{
    "title": "Sider AI Alternatives 2027: 11 Paid, Free & Open-Source",
    "url": "https://zekaiwork.com/alternatives/sider-ai/",
    "summary": "The best Sider AI alternatives in 2027 are Monica (best overall, $8.3/mo), MaxAI (best free plan: 3 Pro chats per day) and NextAI Translator (best open source, AGPL-3.0). Sider AI itself starts at $10/mo. Zekai checked these prices on vendor pages on 11 Nov 2026; 8 more are compared below, including 4 with a free plan and 2 open source.",
    "tool": {
        "name": "Sider AI",
        "starting_price": "$10/mo",
        "free_plan": "No",
        "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
        "pricing_url": "https://sider.ai/pricing"
    },
    "task": "AI browser extension",
    "prices_checked": "2026-11-11",
    "date_modified": "2026-11-11",
    "alternatives": [
        {
            "name": "Monica",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$8.3/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "40 basic-model accesses daily",
            "best_for": "Multi-model sidebar plus agents",
            "difference": "Monica's Pro plan is $8.3 a month billed yearly for 5,000 basic and 200 advanced model queries a month, with Deep Research and slides agents, compared with Sider's credit tiers.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://monica.im/pricing",
            "website": "https://monica.im",
            "zekai_score": 6.7,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/monica/"
        },
        {
            "name": "MaxAI",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$12/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "3 Pro chats per day, unlimited free chat",
            "best_for": "Team-ready sidebar with a free tier",
            "difference": "MaxAI's pricing page shows Free with unlimited chat on a fast model and 3 Pro chats daily, and Pro at $12 per member monthly on yearly billing with team management.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://www.maxai.co/pricing/",
            "website": "https://www.maxai.co",
            "zekai_score": 6.3,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/maxai/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Merlin",
            "type": "Paid",
            "starting_price": "Not checked",
            "free_plan_limit": "No free plan",
            "best_for": "AI sidebar with 70+ tools",
            "difference": "Merlin's pricing page lists Pro at $19 a month billed yearly ($228) with unlimited access to basic models and 70+ AI tools, and a Teams plan at $15 per seat.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "website": "https://www.getmerlin.in"
        },
        {
            "name": "HARPA AI",
            "type": "Paid",
            "starting_price": "Not checked",
            "free_plan_limit": "No free plan",
            "best_for": "Browser automation with your own API keys",
            "difference": "HARPA sells a one-time lifetime X plan at $240 where you bring your own API keys or web sessions, alongside S1 at $12 a month billed annually with a yearly token balance.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "website": "https://harpa.ai",
            "zekai_score": 6.9,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/harpa-ai/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Claude",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$17/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "Limited usage every 5 hours and every week",
            "best_for": "Assistant with Claude in Chrome",
            "difference": "Claude's Pro plan, $17 a month on annual billing, includes Claude in Chrome and Microsoft 365 integration, but it only runs Anthropic models rather than several vendors' models.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://claude.com/pricing",
            "website": "https://claude.ai",
            "zekai_score": 9.4,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/claude/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Gemini",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$4.99/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "Free with a Google Account; usage limits apply",
            "best_for": "Cheapest paid tier, Google-integrated",
            "difference": "Gemini's Google AI Plus is $4.99 a month with 2x the free usage limits, and AI Pro is $19.99; every plan is tied to a Google Account.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://gemini.google/us/subscriptions/?hl=en",
            "website": "https://gemini.google",
            "zekai_score": 8.7,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/gemini/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Microsoft Copilot",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$19.99/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "Free tier with lower usage than paid Microsoft 365 plans",
            "best_for": "Copilot tied to Microsoft 365 apps",
            "difference": "Microsoft's Premium plan at $19.99 a month bundles Copilot with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook desktop apps plus 1 TB of storage, rather than a browser sidebar alone.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/solutions/individuals",
            "website": "https://copilot.microsoft.com",
            "zekai_score": 6.8,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/microsoft-copilot/"
        },
        {
            "name": "ChatGPT",
