What Is Perplexity Computer? | Perplexity Academy
Published by PerplexityWatch on YouTube
Updated Oct 4, 2026
AI Assistants
Perplexity
AI answer engine that cites the sources behind each answer
From $16.67/mo
Perplexity at a glance
from our research
An AI answer engine that searches the web live and cites sources, built for research-heavy work
Numbered citations tie each answer to its sources, and Research mode writes sourced reports
Computer agent tasks spend credits, and Pro includes no monthly credit allowance
Pro, billed monthly or yearly, suits individuals; organizations buy Enterprise seats per user
Overview
What is Perplexity?
Perplexity is an AI answer engine made by Perplexity AI, an American company founded in 2022. You ask a question in plain language, and Perplexity searches the web in real time, reads the results and writes a conversational answer with numbered citations linking to the original sources, so each claim can be checked. Follow-up questions keep the thread's context. Pro Search runs a deeper, multi-step search and lets paid users choose the model, from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and others, and Research mode runs dozens of searches and writes a long report in a few minutes, exportable as a PDF or document.
Around search sit tools for organizing and producing work. Spaces group threads, files and custom instructions by project and can be shared with collaborators, and Tasks send scheduled updates on a topic by email or push notification. Paid plans create documents, spreadsheets, slide decks and simple web apps, with citations in the documents, and generate images and short videos. Computer, for subscribers, is an agent that carries out multi-step work through connectors to services such as Gmail, GitHub, Slack and Notion, and it is paid for in credits.
Perplexity runs on the web and in iOS and Android apps. Its desktop app for Mac and Windows, Personal Computer, lets the agent work with local files and apps, and the company also makes Comet, a Chromium-based browser with Perplexity built in. Individuals choose between a free plan, Pro and Max; organizations buy Enterprise Pro or Enterprise Max seats.
Our verdict on Perplexity
Updated Oct 4, 2026
Perplexity is built for questions where the source matters as much as the answer. Every response comes from a live web search and carries numbered citations, so an analyst, a student or a marketer can open the page behind a figure before repeating it. Research mode turns a broad question into a sourced report that can be exported or shared as a Page, Spaces keep the threads and files for one project together, and scheduled Tasks bring updates on a topic without anyone rerunning the search.
The product has grown well beyond search, and that growth brings complications. Computer, the agent that builds reports, decks and emails, runs on credits that are separate from the subscription: Max includes a monthly allowance but Pro gets only a limited-time sign-up bonus, credits cannot be refunded, and a task that runs out pauses until more arrive. On Pro, access to the advanced models may be limited during weeks of heavy use, and Pro's cloud-storage connectors cover Google Drive and Dropbox and don't sync, so an edited file has to be attached again. Privacy needs a deliberate choice too: on Free, Pro and Max, AI data retention is on by default, so searches can be used for training until you switch it off, and opting out does not remove data already collected.
The free plan allows practically unlimited basic searches but only a few Pro Searches, limited Research and no choice of model. Pro is the plan most individuals will need, for extended Pro Search, model choice, file creation and image and video generation. Max suits heavy researchers who want the highest model access, monthly Computer credits and Model Council, which combines three models' answers and shows where they differ. Organizations should go straight to Enterprise Pro or Enterprise Max, whose data is never used for training.
Choose Perplexity when the main job is finding and checking facts. If research is only part of the day, ChatGPT Plus also shows sources for web answers and adds file creation, image generation and coding in one subscription. If the sources you need sit in Gmail and Drive, Gemini's Deep Research can search them alongside Google Search, and it is available on Google's free plan.
Written by Lokesh Kapoor
Pros & cons
Perplexity pros and cons
What it does well
- Research mode runs dozens of searches and exports its report as a PDF or document
- Spaces group threads, files and instructions by project and can be shared
- Paid plans create DOCX, PDF, XLSX and PPTX files with citations in documents
- Enterprise data is never used for training, and uploaded files are kept for seven days
Where it falls short
- AI data retention starts switched on for Free, Pro and Max accounts
- Drive and Dropbox files attached on Pro don't update when the originals change
- Access to advanced models on Pro can be limited in weeks of especially heavy usage
Editor's assessment from vendor documentation and published pricing
Pricing
Perplexity pricing
Perplexity's paid plans start at $16.67/month, right at the $16.67 median across the 5 tools in our AI Assistants ranking. A free plan is available.
Free
$0
Free plan
- Unlimited quick searches
- A few Pro searches per day
- Inline citations on every answer
- Mobile and web apps
- Basic file uploads
Pro
$16.67/mo
per month
or $20/mo billed monthly
Everything in Free, plus:
- 300+ Pro searches per day
- Choice of underlying model
- Deep Research reports
- Unlimited file uploads
- Spaces for organised research threads
Max
$200/mo
per month
Everything in Pro, plus:
- Unlimited Deep Research
- Priority access to the strongest models
- Early access to new products
- Higher limits on agentic tasks
Enterprise Pro
$32.50/mo
per user, per month (billed annually)
or $40/mo billed monthly
Everything in Pro, plus:
- Internal knowledge base search
- SSO and SCIM provisioning
- Admin console and usage analytics
- Data excluded from training
- SOC 2 compliance
Recorded from the vendor's pricing page, not yet re-checked · see the full breakdown
Capabilities
Perplexity features
Checked against the same feature list as every other tool in its category.
