Claude Free vs Copilot Free

Same price

Claude Free

anthropic
Free

Limited Sonnet access, resets every 5 hours

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Copilot Free

microsoft
Free

Standard access during off-peak, basic image gen

Full details →
Attribute Claude Free Copilot Free
Price Free Free
Tier free free
Context window ~100K tokens (Claude Sonnet 4.6) 8K tokens
Provider anthropic microsoft
Billing free free
Audience consumer consumer
Flagship models claude-haiku-4.5, claude-sonnet-4.6 gpt-5-mini, gpt-4o
Usage note Limited Sonnet access, resets every 5 hours Standard access during off-peak, basic image gen
Feature count 3 3

Only in Claude Free

  • +basic file uploads
  • +artifacts

Only in Copilot Free

  • +basic image generation
  • +Windows integration

Which one should I pick?

Same price Picking between Claude Free and Copilot Free usually comes down to three things: which models you want access to, how much you'll actually use, and what ecosystem you already live in.

  • Pick Claude Free if you want claude-haiku-4.5 or claude-sonnet-4.6 as your daily driver, or if web chat matters to you.
  • Pick Copilot Free if you want gpt-5-mini or gpt-4o, or if web chat is closer to your workflow.

Still unsure? The Subscription vs API calculator tells you the break-even usage where pay-as-you-go API access would be cheaper than either subscription.

Frequently asked questions

What is the price difference between Claude Free and Copilot Free? +

Claude Free and Copilot Free are both priced at Free per month, so cost is not a deciding factor — pick based on included models and feature fit.

Which AI models are included with Claude Free vs Copilot Free? +

Claude Free bundles claude-haiku-4.5, claude-sonnet-4.6. Copilot Free bundles gpt-5-mini, gpt-4o. The model lineup is usually the most important factor — pick the plan whose flagship models match the work you actually do.

Is Claude Free or Copilot Free better value for power users? +

Both plans are priced the same, so value comes down to feature depth and model access — see the "Only in" lists above.

Can I switch between Claude Free and Copilot Free? +

Yes. Both plans are monthly subscriptions you can cancel or downgrade at any time. Many users keep one plan as a daily driver and try the other for a single billing cycle to compare in their own workflow.