Character.AI Alternatives for 2026: How to Choose
Character.AI is in a Chapter 11 case and says it will be wound down if no bid lets it continue. If you want another app, compare the age rule, what you can import, the free tier, memory, voice and privacy. There is no single best choice, so this page lists what each service says about itself, with sources and dates, and what changed at other apps this year.
Updated 2026-10-21
Bring your chats to Castmanor
Paste a chat or add screenshots, and your character picks up where you left off. It is free, for adults.
Free. Adults only. Everyone here is an AI character.
Where Character.AI users are moving in 2026
In October 2026 Character Technologies, Inc., the company behind Character.AI, started a Chapter 11 bankruptcy case to sell its assets. The company says the platform will be wound down if no bid lets it continue. See the timeline and key dates and how to export your chats before you decide.
Castmanor is one of the services below. Castmanor is run by Qualiaverse LLC and is not affiliated with Character Technologies, Inc. The table gives the same kind of facts for every service. It lists what each service’s own pages say. We have not tested the other services, and “Not checked” means we did not read that part of their pages.
| Service | Age rule | Where it runs | From its own pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| Castmanor | 18+ | Web app in a phone or computer browser, and a Telegram bot. | Free today: chat, memory and voice. Takes pasted chats, screenshots, CAI Tools files and character cards. The official Character.AI export file is being tested. Every character is an AI. |
| Chai | Adults. Its FAQ gives no number. | Web, and it works in a mobile browser. Its FAQ also names a separate Chai App. | Free to start. Pro has a 24-hour free trial, then $159.99 a year or $9.99 a week. Free messaging was turned off in 22 countries in January 2026. |
| JanitorAI | 18+ | Web. | Age checks for visitors in Australia, Brazil and the UK. Its help center describes no import from Character.AI. |
| Kindroid | 18+ | iOS and Android apps. | Unlimited free messaging ended on October 1, 2026. New free accounts get a one-time preview of 50 messages (15 in some regions) and 5 selfies. Read-only after that. |
| Nomi | 18+ | Web in any browser, iOS and Android apps, and a web shortcut (PWA). | Not checked: free tier, import. |
| Replika | Not checked | iOS and Android apps. | Its site lists calls, selfies and memory as features. Not checked: free tier, import. |
| SillyTavern | Self-hosted | Software you run on your own computer or device. | Free and open source. Its documents say to use CAI Tools to import Character.AI chats and bots. |
| SpicyChat | 18+ | Web. An Android app from its own site. No iOS app in the App Store. | Its documents describe importing Character.AI characters with a file made by CAI Tools. |
| Talkie | 14+ | App. | Not checked: free tier, import. |
The age rules for Castmanor, JanitorAI, Kindroid, Nomi, SillyTavern and Talkie are the ones in the neutral guide, which also explains how services are listed. Rows are in alphabetical order.
What to compare before you choose
- The age rule, and whether you pass it. Janitor AI now asks for an age check in some countries.
- Whether you can bring your chats and characters. See apps that can import Character.AI chats.
- The free tier, and how stable it is. Several services cut theirs in 2026 (see the next section).
- How memory works. See apps with long-term memory.
- Voice and calls. See apps with voice calls.
- What you can export and delete. See privacy-friendly apps.
- Where it runs: web, an app, your own computer. See alternatives by platform.
Free options and what changed in 2026
Free tiers change often. These changes happened this year, according to the sources linked below.
- Kindroid retired its Lite model and unlimited free messaging on October 1, 2026. An account with no trial or subscription becomes read-only: you can read, export and delete chats, but not send messages or make calls.
- Chai turned off ad-funded free messaging in 22 countries in late January 2026, including India, and a report on May 29, 2026 describes free-user limits that lock chat for 1 to 24 hours.
- The PolyBuzz iPhone app was removed from the App Store around October 15, 2026. The Android app and the website were still online when we checked on October 21.
- Grok’s animated companions were removed around September 1, 2026.
- Janitor AI added age checks for visitors in Australia, Brazil and the UK in 2026.
Castmanor is free today. Its Terms say it may change, limit or end any feature, or the whole service, at any time. You can export your chats from Settings whenever you like, so a change never has to cost you your history.
Castmanor, in the same terms
Castmanor is a web app where adults talk with AI characters by text and by voice. Every character is an AI and says so when asked. It is for people 18 and older. Characters remember your name, your stories and your inside jokes, and you can see and edit what they remember. Voice calls are free, and characters can write to you first. You can bring chats from Character.AI by pasting them, adding screenshots or adding a file.
Romance and dark themes are welcome. Castmanor does not write explicit sexual content, and a scene that heads that way fades out. Castmanor is operated by Qualiaverse LLC, 30 N Gould St Ste R, Sheridan, WY 82801, and you can write to hello@castmanor.com.
Questions and answers
Where are Character.AI users going?
We cannot count them. The table lists services people mention, with the facts each one publishes. People choose on age rules, import, price, memory, voice and privacy.
What is the best Character.AI alternative?
There is no single best one. It depends on what you need. Compare the age rule, import, free tier, memory, voice, and what you can export and delete.
Is there a Character.AI alternative that is not shutting down?
No service can promise that. Several changed their free tiers or removed an app this year. Export your chats from any service so you keep a copy.
Is there a free Character.AI alternative?
Castmanor is free today, and SillyTavern is free software you run yourself, though it needs an AI model that may cost money. Other services have free tiers with limits that can change.
Is there a Character.AI alternative with no limits?
None of the services we read promises no limits. Castmanor says chat, memory and voice are free today, and its Terms say features may be limited or changed.
Which alternatives let me import my Character.AI chats?
Castmanor, SillyTavern and SpicyChat describe imports in their own documents. See apps that can import Character.AI chats for the details.
Related guides
Sources
- Neutral guide: Leaving Character.AI, with the list of services and the rule for listing them
- Castmanor: Terms and Privacy pages
- Chai AI: Frequently Asked Questions
- Kindroid docs: FAQs (updated 2026-10-09)
- Kindroid docs: Subscriptions (updated 2026-10-13)
- Nomipedia: What platforms does Nomi support?
- Replika
- SpicyChat docs: Mobile Apps
- SpicyChat docs: Importing Characters
- SillyTavern docs: Chat File Management
- JanitorAI Help Center: age verification for Australia, Brazil and the UK (updated 2026-06-15)
- CompanionHunt: PolyBuzz is off the App Store (published 2026-10-15, revised 2026-10-19)
- PiunikaWeb: Chai free access blocked in countries, founder explains (2026-01-26, updated 2026-02-06)
- PiunikaWeb: Chai users hit Message Removed limits (2026-05-29)
- Nika: Grok Ani is gone (2026-09-15)
We opened these pages on 2026-10-21. Pages can change after that.