Compare · Prices checked October 24, 2026 and October 21, 2026
Manus vs ChatGPT (2026)
Published starting prices: Manus, $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly). ChatGPT, Free; Plus $20/mo. Side-by-side public pricing, what each does, real use cases and who each suits, all from our listings with sources. We haven't tested either hands-on.
-
Browser agents
Manus
A general-purpose agent that works on its own in a cloud computer: browsing, researching, and producing reports, slides and simple sites.
Subscription · 1 use case$20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly)
-
Browser agentsFree tier
ChatGPT (agent & deep research)
OpenAI's assistant. Paid plans add agent features (ChatGPT Work, a built-in browser, scheduled tasks) and deeper research reports.
Subscription · 2 use casesFree; Plus $20/mo
Short answer: Manus vs ChatGPT pricing
Comparing the lowest listed monthly plans: Manus 4,000 credits/mo: $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly; plus 300 refresh credits a day; 20 concurrent and 20 scheduled tasks), and ChatGPT Go: $8/mo (may include ads). ChatGPT lists the lower one. ChatGPT also has a free plan. Plans differ in what they include, and some are per seat or billed yearly, so compare the plan details. Checked October 24, 2026 and October 21, 2026. Manus: no $0 plan on its pricing page (checked October 24, 2026). ChatGPT: yes. Its Free plan is $0 (limited deep research and ChatGPT Work), checked October 21, 2026.
Pricing side by side
| Item |  Manus |  ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly) | Free; Plus $20/mo |
| Pricing model | Subscription | Subscription |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Plans |
|
|
| Pricing note | No free plan is shown on the pricing page; every paid plan adds 300 refresh credits a day. Plan cards have no names, so we label them by monthly credits. Annual billing saves about 17%. Manus's personal-agent app Cue is listed separately. | Business prices from OpenAI's Codex pricing page (developers.openai.com/codex/pricing). |
| Checked | October 24, 2026 | October 21, 2026 |
| Source | Vendor pricing page | Vendor pricing page |
Copied from each vendor's public pricing page on the date shown. "not published" means the vendor doesn't publish it; we don't guess. Prices change; confirm with the vendor.
Features and details from our listings
| Item | Manus | ChatGPT |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | A general-purpose agent that works on its own in a cloud computer: browsing, researching, and producing reports, slides and simple sites. | OpenAI's assistant. Paid plans add agent features (ChatGPT Work, a built-in browser, scheduled tasks) and deeper research reports. |
| Made by | Manus | OpenAI |
| Listed under | Browser & computer-use agents, Research agents | Browser & computer-use agents, Research agents |
| Jobs it fits |
|
|
| Verified public use cases | 1 | 2 |
Use cases
Manus
-
Use caseResearch
A marketing consultant gave Manus three competitor URLs and asked it to find two more; about 18 minutes later it returned an 11-page analysis with positioning, public pricing and a comparison table.
Jun 2026AI Marketing Foundry
ChatGPT
-
Use caseBrowser agents
A Washington Post tech columnist let OpenAI's Operator agent run his errands; among the lessons, it spent $31 on a dozen eggs.
Feb 2025The Washington Post
-
Use caseBrowser agents
A Reddit user reported having ChatGPT's Operator agent find and book a flight for them.
Jan 2025r/ChatGPT, via Hacker News
Use cases are summarised in our own words from the linked public post; vendor case studies are labelled. All use cases.
Who each is best for
- Subscription
Manus is best for
- Teams that need to: Competitor and market research; Turn research into a report or slides.
- Budget: starts at $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly) (subscription).
- SubscriptionFree plan
ChatGPT is best for
- Teams that need to: Run multi-step web errands; Write a cited research report; Schedule recurring tasks.
- Budget: starts at Free; Plus $20/mo (subscription, free plan available).
- Watch out: A Washington Post test of the Operator agent found it spent $31 on a dozen eggs: confirm purchases yourself. Source
From our listing data (jobs, public pricing); not a hands-on test. Full details: Manus · ChatGPT.
FAQ
Which is cheaper, Manus or ChatGPT?
Comparing the lowest listed monthly plans: Manus 4,000 credits/mo: $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly; plus 300 refresh credits a day; 20 concurrent and 20 scheduled tasks), and ChatGPT Go: $8/mo (may include ads). ChatGPT lists the lower one. ChatGPT also has a free plan. Plans differ in what they include, and some are per seat or billed yearly, so compare the plan details. Checked October 24, 2026 and October 21, 2026.
