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Character.AI vs SupaFriends

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. Character.AI starts at $9.99, SupaFriends at $11. Both have a free tier.

Side by side

FactCharacter.AISupaFriends
CategoryAI Companions & CharactersRoleplay & Character Chat
Pricing modelFreemiumFreemium
Starts at$9.99 month$11 month
Public APINoNo
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb
CompanyCharacter Technologies, Inc.
Launched2021
Last verifiedSep 6, 2026Sep 1, 2026

What our research says

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

SupaFriends

SupaFriends leans specifically into human-authored character personalities and ongoing storylines rather than a generic chatbot skin, and the daily free credits mean casual users can chat regularly without paying. Three-tier subscription pricing with non-rolling-over monthly credits means heavy users will need to budget carefully or watch credits expire unused.

Pros

  • 100+ characters spanning multiple genres, with human-authored personalities rather than generic templates
  • Daily free credits (100/day) on top of a signup bonus (400)
  • Three subscription tiers scale credit allowance to usage level

Cons

  • Monthly credits expire unused rather than rolling over
  • No operating company name is disclosed on the site
  • Subscription pricing is in euros, adding currency-conversion uncertainty for USD-based users

Which one fits

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

Choose SupaFriends if you need

  • Users who want character-driven, story-based roleplay rather than a task-focused assistant
  • Casual daily chatters who can stay within the free daily credit allowance

Browse all AI Companions & Characters