Platform
- Included:Developer APIThe same models available programmatically for building your own applications.
Reasoning & Modes
- Included:Custom assistants & agentsSave a reusable assistant with its own instructions, files and tools.
- Included:Extended reasoning modeA slower mode that thinks through multi-step problems before answering, for maths, analysis and planning.
- Not included:Long context windowAccepts book-length input in a single conversation without losing earlier detail.
- Included:Persistent memoryRemembers your preferences and context across separate conversations.
Knowledge & Sources
- Included:App connectorsConnects to Drive, SharePoint, email or a code host so the assistant can use your own data.
- Included:File & document analysisReads uploaded PDFs, spreadsheets and images and answers questions about them.
- Included:Inline source citationsLinks each claim back to the page it came from so answers can be checked.
- Included:Live web searchSearches the web during an answer rather than relying on training data alone.
Multimodal
- Included:Code execution & data analysisRuns code in a sandbox to analyse data, make charts and verify its own answers.
- Included:Image generationCreates and edits images from a text description inside the same conversation.Paid plans
- Included:Voice conversationReal-time spoken conversation with interruption, not just dictation.
Team & Governance
- Included:No training on your dataBusiness tiers exclude your conversations from model training by default.
- Included:Team admin & SSOCentral billing, seat management and single sign-on for organisations.Enterprise plans
Ecosystem
Perplexity integrations
- Google Drive
- Notion
- Slack
- Dropbox
- GitHub
Videos
Watch Perplexity in action
Product walkthroughs from Perplexity's own YouTube channel.
Introducing Comet: Browse at the Speed of Thought
Published by PerplexityWatch on YouTube
Alternatives
Top Perplexity alternatives
Tools that do the same job, from the same category.
Fit check
Will Perplexity fit your team?
Support
- Email support
- Knowledge base
Training
- Documentation
- Video tutorials
Deployment
- Web
- iOS
- Android
- macOS
Typical users
- Freelancers
- Small businesses
- Mid-size companies
- Enterprises
FAQs
Perplexity FAQs
Written by our editorial team.
Is Perplexity free?
Yes. The free plan includes practically unlimited basic searches with citations, your search history and limited file uploads, plus a small number of Pro Searches and Research reports. Perplexity picks the model for you, and advanced models and file creation need a paid plan. Pro extends Pro Search and adds model choice, documents, spreadsheets and slide decks, and image and video generation. See Perplexity pricing for current plans and prices.
Does Perplexity use your searches to train its AI?
On Free, Pro and Max, yes by default: the AI data retention setting is switched on, and Perplexity may use your data to train its models. You can turn it off under Account settings, on the Preferences page, but the opt-out only covers data collected afterward. Enterprise Pro and Enterprise Max data is never used for training, and Perplexity says its agreements bar model providers such as OpenAI and Anthropic from training on any Perplexity data.
How do Perplexity credits work?
Credits pay for Computer, Perplexity's task agent, and some premium features; ordinary searches never use them. Max and the Enterprise plans include a monthly allowance, while Pro has none beyond a limited-time sign-up bonus, so Pro users buy credits as needed. Bonus credits are spent first, then monthly, then purchased ones. Monthly credits don't roll over, credits can't be refunded, and when they run out a task pauses and resumes once you add more.
What are Perplexity Computer and Comet?
Computer is Perplexity's agent: instead of answering a question, it carries out a multi-step job, such as researching competitors, building a slide deck and emailing it through your connected Gmail. It runs in the cloud on credits and is available to subscribers on the web, iOS and Android, and through the Personal Computer desktop app on Mac and Windows. Comet is a separate Chromium-based browser with Perplexity search and an assistant built in.
What files can Perplexity create?
On paid plans, Perplexity creates documents as DOCX or PDF, spreadsheets as XLSX, presentations as PPTX or HTML, and simple web apps as HTML. You can preview each file, revise it with follow-up prompts, return to earlier versions, download or share it, and export it to a connected Google Drive. Documents include citations, but there are no custom templates or slide layouts. For assistants with other strengths, see Perplexity alternatives.
Sources & methodology
Product details come from Perplexity AI Inc.'s public website and documentation (United States). Prices were recorded from the vendor's pricing page and have not been re-checked since. We haven't tested this product hands-on; the verdict is a desk assessment. How we research and rank tools
- Founded 2022
- 9 languages supported
- perplexity.ai
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