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[July 2026 Latest] Comparing ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini | Gemini for 10 minutes a day, Claude for 1 hour. Explained by an engineer subscribed to all three.

2026年7月3日 12:00

Last updated: July 6, 2026 / Author: Active cloud engineer (currently subscribed to paid plans for ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini for several years)

"There are too many AIs, I don't know which one to subscribe to." "If I'm paying 3,000 yen a month, I don't want to make a mistake." "What is the difference between ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini anyway?"

This article was written to answer those concerns. I have summarized only the conclusions based on my experience of paying for all three services every month for several years and comparing them in actual work. By the time you finish reading this, you will know exactly which AI you should subscribe to.

Conclusion: The recommended AI is determined by the "time you can spend on AI per day"

First, I will define one term that will be used in this article.

"Time you can spend on AI" = The time you can set aside every day to give instructions to the AI or learn how to use it.

Based on the length of this time, the AI you should choose is determined as follows.

Less than 10 minutes a day (only in spare time): Gemini is recommended. Because it can be used by "blending in" with your daily Google usage, such as search, YouTube, and maps, there is no need to set aside time specifically for AI.
10 minutes to 1 hour a day (creating something every day): ChatGPT is recommended. Because there is little to learn, and you can use it for writing, images, and research from the day you subscribe.
1 hour or more a day (want to change your work even if it takes time to learn how to use it): Claude is recommended. Because while it takes time to learn, once you learn it, you can "leave the work itself to it."

Why can I say that? In this article, I will gently explain the reasons based on my experience of paying for and using all three companies for several years.

Comparison table you can understand in 30 seconds (as of July 2026)

*Prices are estimates at the time of writing. Please check the official pages (primary information) of each company for the latest accurate prices. - OpenAI official pricing page: [
https://openai.com/ja-JP/business/pricing/] - Google official pricing page: [
https://gemini.google/jp/subscriptions/?hl=ja] - Anthropic official pricing page: [https://claude.com/ja/pricing
]

"3 Questions" to determine the one AI that suits you

Please answer the following three questions in order from the top. If the answers are the same, anyone will arrive at the same AI.

Question 1: Can you set aside 10 minutes or more every day for AI? -> No (only have spare time) -> Gemini is the one. This is the end. (Reason: Because Gemini can be used "while" using Google Search or YouTube, no dedicated time is required)

Question 2: (For those who said yes) Is the thing you most want to do with AI "creating images"? -> Yes -> ChatGPT is the one. This is the end. (Reason: Because among the three companies, the ones that can actually generate images are ChatGPT and Gemini, and ChatGPT's quality is considered to be superior)

Question 3: (For those who said no) Can you continue to spend 1 hour a day for 1 month to learn how to use AI? -> Yes -> Claude is the one. (It takes time to learn, but once you learn it, you can leave the work to it) -> No -> ChatGPT is the one. (There is little to learn, and you can use it starting today)

From here on, I will explain each AI in detail.

What is ChatGPT (GPT-5.5 series)?: An all-purpose AI that can do anything

ChatGPT is an AI provided by OpenAI. The current latest model is the GPT-5.5 series, and there are rumors that GPT-5.6 or GPT-6 will be released soon.

I use it in the following ways:

Help with writing code(Codex-based features)
Daily consultations and preliminary research
Image generation(The eye-catching image for this article was also made with ChatGPT)
Deep Research(A feature where the AI automatically conducts in-depth research)

The quality of Deep Research is particularly high, and it is considered to have the same level of capability as Claude's Opus 4.8.

ChatGPT is recommended for these people

For those who want to handle images, text, and code all in one AI, ChatGPT is considered the best choice.

For those who want to write one article every day on note, ChatGPT is considered the easiest to use as a "partner that helps you write."

Gemini is an AI provided by Google. Currently, 3.5 Flash and 3.1 Pro are available, and it has been announced that 3.5 Pro will be released within this month.

Gemini's greatest strength is that it is integrated with Google services.

NotebookLM: A tool that reads and answers based "only" on the documents you upload. It makes it harder for the AI to make up stories (hallucinations). This is considered its greatest appeal.
Increased Google Drive storage: Think of it as getting storage space included with your AI subscription.
Integration with YouTube and Google Maps: You can use information from videos and maps directly.

To speak a bit more technically, while the AI's "memory function" (the ability to remember past conversations) is convenient, it can sometimes bring up irrelevant past topics. Mechanisms like NotebookLM that allow you to "define the reading scope yourself" are likely better suited for those who find that bothersome.

For engineers, the usage quota for the code editor Antigravity also increases. Since the AI can perform tasks while looking at the Chrome screen itself, it is expected to significantly reduce time spent on tasks like testing.

Gemini is recommended for people like this

For those who don't want to be glued to AI all day but want to get their "money's worth" including in their daily life, Gemini is considered the best choice.

Claude is an AI provided by Anthropic. Currently, models like Claude Fable and Sonnet 5 are available.

The feature I use most often is Claude Code.

