Is Google's new $8 AI Plus plan worth it? How it compares to the $20 Pro subscription

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ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• AI Plus is present disposable successful 34 countries, including the US.
• At $7.99 a month, AI Plus offers much entree than the escaped plan.
• You tin upgrade from escaped oregon downgrade from AI Pro.

Google users astir the satellite who privation an other dose of Gemini tin present snag a much budget-friendly AI plan. Last week, the institution announced that its AI Plus program has expanded to the US and 34 different countries pursuing an archetypal rollout past year.

Priced astatine $7.99 a period (with 50% disconnected the archetypal 2 months), the AI Plus plan is designed arsenic a cheaper alternate to the AI Pro program astatine $19.99 a period and the AI Ultra program astatine a whopping $250 a month. AI Plus is besides a mode for users to get much AI features and perks than are disposable done a escaped Google account.

Also: Inside the making of Gemini 3 - however Google's dilatory and dependable attack won the AI contention (for now)

In general, each successive program offers not conscionable further features but besides greater entree to the aforesaid features. And that's surely existent with the AI Plus program implicit a escaped Google plan.

What does AI Plus include?

To commencement off, AI Plus offers enhanced entree to the Gemini 3 Pro model, Deep Research, representation procreation with Nano Banana Pro, and video procreation with Veo 3.1 Fast. The program besides doles retired 200 credits a period for video procreation with Google Flow and Whisk, up from the 100 credits that travel with a escaped account.

Free and AI Plus users tin get probe and penning assistance from NotebookLM. But Plus users are besides capable to pat into much audio overviews, notebooks, and more. Further, the Plus program gives users entree to Gemini successful Chrome, Gmail, and different Google apps.

Also: I utilized these viral Gemini prompts to find the cheapest formation imaginable - present are the results

You tin stock each of the benefits of an AI Plus program with up to 5 different people. And you're granted a hefty 200GB of retention for your emails, photos, and Google Drive files, compared with conscionable 15GB connected the escaped plan. Google One Premium 2TB subscribers volition besides get each the features of AI Plus implicit the adjacent fewer days.

Initially rolled retired successful Indonesia successful aboriginal Sept. 2025, the AI Plus program past arrived successful 40 much countries aboriginal the aforesaid month. With the latest expansion, the program is present disposable successful the US, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Italy, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, and a big of different regions astir the world.

Is AI Plus worthy the price? 

That depends connected your existent level of entree and however often you request to usage Gemini and the assorted AI features and tools.

If you're presently utilizing a escaped Google relationship to entree Gemini and are bumping into limitations, past the AI Plus program is surely worthy considering. You should find that you're capable to usage Gemini Pro and the representation and video procreation tools much frequently.

If you're presently subscribed to an AI Pro program and aren't utilizing the AI features each that much, you whitethorn privation to downgrade to AI Plus and prevention yourself $13 a month.

Also: Gemini tin look done your emails and photos to 'help' you present - but should you fto it?

I presently wage for an AI Pro plan, but I bask a 50% discount arsenic a perk done my Verizon subscription. So the quality betwixt $9.99 a period and $7.99 a period isn't capable to coax maine to power from AI Pro to AI Plus. But if the discount wasn't available, past I'd astir apt downgrade to AI Plus.

Whatever you take to do, the determination isn't written successful stone. Since the plans are offered connected a monthly basis, you tin power among them arsenic you'd similar and spot which 1 works best.

Free vs. AI Plus vs. AI Pro perks

To further assistance you decide, this illustration from Google lists the perks among the free, AI Plus, and AI Pro plans.

Google

How bash Google's AI plans comparison to ChatGPT? 

They're rather similar. Like Google, OpenAI offers 1 escaped tier and 3 paid subscriptions: ChatGPT Go astatine $8 a month, ChatGPT Plus astatine $20 a month, and ChatGPT Pro astatine $200 a month. The features and perks are somewhat comparable, and either ChatGPT oregon Gemini should beryllium capable to tackle adjacent your astir challenging questions and requests.

Also: Is ChatGPT Plus inactive worthy your $20? I compared it to the Free, Go, and Pro plans - here's my advice

In the past, I apt would've recommended ChatGPT arsenic your go-to AI. But with the motorboat of Gemini 3, Google's AI has been outperforming its large rival successful speed, performance, and wide smarts.