Launching a new feature to the already powerful abilities and in plans to be integrated into ChatGPT, Open AI’s SearchGPT looks to be an emerging threat to the unique experience that Perplxity provides.
In this SearchGPT vs Perplexity comparison, we will have a look at what lies at the core of the operations of both, the price at which they can be used, who can use these tools, and most importantly, their accuracy.
Join me to understand which can provide you as a user a better experience, and a better deal for the price you would pay for these AI tools and their features.
SearchGPT vs Perplexity – How Are They Different?
You can refer to the table below to pen down the entire comparison and share a gist. This will give you the direction that my survey is based on:
| Common Parameters | SearchGPT | Perplexity |
|---|---|---|
| User Experience | 4.6 | 4.7 |
| Price | 4.7 | 4.7 |
| Language Models used | 4.7 | 4.8 |
| Accuracy | 4.7 | 4.8 |
Bonus: We have also comprehensively tested Perplexity vs ChatGPT, which you can have a look at and which can add more depth to this comparison.
SearchGPT Explained
SearchGPT is the latest addition to OpenAI’s AI toolkit. After the announcement of Sora AI and the GPT 4o update, the SearchGPT Prototype announcement was probably the biggest announcement Open AI made this year.
We’re testing SearchGPT, a temporary prototype of new AI search features that give you fast and timely answers with clear and relevant sources.
— OpenAI (@OpenAI) July 25, 2024
We’re launching with a small group of users for feedback and plan to integrate the experience into ChatGPT. https://t.co/dRRnxXVlGh pic.twitter.com/iQpADXmllH
ChatGPT users reached an all-time high; this prototype feature was teased by Open AI in their announcement, showcasing the impressive ability to provide real-time information and, for every response shared, a source for that information.
SearchGPT also allows the user to continue with the query and get answers to any follow-up questions they would have. However, it’s this last feature that truly makes SearchGPT a close Perplexity competitor.
SearchGPT is expected to include visual elements inside its responses to improve the user experience, just like Perplexity does.
While the demo videos shared or the users accepted into SearchGPT are yet to experience this feature, it is set to revamp the whole ChatGPT experience since Open AI plans to integrate this into ChatGPT.
Who Can Access SearchGPT?
Access to SearchGPT is limtied. Just as accessible as Perplexity is with its free and paid subscription plans, SearchGPT is not. As per the Open AI announcement on July 25, 2024, SearchGPT is still in its prototype phase and was only available to sign up for a waitlist.
As of the time this post was written, the waitlist is closed. Only those selected users
received an email of acceptance and can currently use SearchGPT.
Perplexity Explained
The summit that Open AI is trying to capture was probably built from the ground up by Perplexity a long time ago. Since its launch, Perplexity has had a unique identity of being an answer engine instead of an AI assistance chatbot.
A few months back, Perplexity reinforced its search features by adding more depth and interactive elements to its results. Have a look at the attached video:
All the features that are expected to be integrated into ChatGPT, already exist inside Perplexity. This gives Perplexity a huge advantage over ChatGPT.
Who Can Access Perplexity?
What makes Perplexity stand out is that Perplexity AI is more accessible than the prototype staged Search GPT. It offers free access to AI-powered search results, content generation, video searching, and a lot more.
If a user needs advanced access for more powerful searching, they can subscribe to Perplexity at $20 per month.
SearchGPT Vs Perplexity: Tested!
Getting to the core of the matter, let us compare how these two stand apart individually.
1. User Experience
While we are all familiar with the current interface that any AI assistant offers, you might expect major differences in the user experience when SearchGPT gets integrated into ChatGPT.
Let’s understand how:
1. SearchGPT User Experience
There cannot be a definitive verdict from my end about the user experience of this new Open AI update, as I am still waitlisted for access. However, users with access have shared interesting feedback, claiming it to be faster than Perplexity when compared simultaneously.
From the official Open AI article on SerachGPT linked here, the SearchGPT prototype looks to provide a similar interface to the popular ChatGPT chat assistant.
However, the SearchGPT results give more context to the results, along with concise answers, source links, follow-up questioning, and an option to check out related media.
Looking at the future, you can expect a few more additions in terms of features improving the user experience of the tool, but I don’t expect drastic changes to what is shown in the release video or the article.
2. Perplexity User Experience
Been using Perplexity for more than a year, and I am fond of the way I get results to my questions on queries. If take the same example that Open AI chose, I feel Perplexity’s results contribute more to giving an optimum user experience.
Have a look at the video below:
As you can see in the video, for the same query, I got a response from Perplexity that shared a brief summary of the last Roman Empire media related to it and also shared frequently asked or related questions to my primary prompt.
To amp up the user experience, users can check out a special “discover” section, to find interesting reads from Perplexity or from “Perplexity Pages” users.
Verdict:
In my experience, Perplexity provides a more vivid and interactive experience than what SearchGPT has promised to deliver in its announcements.