Is Manus free? Is ChatGPT free?
Manus: no $0 plan on its pricing page (checked October 24, 2026). ChatGPT: yes. Its Free plan is $0 (limited deep research and ChatGPT Work), checked October 21, 2026.
How much does Manus cost?
Manus lists 4,000 credits/mo: $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly; plus 300 refresh credits a day; 20 concurrent and 20 scheduled tasks); 8,000 credits/mo: $40/mo ($34/mo billed yearly; credits adjustable up to 20,000/mo at higher prices); 40,000 credits/mo: $200/mo ($167/mo billed yearly; extended usage); Team / Enterprise: Contact sales (no price published). Its lowest listed monthly plan is 4,000 credits/mo: $20/mo ($17/mo billed yearly; plus 300 refresh credits a day; 20 concurrent and 20 scheduled tasks). No free plan is shown on the pricing page; every paid plan adds 300 refresh credits a day. Plan cards have no names, so we label them by monthly credits. Annual billing saves about 17%. Manus's personal-agent app Cue is listed separately. Checked October 24, 2026 on the vendor's pricing page.
How much does ChatGPT cost?
ChatGPT lists Free: $0 (limited deep research and ChatGPT Work); Go: $8/mo (may include ads); Plus: $20/mo (ChatGPT Work on desktop, web and mobile; expanded deep research); Pro: from $100/mo (maximum deep research; longer agent sessions); Business: $25/user/mo ($20 billed annually, 2+ users). Its lowest listed monthly plan is Go: $8/mo (may include ads). Business prices from OpenAI's Codex pricing page (developers.openai.com/codex/pricing). Checked October 21, 2026 on the vendor's pricing page.
Did AITeamGuide test them?
Not hands-on. This comparison is built from each vendor's public pricing page (with the date we checked it), published product information and credited public use cases.
Can a vendor pay to win this comparison?
No. Nothing here is paid. Paid placements on AITeamGuide are always labelled "Sponsored" or "Featured" and never change a comparison or ranking.
Related guides
All comparisons →- Manus vs ChatGPT vs PerplexitySide-by-side pricing
- Best AI browser agents 202614 compared by price
- Best AI research tools 202610 compared by price
- Cheapest AI research tools10 sorted by price
- Cheapest AI browser agents14 sorted by price
- ChatGPT vs PerplexitySide-by-side pricing
- Manus vs PerplexitySide-by-side pricing
- Manus alternatives13 compared by price
More comparisons
- Elicit vs ConsensusSide-by-side pricing
- Skyvern vs Browser UseSide-by-side pricing
- Consensus vs PerplexitySide-by-side pricing
- Opera Neon vs Perplexity CometSide-by-side pricing
Work at Manus or ChatGPT? Vendors can claim their listing for free or feature it with a label that says "Sponsored"; paid status never changes the order on this page. Building a different agent? List it here.
Popular pricing guides
- AI sales agents: types and prices
- Best AI sales agents
- Cheapest AI sales tools
- Clay vs Apollo
- Amplemarket vs Apollo
- 11x alternatives
- Best AI receptionists
- What an AI receptionist really costs
- Cheapest AI receptionists
- Retell vs Vapi
- Smith.ai vs Ruby
- Best AI coding agents
- Cursor vs Claude Code
- Claude Code vs Codex
- Cheapest AI coding assistants
- Cheapest AI app builders
- Lovable vs Base44
- Free AI coding agents
- Best AI customer support agents
- Intercom Fin vs Zendesk
- Cheapest AI email assistants
- Best AI email assistants
- Best AI meeting note takers
- Otter vs Fireflies
- Free AI note takers
- Free AI agents
- AI agent pricing statistics
Get price changes for Manus and ChatGPT in one weekly email
We re-check vendor pricing pages and note what changed. One email a week: price changes and new free plans (Manus and ChatGPT included), the best new AI agents, real-world use cases and new Hub tools. Free; unsubscribe anytime.
Free, no signup needed: the AI agent pricing cheat sheet, the cheapest listed plan for every job on one printable page.
AI research tool pricing compared: free plans, cheapest and top plans for ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and more, with check dates.