounding for current, verifiable information; works well with multimodal prompts and Google services; can combine search with files, planning, writing, and other assistant tasks.
- Cons: Usage limits and model access vary by plan, feature, and account; product overlap with Google AI Mode can be confusing; availability and behaviour may change as Google tests and rolls out features.
7. Grok with Web and X Search
Grok is designed for conversational AI, current web information, and X related discovery when its search tools are enabled. It is particularly suited to users who want to explore fast moving topics, social conversation, breaking trends, or content connected to X.
Official URL: https://grok.com.
Grok is available on the web, iOS, Android, and through X.
- Pros: Searches both the live web and X for fast moving information; supports cited answers, follow-ups, files, code, voice, and media creation in one service; free to start across web and mobile apps.
- Cons: Social posts and breaking discussions can be incomplete, unverified, or noisy; free access has lower limits; stronger models, higher limits, and multi agent capabilities require paid plans.
8. Felo Search
Felo Search is a multilingual AI answer engine designed to search across languages and surface information from global sources. It provides traceable sources, summarises web pages, supports document discovery, and can help users research material that may not be available in their own language.
Official URL: https://felo.ai.
Felo is available on the web and through official iOS and Android apps.
- Pros: Excellent for multilingual and cross language discovery; combines search with citations, document analysis, slides, mind maps, images, and webpages; the free plan includes unlimited high speed search.
- Cons: Its main advantage is less important for single language research; professional searches and file analyses are capped on the free plan; creation features use credits and may encourage an upgrade for regular use.
9. Andi Search
Andi Search is a conversational AI search engine that returns direct answers rather than only a conventional list of links. Its experience emphasises privacy, an ad free interface, clear attribution, summaries, and a visual feed of supporting search results.
Official URL: https://andisearch.com.
Andi is available as a web app; an official iOS or Android app could not be verified.
- Pros: Clean, direct answer interface; privacy focused, ad free search with no query tracking; visual results, source links, summaries, and explanations make everyday research approachable.
- Cons: Its independent index may have less breadth for obscure, local, or highly technical queries than Google or Bing; fewer integrated productivity features than larger assistants; the main consumer experience is web based.
The best free general AI search engine depends on how you work. Perplexity is excellent for direct, source backed answers; ChatGPT Search is the most versatile for research to output workflows; Google AI Mode and Gemini are strongest for Google connected search and multimodal tasks; Microsoft Copilot Search fits users who prefer Bing and Microsoft tools; Claude is ideal for careful synthesis and long form research; Grok is useful for current information and X connected discovery; Felo Search stands out for multilingual research; and Andi Search offers a private, ad free, visually organised search experience.
For most users, the best approach is to keep two or three of these tools available and choose the one that matches the task.