AI assistants & agents

What is the best AI assistant for small businesses in the UK? It depends on where the work happens: Marblism suits owners who want marketing and admin done for them, while Viktor and Appy.AI suit teams that already run their day in Slack or Microsoft Teams. None of the makers in this category price in pounds, so every figure here is in US dollars.

Marblism bundles seven AI agents covering email, social posts, leads, SEO articles, phone calls, websites and contracts for $44 a month, or $24 a month on yearly billing, and offers UK phone numbers for its AI receptionist. It scores 4.8 out of 5 on Trustpilot from 1,161 reviews, though critical reviewers report lead campaigns that produced nothing and billing disputes that took weeks. There is no free plan, only a 7-day money-back guarantee.

Runable takes a different route: one general agent that builds websites, apps, slide decks, videos and research reports from a prompt. Its free plan gives 1,500 credits a day, and Pro costs $20 a month or $15 on annual billing. App Store reviewers rate it 3.8 from 62 ratings, and their most repeated complaint is how quickly video uses up credits.

For data work, Julius turns spreadsheets and databases into charts, reports and decks and shows the Python, SQL or R behind each answer. It has a free plan and Plus at $20 a month, and scores 4.7 from 43 ratings on the UK App Store but 1.8 on Trustpilot from 20 reviews, mostly about credits and refunds.

Which AI assistant has a free plan? Clico, Demi AI, folk, Julius, Littlebird and Runable all list a free-forever plan, while Lindy, Viktor and Appy.AI give one-off free credits instead.

What each free option covers: - Clico: 200 credits a month across its Chrome extension, Mac app and web studio, with 7 chat models - Demi AI: up to $50 of credits on sign-up with every integration included, on the Mac - folk: every feature, including connected apps and research, with up to 3 background jobs at a time - Littlebird: screen context, daily credits and limited meeting notes, plus a 14-day trial of Plus - Runable: 1,500 credits every day for websites, slides, images and video - Viktor and Appy.AI: $100 of credits once with no card, and Viktor's never expire - Lindy: $50 of credits that last 7 days, with no card needed

AI Fiesta, Magica, Marblism and Chipp have no free plan.

Which AI app gives you several models for one subscription? AI Fiesta, Magica and Clico each bundle many models under one price, and AI Fiesta's Basic plan at $12 a month is the cheapest of the three.

AI Fiesta offers more than 100 models with side-by-side answers, and its Basic plan costs less than a single $20 ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro or Google AI Pro plan. Reviewers are less keen: it scores 2.3 on Google Play from 14,790 ratings, and premium models use tokens four times faster. Magica's Hobby plan at $14.99 a month covers chat, image, video and voice models, and unused credits roll over while you stay subscribed. It scores 4.3 on Trustpilot from 1,526 reviews, although cancelling deletes chat history and any credits left. Clico gives all 27 chat models on Pro at $19.90 a month and is rated 4.6 on the Chrome Web Store from 16 ratings.

Which AI agents work inside Slack or Microsoft Teams? Viktor, Appy.AI and Lindy are built around Slack, and Viktor and Appy.AI also work in Microsoft Teams.

Viktor connects to more than 3,200 tools and charges per workspace rather than per seat. It scores 4.8 on G2 from 63 reviews and 4.9 on Product Hunt from 16, and its Team plan starts at $50 a month for 20,000 credits shared by the whole team. Appy.AI also costs $50 a month for unlimited users, with named AI coworkers for marketing, sales, finance and admin, but no reviews could be found on the main review sites.

Lindy adds meeting recording, daily briefs and iMessage. It scores 4.9 on G2 from 171 reviews yet 1.7 on Trustpilot from 40, where complaints centre on credits, support and billing, and its Team plan costs $29.99 per active user a month. Chipp, from $299 a month, covers Slack, Teams, phone and WhatsApp for agencies and healthcare groups.

How do you pay less for an AI assistant? Annual billing and the free allowances do most of the work, and how credits are counted matters as much as the headline price.

Yearly billing cuts Runable Pro from $20 to $15 a month, Julius Plus from $20 to $16, Magica Hobby from $14.99 to $12.50 and Littlebird Plus from $20 to $17. Students get Littlebird Plus at $15 a month after two free months, though the offer needs a .edu email. Viktor gives non-profits 15% off monthly plans, and Magica gives non-profits and educational institutions 50% off team plans of five or more seats.

Credit systems are the common catch. Reviewers of Julius, Lindy and Runable all report allowances running out faster than expected, and Appy.AI and Demi AI don't publish how many credits a typical task uses. I'd start on a free plan or free credits to see how fast an allowance goes before paying for a month.