Side-by-side comparison

DeepSeek vs Gemini

Plans, free tiers and API access for DeepSeek and Gemini, from each vendor's own pages. Last checked Oct 5, 2026.

DeepSeekAssistant

GeminiAssistant

The short answer

Both DeepSeek and Gemini have an ongoing free plan.
On LiveBench (2026-06-25), DeepSeek's best model (DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Max Effort) scores 81.1 against 78.8 for Gemini's best (Gemini 3.7 Flash High).

Pricing and features

DeepSeekGemini

Starting price

Not listed

$4.99/mo

Paid plans

No published monthly price

Google AI Plus$4.99/mo
Google AI Pro$19.99/mo
Google AI Ultra$99.99/mo

Free plan

Free planFree web chat and mobile app with rate limits

Free planFree with a Google Account: Gemini app, Deep Research and image generation with usage limits

API access

API availableAPI is billed pay as you go per million tokens; see the platform pricing page

API availableGemini API is billed separately through Google AI Studio and Vertex AI

Best for

Developers wanting low-cost token pricing for chat, coding agents, and custom apps.

People already in Google accounts who want one assistant with optional paid usage tiers and bundled storage.

Watch out for

There is no paid web or app plan. The API is billed per million tokens and rates change, so check the platform page.

Free-tier limits and model access change often. Google AI Plus, Pro and Ultra are billed monthly in USD; prices can differ by region.

How to choose

DeepSeek has no flat monthly plan. Its web chat and mobile app are free with rate limits, and its API is billed per million tokens, with different rates at weekday peak hours (01-04 and 06-10 UTC) than off-peak. Gemini offers subscriptions instead: Google AI Plus at $4.99, Pro at $19.99 and Ultra at $99.99, all billed monthly, with a free tier tied to a Google Account that covers Deep Research and image generation within limits. Both also have developer APIs, and Gemini's is pay as you go through Google AI Studio and Vertex AI. DeepSeek is aimed at developers who want low token costs; Gemini at people already in Google accounts.

DeepSeek: You build apps or coding agents and want per-million-token billing, and can shift work to off-peak hours to use the lower rates.
Gemini: You want a monthly subscription with set tiers, from $4.99, and storage or assistant features tied to your Google Account.
Either: You want a free chat assistant with usage or rate limits and no subscription.

Reviewed Oct 5, 2026. Prices and plans can change, so confirm on the vendor's site.

LiveBench results

Best-scoring model per vendor in the 2026-06-25 LiveBench release (4 DeepSeek and 6 Google configurations). Scores are out of 100.

DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Max EffortGemini 3.7 Flash High

Overall

81.1

78.8

Reasoning

86.7

87.8

Coding

80.0

78.9

Agentic Coding

77.3

58.3

Mathematics

93.3

93.5

Data Analysis

79.3

68.0

Language

81.2

85.5

Instruction Following

70.0

79.9

Cost per successful task

$0.029

$0.157

Source: LiveBench, imported Oct 5, 2026. Explore every model.

Common questions

Which is cheaper, DeepSeek or Gemini?

We could not confirm a starting price for both tools. See the plan table above.

Is DeepSeek free?

Free plan. Free web chat and mobile app with rate limits

Is Gemini free?

Free plan. Free with a Google Account: Gemini app, Deep Research and image generation with usage limits

Which scores higher on benchmarks, DeepSeek or Gemini?

In the 2026-06-25 LiveBench release, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash Max Effort scores 81.1 and Gemini 3.7 Flash High scores 78.8 overall. Scores measure the benchmark, not your own workload.

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