For example, is your computer desktop cluttered? If you give Claude Code permission to operate, it will organize your files by type. The experience of "letting AI handle tasks inside your computer" is something you won't be able to go back from once you've tried it.

Additionally,

Quality of text generation: Considered the highest among the three companies.
Reading and summarizing long documents: Extraction from primary sources (original documents) is accurate.
Career consultation and analysis: The depth as a conversation partner is considered to be on a different level.

[Author's Verification Data] Results of comparing the three companies with the same questions

I don't think you can trust words alone, so I will introduce one actual verification result.

In a project called "AI Investment Lab," I have been conducting experiments where I give Claude, ChatGPT, and Gemini the same prediction problems and grade them using the Brier score (a value that measures the accuracy of predictions; the closer to 0, the more accurate).

The results of the two experiments that have already been verified (World Cup predictions: Japan vs. Netherlands, Japan vs. Tunisia) are as follows.

Claude: Average 0.47 (1st place among the 3 AIs in both instances)
ChatGPT: Average 0.54
Gemini: Average 0.56

My personal feeling that "Claude's analysis is the deepest" was consistent with the numbers, at least in these two scoring instances. Furthermore, an investment prediction experiment is currently underway, and I will publish it in this series as soon as the results are verified.

Details of the verification can be found here:

I will also honestly write about Claude's weaknesses

It is not good at image generation. In this regard, I believe ChatGPT and Gemini are superior.
Browser operation is still in development. Although the beta version of Claude in Chrome (browser extension) has been released, I believe it has not yet reached the level of perfection of Gemini's Antigravity or OpenAI's Atlas. Therefore, there are still times when you have to copy and paste when dealing with web page content.

Claude is recommended for these people

For those who want to spend time engaging with AI and are serious about improving work efficiency or even transforming their business, I believe Claude is the only choice.

It is a slightly difficult AI to get used to at first. However, for that very reason, I believe it is the closest thing to an "AI you can entrust with your work."

💡 For those who thought, "I want to truly master Claude." Here are the books I actually read to build the foundation for my AI utilization.

[Extra Edition 1] Can Microsoft Copilot be recommended?

In conclusion, I believe there are few reasons to choose Copilot for personal use.

I believe Copilot is only effective for companies where internal information sharing revolves around Teams. However, even in that case, I believe the experience is better if you switch to "Slack + Claude."

Even for companies that cannot change their existing systems, it is considered more constructive to place only the necessary information in the cloud and combine it with other AI to create tools for sales analysis or marketing analysis. If it goes well, there is also a path to selling it as your own product (SaaS).

And for engineers who have only ever used Copilot, it is considered that you should have a slight sense of crisis. AI is evolving very quickly, and it is a risk to be confined within the framework of just one company.

[Extra Edition 2] How should you use Grok?

It is considered best to use Grok specifically for researching information on X (formerly Twitter).

Having the information source that is X itself is a major strength. In the sense that it can analyze real-time reactions, it is considered to have the most potential as an AI for marketing. Choosing Grok for 'finding ideas from 0 to 1' is a valid option.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q. Among ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, which AI is most recommended for beginners?
A. If the time you can spend on AI is less than 10 minutes a day, Gemini is recommended; if you are creating something every day for 10 minutes to 1 hour a day, ChatGPT is recommended; and if you want to spend more than 1 hour a day changing how you work, Claude is recommended.

Q. Is it necessary to subscribe to all three?
A. It is unnecessary for the general public. The reason the author subscribes to all three is to cross-verify AI responses (to notice if one company is hallucinating), which is for professional reasons related to writing articles.

Q. Which AI has the best writing ability?
A. As of July 2026, Claude's quality of text generation is considered the highest among the three.

Q. Which AI is the most cost-effective?
A. Including benefits other than AI, such as increased Google Drive storage and NotebookLM, Gemini is considered to have the highest cost-effectiveness.

Q. Should I stop using Copilot?
A. It is considered difficult to recommend for personal use. It is only an option if your company operates primarily using Teams.

Summary: How to choose between ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini

Gemini: For people who can spend less than 10 minutes a day on AI. Using it while using Google is fine.
ChatGPT: For people who spend 10 minutes to 1 hour a day creating something every day. You can start using it today.
Claude: For people who want to spend more than 1 hour a day changing the way they work entirely.

If you are unsure how to choose, please return to the '3 questions' in this article. How many minutes a day can you spend on AI?—that alone will determine the answer.

Things to do today (3 steps)

Answer the "three questions" above to decide on one AI to subscribe to
First, try using it once a day for 3 days with the free version (if it doesn't suit you, you can just switch)
If it feels right, switch to a paid plan (approx. 3,000 yen/month). There is no need to subscribe to all three at once

For those who think, "I want to master AI even more"

Here are the books I actually used as references.

For those who want to seriously utilize generative AI in their work, these are also recommended.

Thank you for reading until the end. In this note, I publish articles that discuss AI based on verification, not just vibes. Likes and follows encourage me to keep updating.