What to subscribe to in August 2026

People keep asking what I actually pay for. This is the short version, August 2026.

ChatGPT and Grok sit in the same seat. Generous token limits. Either one works as a daily driver. I am not picking a mascot.

ChatGPT is a tad smarter. Grok is faster, and search is where it pulls ahead — it just goes and looks, with fewer nanny walls. Pictures: ChatGPT is a bit cleaner. Video: OpenAI looks more real, and I still don't find it that useful at work. Grok video is weak.

If you only pay for one chat, pick whichever of those two you already like. Don't collect both out of anxiety.

The loadout: ChatGPT or Grok, Gemini for pictures, free modes if tight

A compass, a Polaroid, and a film reel on a desk — Search, pictures, video. Match the tool to the job.

Second seat: Gemini

Gemini is not my daily chat. It is the pictures-and-video box. Image gen and video gen are still the best of this set. Pay for it if you actually make that stuff.

Claude — I am out

Claude is still good at code. That used to be the only argument for the bill.

I am not paying it. Anthropic sold itself as the ethical lab, then ran a secret book-destruction pipeline — Project Panama. Once you hide the knives, I don't owe you a coding exception.

The slow ones

Kimi is capable and too slow. Don't subscribe unless you have time to wait.

GLM is also slow, but it is actually useful for pentesting. Specialist tool. Not a daily chat.

If you're watching money

Don't pay. Use the free mode on all of them. You likely won't run out.

Pro tip: OpenCode's free models can cover extra work — drafting, busywork, a second pass — so a paid seat stays for the job that actually needs it.

That's the map. ChatGPT or Grok. Maybe Gemini. Not Claude. Don't collect logos.

Full note on why Claude is off the desk: Project Panama.