Perplexity is a research assistant: every answer comes with inline citations, and its Pro plan lets you switch between several top AI models, including Grok itself. Grok is xAI's all-round assistant: it searches the web and X live, writes, reasons with several agents at once and makes images and short videos. Pick Perplexity for checked research you can cite; pick Grok for what's happening on X right now and for creative work.
I read Perplexity's Pro page and help centre and xAI's Grok and plans pages, so everything below comes from what each company says about its own product as of October 2026. Both are free to try. The real split is what each one is built to do: Perplexity wants to be the place you check facts, and Grok wants to be the assistant you chat, search and create with all day.
Perplexity and Grok side by side
| Perplexity | Grok | |
|---|---|---|
| Made by | Perplexity | xAI |
| Main job | Research answers with inline citations | Chat, search, reasoning and image and video creation |
| Live sources | The web, plus premium data sources | The web and live posts on X |
| AI models | Choose between models such as GPT-6.1 Sol, Gemini 3.8 Flash, Claude Sonnet 5.5 and Grok 4.7 | xAI's own Grok models |
| Images and video | Creates documents and apps with Computer | Images and video from text or reference photos, video up to 15 seconds |
| Paid plans | Pro and Max | Plus, Premium, Super and Ultra |
| Free to try (as of October 2026) | Yes, sign up for free | Yes, try for free |
Where Perplexity shines: cited research
Perplexity's promise is trust. Its Pro page says every answer includes inline citations from trusted sources, so you can open the source and check the claim before you repeat it in a report or a client email. That's the habit I'd want from anyone using AI for business research.
The other thing most people don't realise is that Perplexity isn't one model. The Pro page lists GPT-6.1 Sol, Gemini 3.8 Flash, Claude Sonnet 5.5, Kimi K3, GLM 5.3 and Grok 4.7, and says Perplexity orchestrates the right model for each task. So if you want Grok's thinking with Perplexity's citations, a Pro plan gives you both in one place.
Pro costs $17 a month when billed annually and adds deep research, more usage, memory, 4,000 bonus credits and expanded access to Computer, Perplexity's agent that builds documents, apps and tools for you. Max costs $167 a month billed annually, with 10,000 monthly credits, the highest limits and priority access to new features.
Where Grok shines: live X search and Imagine
Grok is broader. xAI's page describes it as one assistant to chat, search, reason and create. Its search covers the web and X live, which makes it handy for breaking news, trends and what people are saying about a brand today. A multi-agent mode runs several agents in parallel on hard questions, and each one shows its reasoning so you can follow it.
Grok Imagine makes images and video from a text prompt or a reference photo, with editing in the same thread. The Grok page mentions resolution up to 2K and videos up to 15 seconds, and the plans page adds 1080p video on the Super plan. It also talks to you by voice, reads files and PDFs and works in more than 30 languages.
Grok's paid plans run Plus, Premium, Super and Ultra. Premium gives 4x the usage of Plus, Super 15x and Ultra 50x, and every plan shares one usage pool across Grok Chat, Voice, Imagine, Build, the API and Cursor, plus X perks such as fewer timeline ads and a checkmark.
Research, news or visuals: matching the job
- Researching a market, a competitor or a statistic for a blog post: Perplexity, because you get the sources with the answer.
- Tracking a trend or a breaking story people are posting about: Grok, because it reads X live.
- Making a quick social image or a short video clip: Grok Imagine does both inside the chat.
- Comparing what different AI models say about the same question: Perplexity Pro lets you switch models, Grok included.
- Building a document or a simple app from a prompt: Perplexity Computer is designed for that job.
If you're still working out how each assistant thinks, this explainer on what Grok 4 can do and this one on Perplexity's Comet browser fill in the background.
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My advice on Perplexity or Grok
For business owners, I'd start with Perplexity's free plan for anything you'll publish or quote, because checking the source takes seconds. Add Grok when you need the pulse of X or want to make visuals without opening another tool. If you only pay for one, Perplexity Pro is the safer research choice, since it already includes Grok as one of the models you can pick.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Perplexity better than Grok for research?
For research you need to cite, Perplexity is the stronger fit because every answer includes inline citations. Grok is stronger for live posts and trends on X.
Can you use Grok inside Perplexity?
Yes. Perplexity's Pro page lists Grok 4.7 among the models you can choose, alongside GPT-6.1 Sol, Gemini 3.8 Flash and Claude Sonnet 5.5.
How much is Perplexity Pro?
Perplexity's Pro page shows $17 a month when billed annually, as of October 2026. Max is $167 a month billed annually.
Can Grok make videos?
Yes. Grok Imagine makes video from text or a reference photo, and xAI's page mentions clips up to 15 seconds.
Are Perplexity and Grok free?
Both have a free way in: Perplexity lets you sign up for free and Grok lets you try it for free, with paid plans for more usage.
