Perplexity vs Comet
Which is better in 2026? Five scores, side by side.
Perplexity is the better app overall, scoring 8.6 to 8.2. Perplexity wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Comet on 1.
Researchers, students and curious people who want answers backed by sources
Researchers and heavy web users who want AI help beside every tab
Score by score
The details
| Feature | Perplexity | Comet |
|---|---|---|
| Category | AI Assistants | AI Assistants |
| Category rank | #5 of 16 | #10 of 16 |
| Developer | Perplexity AI | Perplexity AI |
| Pricing | Free + paid plans | Free + paid plans |
| Usable for free | Yes | Yes |
| iPhone & iPad | ✓ | ✓ |
| Android | ✓ | ✓ |
| Mac | ✓ | ✓ |
| Windows | ✓ | ✓ |
| Web | ✓ | — |
Common questions
Is Perplexity better than Comet?
Perplexity is the better app overall, scoring 8.6 to 8.2. Perplexity wins on 4 of the 5 scores, Comet on 1.
Which is cheaper, Perplexity or Comet?
Perplexity: Free plan; Pro $20/month or $200/year; Max $2,000/year. Comet: Free on every platform; Perplexity Pro ($20 a month) and Max raise the limits. On value for money, Comet scores higher.
Do Perplexity and Comet work on the same devices?
Only Perplexity runs on Web.
Which is more private, Perplexity or Comet?
Perplexity scores higher on privacy (6.6/10). The App Store label links purchases, precise location, identifiers and usage to you, with no tracking. AI data retention is on by default for consumer plans, and you can opt out in settings.
Strengths and weaknesses
Perplexity
- Sources make answers easy to verify
- Fast, clean answers to factual questions
- Pro plan bundles models from several AI labs
- Weaker for long-form writing and creative work
- Cited sources can be low quality or misread
- AI data retention is on by default
Perplexity is built for finding things out. Every answer comes with linked sources, so you can check claims quickly, and paid plans let you switch between leading models from several AI labs. Deep Research writes longer reports, Projects keep work organized, and Perplexity Computer can carry out multi-step tasks for you. It is less suited to long creative writing. If most of your AI use is search, it can replace a lot of browsing.
Full Perplexity review
Comet
- Free on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android
- Can act on pages, not just sum them up
- Your sessions sync between phone and computer
- A synced account lets Perplexity record your browsing history
- The helper has to read the pages you visit
- No Linux version
Comet is Perplexity's web browser, with an AI helper beside every tab. It can sum up a page or compare products across sites. It can even work through a multi-step task while you browse. Bigger jobs go to Perplexity Computer. It's free on Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, and your sessions sync between them. The trade-off is privacy. The helper has to read your pages, and a synced account lets Perplexity record your history.
Full Comet review
