Free · 30 seconds · No paid placements.
You don't need 40 AI tools. You need 3.
Answer 3 questions. Get the free pick, the paid pick worth it, and one to skip, prices checked this week.
Your AI stack
Rules, not sponsors. Only tools checked in the last 30 days. All options →
🔒 2 picks locked
How the quiz picks, and quick picks by job
Quick picks by job
What a solo builder on $20/mo or less gets. Your answers can change the picks.
| Job | Free pick | Paid pick ($20/mo or less) | Skip |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vibe-code an app or landing page | Lovable Free: Yes (5 build credits/day) | Replit $20/mo Core ($18 annual) | Hostinger AI Builder Paid only, and your picks already cover this job. |
| AI coding assistant | Cursor Free: Yes (limited) | Claude Code $17/mo annual, $20 monthly via Claude Pro | AWS Aidlc Overlaps with your picks. Add it later only if they fall short. |
| Set up or run AI agents | n8n Free: Yes (self-host); Cloud 14-day trial | Browserbase $20/mo Developer | Lindy Starts at $49.99/mo, over your budget. |
| Automate workflows | Make Free: Yes (1,000 credits/mo) | Zapier $19.99/mo Pro annual (750 tasks) | Gumloop Starts at $37/mo, over your budget. |
| Make game art and sprites | Leonardo.Ai Free: Yes (150 fast tokens/day) | Scenario $15/mo Starter (monthly; annual saves 33%) | Midjourney Paid only, and your picks already cover this job. |
| Generate music and SFX | ElevenLabs Music and SFX Free: Yes (10k credits/mo, includes music and SFX) | Suno $8/mo Pro billed yearly, $10 monthly | AIVA Free tier isn't for commercial use, so it won't cover client or business work. |
| Edit and generate video | Descript Free: Yes (1 media hour/mo, 720p) | Runway $12/mo Standard billed annually, $15 monthly | ngram Starts at $23.20/mo, over your budget. |
| Write content | Claude Free: Yes | ChatGPT $20/mo Plus (monthly only) | Jasper Starts at $59/mo, over your budget. |
| Research | Perplexity Free: Yes | Gemini (Deep Research) $4.99/mo Google AI Plus; $19.99/mo AI Pro | Exa Overlaps with your picks. Add it later only if they fall short. |
| Voice and TTS | ElevenLabs Free: Yes (10k credits) | Cartesia $5/mo Pro | Fish Audio Overlaps with your picks. Add it later only if they fall short. |
How the quiz picks
- Only tools checked in the last 30 days with a verified price and free tier (58 listings right now).
- Free pick: the best free tier for your job that keeps working.
- Paid pick: our highest-ranked tool whose cheapest monthly plan fits your budget.
- Skip: the clearest reason in our data not to start there.
- Affiliate deals never affect a pick. Nobody can pay for a spot.
How we check: every price and free tier on this page comes from the vendor's own pricing page, with the date we checked it. If we can't verify something, we say so. Found a wrong price? Email info@usethissi.com and we fix it within 24 hours.