There is no doubt that ChatGPT-4 is significantly better ⚡️ than ChatGPT-3, but it comes with a monthly subscription fee of $20 💸. On the other hand, ChatGPT-3 is available for free.

So, how can you access ChatGPT-4 without the $20 monthly subscription? 🤔

ChatGPT-4 is available to consumers through two methods:

1. ChatGPT Plus subscription: Costs $20 per month, which is straightforward to comprehend and easily accessible. You just need to provide your credit card information 💳, and you’re all set to utilize the service.

2. ChatGPT-4 APIs: You can access the ChatGPT-4 model through its APIs 🌐. This type of access follows a pay-per-use model, commonly referred to as pay-per-message. The cost per message is affordable enough that if you utilize ChatGPT-4 exclusively using this method for the entire month, it is likely that your monthly bill will be lower than $20. More on these calculations later.

ChatGPT Plus vs ChatGPT-4 APIs

There are a few key differences that you should take into account when considering these two options.

User Interface: When you opt for the ChatGPT Plus Subscription, you will utilize the ChatGPT’s web interface developed by OpenAI. However, if you choose to use ChatGPT-4 via APIs, you will either need to write code to access the APIs 😫 or use a third-party client like Griv (shameless plug alert 😎). Griv greatly enhances the ChatGPT experience. To begin with, you can access Griv instantly on your Mac using a hotkey ⌨️, eliminating the hassle of searching for the browser tab and disrupting your workflow. Additionally, Griv allows you to search your ChatGPT conversations 🔎, a feature that is lacking in ChatGPT’s web interface.

Monthly Pricing: When using ChatGPT Plus Subscription, you pay a fixed price of $20 per month, regardless of your usage. On the other hand, with API access, you pay based on how much you use it. For most people, using APIs would cost significantly less than paying the $20 monthly subscription fee. However, if you are a heavy user, the scale can tip ⚖️ against the API option, making it more expensive for you. In that case, sticking with the ChatGPT Plus Subscription might be more cost-effective. Ultimately, the decision depends on your 🫵 specific usage. To help with this decision, here is a simple breakdown 🧮.

For a $20/month subscription, you can have virtually unlimited conversations with ChatGPT-4. Now, let’s compare this with what you can get using the APIs. At the time of writing, ChatGPT-4 APIs cost $0.03 per 1,000 tokens for input and $0.06 per 1,000 tokens for output. Assuming you allocate 30% of the $20 for input and 70% for output, you would be able to input approximately 150,000 words and receive around 175,000 words of output.

To put this into perspective, if an essay 📝 is about 1,000 words long, you would be able to input approximately 150 essays and receive around 175 essays as output for $20 within a month using the APIs.

In summary, if you estimate that you will provide fewer than 150 essay-length inputs and receive fewer than 175 essay-length outputs per month, it may be more financially beneficial for you to use the ChatGPT-4 API. (think Griv 💭). However, if your usage exceeds these limits, it would be more cost-effective to subscribe to ChatGPT Plus. Please keep in mind that these calculations are only approximations.

Griv is a snappy ChatGPT client for your Mac. Invoke it with a hotkey and harness the power of AI within your workflows. Get it at https://grivhq.com

If you’d like to explore Griv, do check it out at https://grivhq.com.