Meta AI vs ChatGPT: which AI chat in WhatsApp is better?

Two AI chats in the same app

Meta AI has been built into WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and Messenger in the EU since March 2025, recognisable by a circle icon. According to Meta the service is free and started in Europe as a chat in six languages, including German. You can ask Meta AI questions, have it summarise messages or create images, and call it into groups with @Meta AI. According to Verbraucherzentrale, it cannot be switched off.

ChatGPT was available on WhatsApp via the 1-800-ChatGPT contact until Meta changed its rules and the service ended on 15 January 2026. In June 2026 the European Commission ordered Meta, as an interim measure, to let rival AI assistants back in for free while its antitrust investigation runs. Since 13 July 2026, according to OpenAI, ChatGPT has been available on WhatsApp again in the European Economic Area (EEA), without an account. What counts is the country code of your WhatsApp number, and it may roll out gradually. You can write, upload images, send voice notes and have images created.

What both cost (as of October 2026)

According to its own announcement, Meta offers Meta AI in Europe for free, and Meta says basic use will stay free. For more AI usage, for example when creating images and videos, the Meta One Core plan for 7.99 US dollars and Premium for 19.99 US dollars a month have been available since September 2026. Meta does not give a euro price for Germany; according to Meta, plans and prices may vary by region.

ChatGPT can be used for free on WhatsApp and in the app, with usage limits. According to OpenAI, the limits go up if you link your ChatGPT account to WhatsApp. If you need more, the German pricing page lists 8 euros for Go, 23 euros for Plus or from 103 euros for Pro a month.

How good the answers are

An independent comparison comes from a test by the British consumer organisation Which?. In September 2025 it tested six AI services with 40 questions on money, law, health and consumer rights, using a browser from the UK. Which? published the results on 18 November 2025, and Stiftung Warentest reported on them on 16 January 2026. The answers were rated for accuracy, relevance, clarity, usefulness and ethical responsibility, which produced an overall score. In the overall score ChatGPT reached 64 per cent and Meta AI 55 per cent, putting Meta AI clearly last among the six services. The figures of 65 and 54 per cent, cited for example by Stiftung Warentest, refer to the accuracy of the answers.

Both providers have updated their models since the test. OpenAI does not say on its help page which model version ChatGPT uses on WhatsApp. The result is therefore only an older reference point: the test does not show how reliably either of them answers on WhatsApp today.

Privacy in the EU: what happens to your messages

According to WhatsApp Help, Meta can only read messages in which you mention @Meta AI or that you deliberately share with Meta AI. Your other chats stay end-to-end encrypted. WhatsApp names one exception for AI features that use a technology called Private Processing: according to WhatsApp, Meta cannot read what you share through them. Which of these features are already available in Germany is unclear. According to Verbraucherzentrale, the conversation with Meta AI itself is not end-to-end encrypted. You can keep Meta AI out of a chat with Advanced Chat Privacy, set per chat and in groups only by an admin.

For training, Meta has used public posts, photos and comments by adults on Facebook and Instagram in the EU since 27 May 2025. You can still object, but only for the future. According to Meta, interactions with Meta AI on WhatsApp are currently not used for training, which the German federal data protection commissioner confirmed to CORRECTIV in June 2026. Meta has also announced private Incognito chats with Meta AI, rolling out gradually; Meta does not say whether they are already available in Germany.

On ChatGPT you control training in your account's Data controls. Ads may appear on Free and Go, which OpenAI says are not personalised in the EEA for now. Meta has used AI chats for advertising in most regions since December 2025; its announcement does not say whether this applies in the EU. According to Reuters, the EU was excluded at launch; whether that is still the case today is unclear.

Who should pick which?

The following is an editorial recommendation based on the providers' information and the older Which? test, not our own test.

Meta AI fits quick questions on the side, such as a recipe idea or a funny picture for the family group, if answer quality is not critical.

ChatGPT fits if you want to do longer tasks or want more control over your data. It scored better in the older Which? test, but there is no evidence that it answers more reliably than Meta AI on WhatsApp today. With 1-800-ChatGPT you do not even have to leave WhatsApp.

For important questions about money, law or health the same applies to both: check the answer and ask where the information comes from.