ChatGPT vs Claude vs Gemini vs Copilot for office work
For most office work, pick the assistant that lives where your files already are: Gemini if your team works in Gmail and Google Docs, Microsoft Copilot if you work in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams, and ChatGPT or Claude if you want a strong general assistant you open in its own window. All four can draft emails, summarize meetings and rewrite documents well enough for everyday office jobs.
This comparison is for office managers, accountants, law and insurance staff, recruiters, sales and marketing teams who want to choose one assistant to start with. Prices below were checked on the vendors' own pages as of October 2026. To practice the skill that matters most with any of them, the free Reply Faster: Customer Emails lesson walks you through it in ChatGPT.
How do they compare at a glance?
| ChatGPT | Claude | Gemini | Microsoft Copilot | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Made by | OpenAI | Anthropic | Microsoft | |
| Free option | Yes, a Free tier | Yes, a Free plan ($0) | Yes, the Gemini app is $0 with a Google account | Copilot Chat at no additional cost with eligible Microsoft 365 plans |
| Paid plan for one person | ChatGPT Plus, $20 a month | Pro, $20 billed monthly or $17 a month billed annually | Google AI Pro, $19.99 a month | Check Microsoft's page for personal plans |
| Paid plan for a team | ChatGPT Business, $25 per user a month, or $20 billed annually, 2 seat minimum | Team Standard seat, $25 a month, or $20 billed annually | Google Workspace from $7 per user a month (Business Starter) | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on, $21.00 per user a month paid yearly (listed at a promotional $18.00), or $25.20 paid monthly |
| Works inside | Its own app; connectors to tools such as Google Drive and SharePoint on business plans | Its own app; Claude in Chrome and Microsoft 365 extensions on Pro | Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Meet and the Gemini app | Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams and the Copilot app |
| Saved workspaces | Projects | Projects | Gems | Notebooks and agents |
| Free Stepthrough lesson | Yes, several | Coming | Coming | Coming |
Which AI assistant is best for office work?
No single assistant wins every office task, so the best choice is usually the one that fits your existing tools and budget. Drafting a reply, summarizing a transcript or turning notes into a checklist works in all four. The differences that matter day to day are where the assistant can see your files, what your company already pays for, and what your IT or compliance team allows.
If your company already pays for Microsoft 365, Copilot Chat costs nothing extra on eligible plans, so try it before buying anything. If you are on Google Workspace, Business Starter already lists the Gemini AI assistant in Gmail. If you have neither, or want a separate app that works with any email system, start with ChatGPT or Claude.
How much do ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Copilot cost?
All four have a free way in, and the paid team plans land in a similar range. OpenAI lists ChatGPT Plus at $20 a month and ChatGPT Business at $25 per user a month, or $20 per user a month billed annually, with at least two seats. Google lists the Gemini app at $0 with a Google account and Google AI Pro at $19.99 a month. Anthropic lists Claude Pro at $20 billed monthly or $17 a month on an annual plan, Claude Max from $100 a month, and a Team Standard seat at $25 a month or $20 billed annually.
Google lists Workspace Business Starter at $7 per user a month, Business Standard at $14 and Business Plus at $22, each with Gemini features in Gmail and other apps. Microsoft lists the Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on at $21.00 per user a month paid yearly (shown with a promotional $18.00 starting price) or $25.20 paid monthly, and bundles such as Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot at $23.50 per user a month paid yearly.
Prices change often and differ by country and billing period, so check each vendor's pricing page before you buy. The AI acceptable use policy at your company may also decide the question for you.
Does it matter whether my company uses Google Workspace or Microsoft 365?
Yes, it matters more than anything else on this page. Gemini and Copilot are built into their own office suites, so they can work on the email, document or meeting you already have open. ChatGPT and Claude are separate apps: you paste in the text you want help with, or connect them to your files where your plan and your admin allow it.
Pasting is not a weakness for small jobs. The free Summarize a Meeting Transcript lesson shows how far copy and paste goes: one transcript in, decisions, an action items table and a follow-up email out.
Is it safe to paste client or customer information into an AI assistant?
