ChatPDF
Drag a PDF, ask questions — the original "chat with documents" tool.
Visit ChatPDF Free 2 PDFs/day, Plus $5/mo
What is ChatPDF?
ChatPDF was one of the first PDF chat tools and remains the simplest. Drag-and-drop a PDF (up to 50MB), ask questions, get cited answers. No account needed for casual use. Now competes with Humata and NotebookLM.
Key features
- PDFs up to 50MB
- No account for guest use
- Citations with page numbers
- Multi-language
- API access
Pros
- Cheapest paid tier in the category
- Simplest UX — drag, ask, answer
- Free tier good enough for occasional use
Cons
- Worse on huge documents than Humata
- Limited folder/organisation features
- Free tier limited to 2 PDFs/day
Best for
Students with course PDFsAnyone with occasional PDF questionsQuick researchFree-tier triers
Alternatives to ChatPDF
Productivity
Humata
Chat with any PDF — instant Q&A on documents up to 500 pages.
PDF chat
FreemiumFree 1 PDF, Pro $14.99/mo
Released January 2023
Productivity
NotebookLM ★
Google's research notebook — upload sources, get a personalised AI tutor.
Research
FreemiumFree (50 sources/notebook), Plus $19.99/mo via Google One AI
Released June 2023
Chat
ChatGPT ★
The AI assistant that started it all — still the most versatile.
Assistant
FreemiumFree, Plus from $20/mo
Released November 2022