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How to pick an AI model

Updated 6 min read

There are a lot of AI models and apps, and new ones arrive constantly. You don’t need to follow all of it. This guide gives you a short process you can repeat whenever something new comes out.

Step 1: Write down what you want it to do

Be specific. “Help me write” is vague. “Turn my rough notes into a polite email to a customer” is something you can test. Pick two or three real tasks from your own week.

Step 2: Decide what matters most to you

Different people care about different things. Rank these for yourself:

  • Quality. How good and how accurate the answers are for your tasks.
  • Cost. Free, a monthly subscription, or pay-as-you-go.
  • Privacy. Where your words go and whether they may be used to train future models. (See Using free AI models safely.)
  • Speed. How quickly answers appear.
  • Features. Things like reading files, looking at pictures, searching the web, or working offline.

Step 3: Build a short list

Use benchmark results and trusted reviews to pick two or three candidates. Our guide What is an AI benchmark? explains how to read the scores without being misled.

Many popular AI apps have a free tier. Start there before paying for anything.

Step 4: Test them on your real tasks

Give each candidate the same tasks you wrote down in step 1, word for word. Then compare:

  • Did it do what you asked?
  • Were any facts wrong? Check anything important against a reliable source.
  • How much did you need to fix afterward?

Step 5: Re-check now and then

Models change. The one that’s best for you today may not be best in six months. Repeat the test with your saved tasks whenever you’re thinking about switching or paying.

A few honest warnings

  • Every AI model can be confidently wrong. This is sometimes called a hallucination. Always double-check facts, numbers, quotes, medical, legal, and money information.
  • “Best model” lists go out of date quickly. Look at the date on any ranking.
  • Bigger or newer is not automatically better for you. A smaller, cheaper, or faster model is often good enough for simple jobs.