ChatGPT Plus vs Google AI Pro: which AI subscription is worth it in Germany?

Prices side by side (as of October 2026)

ChatGPT Plus: opened from Germany, OpenAI's German pricing page shows 23 euros a month, which Notebookcheck also confirmed in September 2026. There is no annual plan. The pricing page does not say explicitly whether VAT is included.

Google AI Pro: Google lists 21.99 euros a month on its German subscription page. According to Google, the same plan includes 5 TB of cloud storage for Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos as well as Google Home Premium Standard, which costs 10 euros a month on its own.

The price difference itself is small. What matters more is what you already pay for: if you have a Google storage plan, AI Pro can replace it. In the end, the amount shown at checkout is what counts.

Models and features

According to OpenAI, ChatGPT Plus includes the stronger reasoning models of the GPT-6 family with usage caps, in-depth research with Deep Research, image generation, the coding assistant Codex and ChatGPT Work. Plus is ad-free. According to Notebookcheck, since September 2026 you have to select the more thorough thinking level yourself.

According to Google, Google AI Pro offers expanded access to Gemini 3.1 Pro and Deep Research, usage limits four times higher than the free version and Gemini in Gmail, Docs and Sheets. It also adds higher limits for image, music and video generation and for developer tools. Google says Gemini in Gmail and Docs is only available from age 18 and only in certain languages. According to Google, you also have to be at least 18 to use the Gemini apps themselves with a Google AI plan in the European Economic Area, which includes Germany. Some extras, such as the AI inbox in Gmail, are US-only according to Google.

Our assessment: for writing, explanations and research, both offer a similar amount according to the providers. This page is not based on our own quality test.

Agent features: what is missing in the EU

Agents are AI helpers that carry out several steps on their own, such as searching websites or preparing appointments.

Google: according to Google, the agent Gemini Spark, which works through tasks in the background, is available to AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in many countries, but explicitly not in the European Economic Area, Switzerland or the UK. According to 9to5Google, Spark's link with the Chrome browser rolled out first in the US. Customers in Germany therefore miss part of what Google advertises for AI Pro in the US.

OpenAI: according to OpenAI, ChatGPT Work, which lets ChatGPT carry out tasks on your computer and on the web, is available in all supported regions, including Germany. For consumers, the always-on agent Dot, by contrast, is only included in the more expensive Pro plan and excludes the EEA, Switzerland and the UK there. In the business plan Business Premium, OpenAI says Dot is available in all supported ChatGPT regions, with access rolling out gradually. OpenAI's website feature Sites also launched without the EEA at first.

Family, storage and privacy

Family: according to Google, Google AI Pro can be shared with up to five other people, who get selected AI benefits at no extra cost. Not everything can be shared: according to Google, the Google Developer Program premium benefit and Google Colab are only for the person who manages the plan. And in the EEA, the age limit of 18 for the Gemini apps with a subscription applies, which matters for younger family members. OpenAI says ChatGPT Plus is designed for individuals; the pricing page lists no family plan.

Storage: Google's 5 TB covers Gmail, Drive and Photos. The ChatGPT pricing page does not list general cloud storage.

Privacy: with OpenAI you can switch off training on your chats in Data controls, and OpenAI says Temporary Chats are not used for training. At Google the setting is called Keep Activity. Google states that some Gemini chats are read by trained human reviewers, including external contractors, and that chats are kept for 72 hours when the setting is off and for Temporary Chats. When the setting is on, Google deletes chats after 18 months by default. Chats that reviewers have looked at for training purposes are kept separately for up to three years, even if you delete your activity. Neither consumer plan offers guaranteed data storage only in the EU.

Which subscription for whom?

The following is an editorial recommendation based on the providers' information.

Google AI Pro is worth it if you use Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos, need storage or want to share the plan with family members. For about the same price you then get much more than just a chatbot.

ChatGPT Plus is worth it if ChatGPT is your main tool, you write code or you want ChatGPT Work to carry out tasks on your computer. Plus is ad-free and usable in Germany with almost all core features.

If you mainly hope for the new agents, wait: Google's Gemini Spark is missing in the EU, and for consumers OpenAI's agent Dot is only in the more expensive Pro plan and is missing there in the EEA too.