Comparison · Free to read · 4 min read

NotebookLM vs ChatGPT Projects: which is better for your own documents?

For lots of your own documents, NotebookLM, called "Gemini Notebook" since July 2026, is the stronger choice: the free version holds 50 sources per notebook, answers point to your sources, usually to the matching passage, and according to Google your data is not used for training. ChatGPT Projects are more practical if you turn your documents straight into texts or plans, but the free version only allows 5 files per project. Both can be used for free in Germany (as of October 2026).

Published 11 October 2026

NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook) or ChatGPT Projects

Checked on 11 October 2026

Price in Germany^1,5,6,8
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Standard free; higher limits with Google AI Plus from €4.99 or Google AI Pro at €21.99 a month
ChatGPT Projects:
Projects on every plan including Free; Go €8, Plus €23, Pro from €103 a month
Availability in Germany^2,3,6
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Available in the browser, the app not in every country according to Google; NotebookLM has been called "Gemini Notebook" since 16 July 2026
ChatGPT Projects:
Available to signed-in users on the web and in the apps
What you get^1,2,6,13
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Answers from your sources with citations (for very short sources only to the whole document); audio and video overviews, mind maps, flashcards, quizzes, reports
ChatGPT Projects:
Chats, files and instructions in one place; project memory; plus web search, images, canvas and voice chat
File limits^1,6,7
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Free 50 sources per notebook and 100 notebooks; Plus 100, Pro 300 sources per notebook
ChatGPT Projects:
Free 5 files per project and 3 uploads a day; Go and Plus 25, Pro 40 files per project
Usage limits^4,6,11
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Since September 2026 flexible compute budgets that refresh every five hours until an additional weekly limit is reached
ChatGPT Projects:
Depends on the plan; projects cost nothing extra, the normal plan limits apply
Privacy^1,2,6,9
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
According to Google, no training on your data unless you give feedback; then Google can see the whole interaction including uploads
ChatGPT Projects:
Project content may be used for training if "Improve the model for everyone" is on; can be switched off
Sticking to sources^2,3,6,12
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
The regular chat answers from your sources; experimental features can also search the web, run code and create files, even without sources
ChatGPT Projects:
Prioritises project files, but can also search the web and draw on earlier chats
Sharing^1,6
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Advanced sharing only for paying users
ChatGPT Projects:
Share projects: Free up to 5, Go and Plus up to 10, Pro up to 100 people
Best for^1,2,6
NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook):
Working through many documents thoroughly: studying, contracts, studies, club minutes
ChatGPT Projects:
Ongoing projects where you turn documents into new texts, plans or tables

Criterion	NotebookLM (Gemini Notebook)	ChatGPT Projects
Price in Germany^1,5,6,8	Standard free; higher limits with Google AI Plus from €4.99 or Google AI Pro at €21.99 a month	Projects on every plan including Free; Go €8, Plus €23, Pro from €103 a month
Availability in Germany^2,3,6	Available in the browser, the app not in every country according to Google; NotebookLM has been called "Gemini Notebook" since 16 July 2026	Available to signed-in users on the web and in the apps
What you get^1,2,6,13	Answers from your sources with citations (for very short sources only to the whole document); audio and video overviews, mind maps, flashcards, quizzes, reports	Chats, files and instructions in one place; project memory; plus web search, images, canvas and voice chat
File limits^1,6,7	Free 50 sources per notebook and 100 notebooks; Plus 100, Pro 300 sources per notebook	Free 5 files per project and 3 uploads a day; Go and Plus 25, Pro 40 files per project
Usage limits^4,6,11	Since September 2026 flexible compute budgets that refresh every five hours until an additional weekly limit is reached	Depends on the plan; projects cost nothing extra, the normal plan limits apply
Privacy^1,2,6,9	According to Google, no training on your data unless you give feedback; then Google can see the whole interaction including uploads	Project content may be used for training if "Improve the model for everyone" is on; can be switched off
Sticking to sources^2,3,6,12	The regular chat answers from your sources; experimental features can also search the web, run code and create files, even without sources	Prioritises project files, but can also search the web and draw on earlier chats
Sharing^1,6	Advanced sharing only for paying users	Share projects: Free up to 5, Go and Plus up to 10, Pro up to 100 people
Best for^1,2,6	Working through many documents thoroughly: studying, contracts, studies, club minutes	Ongoing projects where you turn documents into new texts, plans or tables

