Meta Muse vs ChatGPT: Should I use Muse or ChatGPT?

Which one should I pick?

Pick by the job, not the brand. Here is which one does each job better, from the makers' own pages, press reports and Tom's Guide's five-prompt chat test.

Our pick: in the US or Canada, start with Muse for errands. It starts free, it has its own browser, and it pays only after you say yes. Keep ChatGPT for planning and for Windows. You can use both, and Muse can import another assistant's export file.

Two things to know first. Muse works only for adults in the US and Canada, so people elsewhere, and teens, need ChatGPT. And one Reddit user says that without your logins, Muse is just a worse version of other chatbots. New to Muse? Read what Meta Muse is.

Which one costs less?

Both start free. Muse's Power plan costs $20 a month and Maximum costs $100. Meta lists only more weekly usage for both. If you run out, Muse now lets you buy extra tokens in the iPhone app, and Meta has not posted a price. ChatGPT Go costs $8, Plus $20, and Pro $100, $200 or $500 a month. ChatGPT's Free and Go plans may show ads.

The big gap is the agent's browser. Muse's own browser comes with the free plan, but the free weekly limit can run out fast. One reviewer used 81% of it by day two. ChatGPT's browser lives in ChatGPT Work and needs Plus ($20) or higher. Go does not include it. See Muse's plans in full.

Which one does errands?

Both can, on different plans. Muse's browser comes with the free plan. It fills forms, compares prices and checks out with a one-time card, and it asks you before every purchase. Meta is also testing calls to US businesses. It rolled back part of that test after reports that people placed some of the calls instead of the AI.

ChatGPT Work is ChatGPT's agent for longer tasks. It took over from the older agent mode. Its cloud browser runs on Plus and higher plans, in supported regions. It asks you before steps that are hard to undo. Its browser help page says nothing about paying, and OpenAI's pages describe no way for ChatGPT to call a business for you. Outside Work, ChatGPT can find restaurant tables through OpenTable, Resy and Yelp, a feature rolling out to every plan.

Both run tasks on a schedule. ChatGPT's free plan allows 3 at a time, and each runs at most once a day. Sites can block either one. Amazon blocks Muse.

Which one remembers me better?

Muse keeps much of what it learns in files such as Memory.md. You can open them, fix them or ask Muse to forget a topic, which it does as best it can. ChatGPT shows a memory summary in Settings, under Personalization, and you can fix or delete it there. Muse has no switch to turn memory off, and it may still remember things you delete. ChatGPT lets you turn memory off in the same place. In ChatGPT, deleting a chat does not always delete a memory made from it.

Moving from ChatGPT? Export your ChatGPT data, then import it in Muse under Settings, Data controls, Import memory. ChatGPT's export can take up to 7 days to arrive, and Business accounts can't export.

Which one is more private?

On personal plans, neither keeps your chats out of training unless you change a setting. Turn it off under Data controls in each app. In ChatGPT, a thumbs up or down can still send that chat to training.

Muse can read your email and bank if you connect them. Facebook and Instagram connect on their own if they share your Accounts Center. TIME found Muse keeps profiles of the people you mention, even ones who don't use Muse. Meta says Muse asks before it sends, buys or shares. One seller tapped Allow Always on Marketplace replies, and Muse gave a buyer his pickup address. See the Muse settings to change first.

Where can I use each one?

Muse works only in the US and Canada, for people 18 and up. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, the web and WhatsApp. There is no Windows app.

ChatGPT works in about 210 countries for people 13 and up. It runs on iPhone, iPad, Android, Mac, Windows and the web. It is on WhatsApp again only in the European Economic Area. See where Muse works today.

What do testers say?

Tom's Guide gave both apps the same five chat prompts. Muse won 3 to 2. It did better at a text to a neighbor, explaining planes to a child and an app idea. ChatGPT did better at planning a day and a clean-up. The writer still uses ChatGPT most. We found no outside test of which one is smarter overall.

CNN found Muse gives more guidance than ChatGPT, which can feel like a blank page. On errands, Tom's Guide got only 3 of 7 shopping prompts to work in Muse, and Target blocked its checkout in CNN's test. No outlet has yet tested the same errand on Muse and ChatGPT Work.

Muse also got off to a fast start. Apptopia counted 1.8 million iOS downloads in its first 12 days in the US and Canada, against ChatGPT's 1.3 million in its own first 12 days, as reported by TechCrunch. Meta also ran ads for Muse across its own apps, and it has not shared user numbers.

Comparing Muse with OpenAI's always-on agent instead? See OpenAI dots vs Muse.

Picked Muse? Start here.

Muse does its best work with a clear errand. Copy these two from Muse OS for free. Each one asks you a few questions first, then stops to ask before it sends anything.

Want more? Try five free Muse jobs, or read how to use Meta Muse.