2. Price
Heading towards the next section, pricing actually does not directly relate to using these tools since one of them is a prototype feature, and the other is an AI language model that offers a similar experience.
However, it is essential to know what it would cost to use these features.
1. SearchGPT Pricing
The price of using SearchGPT is not yet clear as it is still in the prototype stage. However, since Open AI plans to integrate this feature, it is expected to cost $20 per month and can be used within ChatGPT itself.
ChatGPT pricing plans:
| Plan | Price | Billing Options |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 / month | N/A |
| Plus | $20 / month | Monthly |
| Team | $25 per user/month | Annually |
| $30 per user/month | Monthly | |
| Enterprise | Contact sales (custom pricing) | Likely annual but not specified |
Note: these are not the actual prices to use SearchGPT, but only an estimation when the feature is integrated into ChatGPT
3. Perplexity Pricing
Perplexity has a laid-out subscription structure that is almost similar to ChatGPT. But for the same money, you can also do more language models and basically do more! Have a look:
| Perplexity Pricing Plan | Price | Billing Options |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free Forever | NA |
| Professional | $20/Monthly | Monthly and annual |
| Enterprise | Custom Price | Custom |
Verdict:
Since SearchGPT is not a separate service, we cannot directly compare the price. Still, since the possible price is similar to that of Perplexity, this round is a tie.
3. Language Model Used
A crucial factor determining the proficiency of any AI tool or feature is based on the language model used.
1. Language Model Used By SearchGPT
Open AI states that “SearchGPT combines the strength of our AI models with information from the web to give you fast and timely answers with clear, relevant sources.”
This means that a combination of AI models—GPT-3.5, GPT-4, and GPT-4o—power the new SearchGPT.
2. Language Model Used By Perplexity
Perplexity scores higher in this criterion because the most advanced Open AI model powers it, but that’s not the only language model it can use.
With a Perplexity Pro subscription, you can use Claude-3.5, Sonar Large (LLama 3.1), and their default language model.
Verdict:
Every language model performs better in different aspects, and Perplexity broadens the user’s choice between various models.
4. Accuracy
The level of accuracy has always been under question for any AI tool. Even the AI models themselves add a disclaimer on their dashboards saying that they can make mistakes.
But with the recent updates, collaborations, and partnerships, how accurate are SeachGPT and Perplexity?
1. SearchGPT Response Accuracy
In 2024, Open AI has been regularly collaborating with major media houses to work together to make SearchGPT more accurate.
- Time Magazine
- News Corp (including The Wall Street Journal, Barron’s, MarketWatch, and New York Post)
- The Atlantic
- Financial Times
- Conde Nast
- VOX media
Since SearchGPT now shares a source for every information shared, the resultant responses are more accurate and in line with real-time updates.
2. Perplexity Response Accuracy
Perplexity is pretty accurate, especially with its ‘PRO Search’ feature, which gives access to the most advanced AI models from Antropic, Meta, and Open AI used together. For math problems, Perplexity also uses sources like WolframAlpha to provide accurate results.
To further increase the accuracy in other departments, Perplexity has launched their own ‘Perplexity Pages’ which is a platform like ‘Medium’ where users can publish their own stories on topics of their choice.
The main goal of this project hints out to be increasing the accuracy of Perplexity in understanding the user questions and its responses.
Verdict:
Given the access to more AI language models, I estimate Perplexity to be more accurate than SearchGPT.
Will SearchGPT Be Better Than Perplexity?
Perplexity is better than SearchGPT since there is no actual access available to test the tool. But, from the videos released and tests conducted by the ones who already have access to Perplexity, SearchGPT can definitely be better than Perplexity.
ChatGPT as a chatbot, is already a pretty promising AI chat assistant solving user questions at best. With the upcoming voice chat features with the mobile app and the new way of searching with SearchGPT, Perplexity can get left behind.
However, only when it is released on a wider scale and with more user feedback we can definitely say if it would be better. Competitors like Google have already started developing AI-powered search engines.
So even though SearchGPT beats Perplexity, it has another competitor to beat.
How Different Are SearchGPT And Perplexity Than Google SGE
If you look closely, Google’s search with Generative AI already looks much more polished than SearchGPT or even Perplexity for that matter.
While SearchGPT or Perplexity may share information sources, Google gives more access to these sources by being just a scroll away.
If SearchGPT or Perplexity are trying to compete with Google, I feel Google is already 2 steps away by combining the traditional search with new AI capabilities, that too for free!
Conclusion: Perpelxity Is Still Better Than SearchGPT
Looking away from the tech competition perspective, to answer which shares a better user experience between SearchGPT and Perplexity, I’d vote for Perplexity.
The reasons to support the claims are simple: Perplexity is widely available, offers access to more AI language models, and already provides a better and more intuitive experience.
Until SearchGPT is in its prototype stage, Perplexity remains to be a better choice among the two which users should go for.
You can test out both SearchGPT and Perplexity and let us know your thoughts about this all-new AI-powered search experience.