Our take: Choose NotebookLM, now Gemini Notebook, if you want to understand many of your own documents and check every answer against its source; even the free version holds 50 sources per notebook. Choose ChatGPT Projects if new texts, plans or tables should come out of your documents over time; for more than 5 files per project you then need at least Go.

Two tools, two approaches

NotebookLM is Google's tool for working with your own documents. On 16 July 2026 Google renamed it Gemini Notebook, but it remains a standalone product. You upload PDFs, websites, YouTube videos, audio files or Google documents and ask questions about them. According to Google, the chat answers based on these sources and uses citations to show where a statement comes from. If a source is very short, Google says Gemini Notebook only points to the whole document rather than a single passage. It now also has experimental features: according to Google, Gemini Notebook can research the web, run code and create files such as charts, PDFs or spreadsheets, even with no sources at all. According to Google, running code was at first only available on the Google AI Ultra plan in July 2026 and was due to reach Pro users on the web over the following weeks.

Projects in ChatGPT bundle chats, files and your own instructions on one topic. ChatGPT draws on the files and earlier chats in the project when answering. A project is not limited to your documents either: ChatGPT can also search the web, create images or revise a text with you in Canvas.

If you want to know in general what happens to your input with AI services, our article on privacy with AI chatbots will help.

What both cost in Germany (as of October 2026)

Gemini Notebook is free in its standard version and available in Germany. Higher limits come with Google's AI plans: according to Google One, Google AI Plus costs from 4.99 euros a month and Google AI Pro 21.99 euros. The plans also include extended access to the Gemini app.

According to OpenAI, Projects are included in every ChatGPT plan, including the free version, at no extra cost. More files per project come from Go at 8 euros a month; Plus costs 23 euros, Pro from 103 euros. Free and Go may show ads.

How many documents fit in?

This is the biggest difference. According to Google, the free version of Gemini Notebook holds up to 50 sources per notebook, and you can create up to 100 notebooks. Plus allows 100 sources per notebook, Pro 300. Since September 2026 flexible usage limits also apply: a compute budget refreshes every five hours until you reach an additional weekly limit, and it depends on how demanding your requests are.

On ChatGPT the free version only allows 5 files per project and 3 file uploads a day, according to OpenAI. Go and Plus allow 25 files per project, Pro 40. You can create as many projects as you like. How large a single file may be on ChatGPT depends on its type: documents and presentations up to 512 MB, spreadsheets about 50 MB, images 20 MB. For text documents the content also counts: at most two million tokens, meaning word pieces, per file.

For a folder full of contracts, study materials or minutes, the free version of Gemini Notebook therefore usually goes further than ChatGPT's.

Privacy: what happens to your documents

Google states that your data in Gemini Notebook is not used for training unless you give feedback. In that case Google can see the whole interaction, including your questions, uploads and the answers. So do not click thumbs up or down when sensitive documents are in the notebook.

On ChatGPT, according to OpenAI, content from projects may be used for training if the setting "Improve the model for everyone" is on. You can switch it off in Data controls. For shared projects, data is only used if every contributor has the setting on.

For documents with health data or account numbers the same applies to both: black out what is not needed before uploading.

Who should pick which?

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

Gemini Notebook fits if you want to understand many documents and check every answer against its source, for example for studying, a tenancy dispute or long contracts. The audio overviews help if you prefer to listen to content.

ChatGPT Projects fit if you work on something over weeks and want new texts, plans or tables to come out of your documents, for example for a renovation or a job application.

Many people use both: first understand in Gemini Notebook, then put it into practice in ChatGPT.

Sources

Created with AI assistance and editorially approved before publication.