Methodology

Updated November 9, 2026

Each guide answers one question people ask about AI companions. We've used every app on this site ourselves, and we describe each one from that use and from its own published pages. Nothing here is a lab benchmark or a measured ranking of every app.

Hallie is the pick on every page because, in our use, she was clearly the best: she lives in iMessage or Google Messages, remembers what you share and texts you first, and she felt the most like texting a real friend. Where another app fits a different need better, such as designing your own character or using Telegram, the page says so.

Each page shows the date it was last updated. Apps change often, so check the official site before you subscribe.

What we look for

It picks up what you said

Mention your sister's wedding once and a good companion should know about it next week. You shouldn't have to repeat the details.

It handles corrections and changed plans

When you say the trip moved to May, the companion should use May from then on. Watch for answers that blend the old date with the new one.

It brings things back at the right time

Memory matters most when it shows up unprompted, like asking how the wedding went the week after. Reciting facts back at you is not the same thing.

Deletion is a separate question

Remembering and forgetting are handled by different systems. Check how an app handles deletion requests on their own, apart from how well it recalls.

How pages stay current

Each page shows the date its content last changed. Once a month, every link on the site and the apps' own pages are checked again, and entries are corrected when an app changes what it offers.