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AI Dungeon vs Character.AI

Two fact sheets from our own research, side by side — pricing, platforms, API access and status re-checked by us rather than quoted from the vendors. AI Dungeon starts at $14.99, Character.AI at $9.99. Both have a free tier.

AI DungeonText adventure engine where the AI improvises every sceneCharacter.AIRoleplay chat with user-made characters, now adults only

Side by side

FactAI DungeonCharacter.AI
CategoryStorytelling & FictionAI Companions & Characters
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemium
Starts at$14.99 month$9.99 month
Public APINoNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, iOS, Android
CompanyLatitudeCharacter Technologies, Inc.
Launched20192021
Last verifiedSep 6, 2026Sep 6, 2026

What our research says

AI Dungeon

Still the deepest AI text-adventure product there is, with seven years of scenario library behind it, and the only one where memory and world-state tooling is the actual product. It is entertainment, not a writing assistant — do not buy it expecting to finish a manuscript.

Pros

  • Memory, world info and scenario tooling are far more developed than in general chatbots used for roleplay
  • Multiple model choices per tier, including newer models added through 2026
  • Native iOS and Android apps, not just a mobile web wrapper
  • Large public scenario library gives an immediate starting point

Cons

  • Five-tier ladder from $14.99 to $99.99 is steep, and context length is the thing being sold at every rung
  • Credits do double duty for images and for extra context, so heavy sessions drain them quickly
  • No API, so scenarios cannot be driven from outside the platform
  • The service has changed content and moderation policy sharply in the past, which still colours community trust

Character.AI

Still the deepest character library anywhere and the reason the whole companion category exists, but it has been rebuilt around safety and identity checks, and the audience it was famous for is now locked out.

Pros

  • Character library is far larger than any competitor's, with voice calls and group scenes included
  • Free tier is genuinely usable, with the subscription mostly buying speed and memory
  • Safety changes are unusually explicit about what was removed and when

Cons

  • Age assurance defaults to face-based estimation, which is a hard stop for privacy-minded users
  • Charms are a second currency on top of c.ai+, so the $9.99 is a floor not a ceiling
  • No API, no export, and no self-hosting
  • The platform has been reshaped by wrongful-death litigation, and further restrictions are plausible

Which one fits

Choose AI Dungeon if you need

  • Long-running solo roleplay campaigns where world state has to survive dozens of sessions
  • Players who want to author and share scenarios rather than only consume them
  • Anyone curious how far a story engine can go without authored branches

Choose Character.AI if you need

  • Adults who want long-running roleplay with persistent personas
  • People building and sharing characters for an existing community
  • Casual conversational entertainment rather than task work

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