            "type": "Free plan + paid",
            "starting_price": "$20/mo",
            "free_plan_limit": "Unlimited text chats with GPT-6; other features limited",
            "best_for": "Single-vendor assistant used in its own app",
            "difference": "ChatGPT's Go plan is $6 a month and Plus $20; both run OpenAI models in the ChatGPT app rather than a sidebar placed over any web page.",
            "price_checked": "2026-11-11",
            "pricing_url": "https://chatgpt.com/pricing",
            "website": "https://chatgpt.com",
            "zekai_score": 9.3,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/ai-tools/chatgpt/"
        },
        {
            "name": "NextAI Translator",
            "type": "Open source",
            "starting_price": "Free (self-hosted)",
            "free_plan_limit": "No limit (self-hosted)",
            "licence": "AGPL-3.0",
            "best_for": "Open-source in-page translation browser extension",
            "difference": "NextAI Translator is a cross-platform desktop app and browser extension for ChatGPT-powered translation, covering one of Sider's functions rather than its full chat and agent set.",
            "repository": "https://github.com/nextai-translator/nextai-translator",
            "zekai_open_source_page": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/nextai-translator/",
            "zekai_score": 7.7,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/nextai-translator/"
        },
        {
            "name": "LibreChat",
            "type": "Open source",
            "starting_price": "Free (self-hosted)",
            "free_plan_limit": "No limit (self-hosted)",
            "licence": "MIT",
            "best_for": "Self-hosted chat across many providers",
            "difference": "LibreChat is a self-hosted chat site connecting several providers with agents and MCP, but it is a web app you open, not an extension on top of the page.",
            "repository": "https://github.com/LibreChat-AI/LibreChat",
            "zekai_open_source_page": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/librechat/",
            "zekai_score": 7.7,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/librechat/"
        },
        {
            "name": "Chatbox",
            "type": "Open source",
            "starting_price": "Free (self-hosted)",
            "free_plan_limit": "No limit (self-hosted)",
            "licence": "GPL-3.0",
            "best_for": "Desktop AI client for local models",
            "difference": "Chatbox is a GPL-3.0 desktop client for multiple model providers and local models; it works as a separate window instead of a page-aware browser sidebar.",
            "repository": "https://github.com/chatboxai/chatbox",
            "zekai_open_source_page": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/chatbox/",
            "zekai_score": 7.2,
            "zekai_review": "https://zekaiwork.com/free-open-source/chatbox/"
        }
    ],
    "faq": [
        {
            "q": "What is the best alternative to Sider AI in 2027?",
            "a": "Monica is the best overall Sider AI alternative on this page ($8.3/mo). For no cost, MaxAI has a free plan (3 Pro chats per day, unlimited free chat). To self-host, NextAI Translator is open source (AGPL-3.0)."
        },
        {
            "q": "Is there a free version of Sider AI?",
            "a": "No. Sider AI has no free plan; paid plans start at $10/mo, checked on 11 Nov 2026."
        },
        {
            "q": "Is there a 100% free alternative to Sider AI?",
            "a": "Yes. NextAI Translator, LibreChat, Chatbox are open source and free to self-host. Monica, MaxAI, Claude, Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT have a free plan with limits, shown in the table."
        },
        {
            "q": "What is cheaper than Sider AI?",
            "a": "Gemini starts at $4.99/mo, against $10/mo for Sider AI, as listed on each vendor's pricing page on 11 Nov 2026."
        },
        {
            "q": "How much do Sider AI alternatives cost for a team of 5?",
            "a": "If each of 5 people buys the entry paid plan, at the prices Zekai checked on 11 Nov 2026, the monthly cost is Gemini $24.95/mo, Monica $41.50/mo, MaxAI $60/mo, against Sider AI $50/mo for Sider AI. Team and business plans can cost more per seat. The Zekai Cost Finder on this page recalculates for any team size."
        },
        {
            "q": "Which is better, Monica or Sider AI?",
            "a": "Monica's Pro plan is $8.3 a month billed yearly for 5,000 basic and 200 advanced model queries a month, with Deep Research and slides agents, compared with Sider's credit tiers. Choose Monica if you want a lower annual price and a fixed monthly query count instead of Sider's credit pools. Stay with Sider AI if you want Sider's browser-driving Hand agent and the dedicated cloud computer on higher tiers."
        },
        {
            "q": "What is better than Sider?",
            "a": "Monica is the nearest like-for-like extension, MaxAI suits teams, and Claude or Gemini fit if you want a single vendor's own browser assistant."
        }
    ],
    "publisher": "Zekai (zekaiwork.com) — independently reviewed; prices read on vendor pages on the dates shown.",
    "licence": "Free to quote with a link to https://zekaiwork.com/alternatives/sider-ai/. Bulk copying or republishing the dataset is not permitted."
}