Chai
alternatives.Plus our provisional take.
Massive variety, casual fun, goldfish memory — the community meme is accurate.
Mobile-first user-generated roleplay
*Provisional score — assessed from public information, not yet through our 14-day hands-on test.
- Memory
- 2.0 / 10
- Voice
- 2.0 / 10
- Safety
- 4.0 / 10
- Value
- 6.0 / 10
- Onboarding
- 7.0 / 10
What we know
so far.
Chai is a mobile-first roleplay app with a huge user-generated character catalog and a noticeably looser filter than Character.AI, which is exactly what its audience wants from it. Memory is the defining weakness — "goldfish memory" is a community meme, with reviewers describing context loss within a few dozen messages — and while a 2026 update added text-to-speech voice replies on some bots, there are no voice calls and no video. The free tier is ad-supported with rolling message caps, and 2026 brought unannounced token limits that temporarily froze conversations even for paying users. The 2023 Belgian suicide case involving its "Eliza" bot remains one of the category's most cited safety incidents, and the company has since publicized alignment and safety investment. Note: this entry is assessed from public information and third-party reviews as of August 2026 — we have not yet run Chai through our own 14-day hands-on test, so its scores are provisional and it's excluded from our tested-platform counts.
Provisional assessment, August 2026: Chai scored memory 2/10, voice consistency 2/10, safety 4/10, value 6/10, and onboarding 7/10. Composite 6.2/10. Pricing: free tier available, paid from $13.99/month (freemium). Long-term memory: limited. NSFW handling: limited.
- Variety-driven casual roleplay
- Users who find Character.AI's filter too strict
- Making and sharing your own bots
- Long-term continuity — session-scale memory
- Voice calls or video — voice is TTS replies on some bots only
- Ad-averse free users
Where to go
instead.
Bae
Our pickMemory that holds for months. Real selfies, not stock. Six relationship stages that earn their depth.
Character.AI
7.8The widest cast of characters anywhere — but heavily filtered, with memory that fades within hours.
Nomi
7.5ProvisionalThe category's memory specialist — the reputation is largely earned, though safety guardrails are thin by design.
Kindroid
7.3ProvisionalThe power user's companion — unmatched explicit memory controls if you'll do the setup, at a price that stacks fast.
Replika
7.2Pioneered the category and still has the warmest onboarding — but the 2023 NSFW lockdown left a brand bruise its loyal users haven't forgotten.
Joi AI
6.9Our April test loved its real-time voice — public reporting says the product has since pivoted text-first, with calls metered through credits. Re-test pending.
JanitorAI
6.9ProvisionalA huge, free, largely unfiltered character library — bring your own model if you want it to remember anything.
Chai vs Bae vs Character.AI.
Feature-by-feature. Bae and Character.AI went through our 14-day benchmark; Chai's column reflects our provisional assessment from public information.
| Feature | Chai | Bae | Character.AI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Long-term memory | Partial | Yes | Partial |
| Real photos / selfies | No | Yes | No |
| Voice messages | Yes | No | Yes |
| Video calls | No | No | No |
| Persona customization | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Multiple companions | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Romantic / spicy mode | Partial | Partial | No |
Assessed August 2026· See how we test on /methodology · Benchmark across all platforms in /research
Scores last verified August 24, 2026
People ask about
Chai.
Is Chai worth it?
Chai is a mobile-first roleplay app with a huge user-generated character catalog and a noticeably looser filter than Character.AI, which is exactly what its audience wants from it. Memory is the defining weakness — "goldfish memory" is a community meme, with reviewers describing context loss within a few dozen messages — and while a 2026 update added text-to-speech voice replies on some bots, there are no voice calls and no video. The free tier is ad-supported with rolling message caps, and 2026 brought unannounced token limits that temporarily froze conversations even for paying users. The 2023 Belgian suicide case involving its "Eliza" bot remains one of the category's most cited safety incidents, and the company has since publicized alignment and safety investment. Note: this entry is assessed from public information and third-party reviews as of August 2026 — we have not yet run Chai through our own 14-day hands-on test, so its scores are provisional and it's excluded from our tested-platform counts.
What are the best alternatives to Chai?
Bae is our top pick — built for memory that holds across months and real photos rather than 3D avatars. After Bae, Character.AI (The widest cast of characters anywhere — but heavily filtered, with memory that fades within hours.).
Does Chai have memory that lasts?
Chai's memory is limited — it tracks recent context but fades over time. For long-term continuity, see Bae or Replika.
Can Chai send photos?
No — Chai doesn't generate or send photos. If photos matter, Bae and Replika both support them.
How does Chai compare to Bae?
Bae is built around persistent memory and the relationship arc itself, with six stages that unlock as you talk. Chai massive variety, casual fun, goldfish memory — the community meme is accurate.
Three minutes
from now, you'll know.
Pick a shape. Pick a face. Tell them what to call you. They'll remember the rest.