Only paste what your company's policy allows, and remove details the assistant doesn't need. Anthropic says its Team plan does not train models on your content by default; for the other tools, check the data and privacy settings for your exact plan on the vendor's site. For accounting, law, insurance and HR work, strip out account numbers, case details and personal information that aren't needed for the draft, and keep a person reading every reply before it goes out. The glossary entry on PII explains what counts as personal information.
Who is each one for?
ChatGPT
Good for anyone who wants one general assistant for writing, summarizing and checking replies, whatever email system they use. Most free Stepthrough lessons use ChatGPT, from Prompt Writing 101 to the firm versions for accounting, law, insurance and recruiting.
Claude
A strong fit for people who write and review long documents and want Projects to keep one client's material together. Claude Pro includes Claude in Chrome and the Microsoft 365 extension, per Anthropic's pricing page. A free Stepthrough lesson for Claude is coming.
Gemini
The natural first pick for teams that already live in Gmail, Google Docs and Google Sheets, because it works inside those apps. Gems let you save a set of instructions for a repeat job. A free Stepthrough lesson for Gemini is coming.
Microsoft Copilot
The natural first pick for offices on Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams, especially when Copilot Chat is already included in your Microsoft 365 plan. The paid Copilot license adds Copilot inside the apps and work data. A free Stepthrough lesson for Copilot is coming.
Which of these tools have a free Stepthrough lesson?
- ChatGPT: free lesson: Reply Faster: Turn a Messy Customer Email Thread into a Clear, Friendly Reply
- Claude: a free Stepthrough lesson is coming.
- Gemini: a free Stepthrough lesson is coming.
- Microsoft Copilot: a free Stepthrough lesson is coming.
Practice it free, step by step
Reply Faster: Turn a Messy Customer Email Thread into a Clear, Friendly Reply. Turn a messy customer email thread into a clear, friendly reply: give ChatGPT the thread and your facts, check every promise, fix the tone, and send it from Gmail. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of ChatGPT, it checks your work as you go, and “Do it for me” finishes any step you get stuck on. Free, and nothing touches your real accounts.
Start the free lessonKey takeaways
- For office work, the best AI assistant is usually the one built into the tools your team already uses: Gemini for Google Workspace, Copilot for Microsoft 365.
- ChatGPT and Claude are separate apps that work with any email system; their team plans are listed at $25 per user a month, or $20 billed annually, as of October 2026.
- Microsoft lists Copilot Chat at no additional cost with eligible Microsoft 365 plans, so try it before paying for a Copilot license.
- Whatever you pick, the core skill is the same: give the assistant your facts, say what a good answer looks like, and check every promise before you send.
Frequently asked questions
Is ChatGPT or Claude better for writing emails?
Both write good business emails when you give them the facts and the tone you want. The bigger difference is your workflow: which one your company allows, and whether you prefer its app. The method in the free Reply Faster lesson works the same way in either.
Do I need a paid plan to use AI at work?
Not to start. ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini each have a free option, and Microsoft lists Copilot Chat at no additional cost with eligible Microsoft 365 plans. Paid team plans add higher limits, admin controls and business data terms, which matter once a whole team relies on the tool.
Can I use more than one AI assistant?
Yes, and many people do, for example Copilot inside Outlook and ChatGPT for longer drafting. Just follow the same data rules in every tool, and don't paste anything into a personal account that your company would only allow in a business account.
Does a ChatGPT subscription include the OpenAI API for automations?
No. The OpenAI API that tools like n8n use is billed separately, pay as you go, on OpenAI's platform. A ChatGPT plan covers the ChatGPT app only.
Where do these prices and features come from?
Every price and feature on this page was checked against the vendor's own page, as of October 2026. No numbers here are estimates or third-party figures. The example businesses in the Stepthrough lessons are made up.
- OpenAI Help Center: What is ChatGPT Plus?
- OpenAI Help Center: ChatGPT Free tier FAQ
- OpenAI Help Center: ChatGPT Business overview
- Anthropic: Claude plans and pricing
- Google Workspace pricing
- Google: Gemini subscriptions (Free and Google AI Pro)
- Google One: Google AI plans
- Microsoft 365 Copilot plans and pricing
