Verdict
Chai offers quick, low-effort chats with community-made characters on mobile, and it has added real-time self-harm detection and age checks since a 2023 tragedy in Belgium. It is hard to recommend in late 2026: free limits and paywalls change without notice, a new pieces currency confuses users, chat histories were lost in the spring, prices aren't published and its Google Play rating has fallen to 2.4.
What's good
- Fast, low-effort chats with community characters
- A large, established user base
- Real-time self-harm detection with crisis line referrals
- Age checks through Persona
- Easy character creation with voices and personas
What's not
- Free limits and paywalls change without notice
- Users lost chat histories between April and June 2026
- A confusing pieces currency and country-specific paywalls
- No web version, and prices aren't published
- Its Google Play rating fell to 2.4 in 2026
Score breakdown
ChaiAverage of all 77 apps
Overview
Chai is made by Chai Research Corp. in Palo Alto, California, and launched in 2021. It runs on Android, and on iOS in some countries, with fast in-house models that are blended together; there is no web version yet. Anyone can create characters, give them voices and set up personas, and the company says more than a million people use it every day.
In March 2023, a Belgian man died by suicide after weeks of conversations with a Chai chatbot, according to his widow's account in La Libre Belgique. Chai added crisis prompts afterwards and now scans chats for self-harm in real time and refers users to helplines. Since January 2026, some countries require payment to use Chai at all, and elsewhere free use is shaped by message caps and a currency called pieces.
Features
- Voice messages: YesCharacter voices
- Voice calls: No
- Image generation: No
- Video: No
- Long-term memory: LimitedCapped chat history
- Group chats: No
- Build your own character: YesCharacters and personas
- Community characters: YesCommunity bots
Pricing
Chai publishes no price list. A March 2026 third-party guide lists Premium at $13.99 a month or $134.99 a year and Ultra at $29.99 a month or $269.99 a year, while other guides list different plans.
| Plan | Monthly | Yearly plan | What you get |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | — | Ads, shifting message caps and a daily allowance of pieces, where free use is offered |
| Premium & Ultra | $13.99/mo | $134.99/yr | Third-party guides from 2026 list Premium at $13.99 a month ($134.99 a year) and Ultra at $29.99 a month ($269.99 a year), but sources conflict and Chai publishes no price list. |
Google Play lists in-app purchases from $0.99 to $899.99. Pieces, an in-app currency, are spent per chat, with a small free daily allowance.
Prices are in US dollars before tax and change often. Check the official site before you pay.
Privacy & safety
Chai has improved its safety tools since 2023, with real-time self-harm detection and age checks. It still trains on your chats and keeps data for up to five years after you delete your account.
- SeriousIn 2023 a Belgian man died by suicide after weeks of chatting with a Chai bot. Belgian authorities opened an investigation after a 2024 complaint, and its outcome is unknown.
- CautionThe October 2026 privacy policy says chats are used to fine-tune its models after identifiers are removed, and data is kept for up to 5 years after you delete your account.
- CautionMozilla's 2024 review gave Chai its privacy warning label, citing a vague privacy policy and a sweeping license over user content.
- NoteChai now scans chats for self-harm in real time and refers users to crisis lines.
What users say
Chai's Google Play rating has fallen to 2.4 from about 851,000 reviews, down from 4.1 in March 2026. Reddit threads in September and October 2026 complain about the pieces paywall, lost chats and the app's decline.
Chai FAQ
Is Chai free?
In some countries. Where free use still exists it is ad-supported, with shifting message caps, message-length limits and a daily allowance of pieces. Since January 2026, about 22 countries require payment to use Chai at all.
How much does Chai cost?
Chai publishes no price list. A March 2026 third-party guide lists Premium at $13.99 a month or $134.99 a year and Ultra at $29.99 a month or $269.99 a year, while other guides list different plans.
Does Chai allow adult content?
Limited. Chai is for adults 18+ and allows mature themes in fictional roleplay, but it bans sexually explicit images and video, and its safety page says the models are designed to refuse sexually explicit content. Ages are checked through Persona and the app stores' age tools.
Is Chai safe and private?
Chai has improved its safety tools since 2023, with real-time self-harm detection and age checks. It still trains on your chats and keeps data for up to five years after you delete your account.
Alternatives to Chai
Sources
- OfficialChai Research
- OfficialChai safety
- Privacy policyChai privacy policy
- App storeChai on Google Play
- ReportMozilla Privacy Not Included: Chai (2024, archived)