Hayz Labs · https://hayzlabs.com/reviews/rankings/writing/
reviews · best for a job · 12 scored
Best for writing
Drafting, editing, tone and creative work. Ranked by score; on a tie, the cheaper one goes first. 100 is the best available today in this job.
Picked one? Brief, draft, check shows how to get good results from it.
New to this? What the scores and labels mean
- 0 to 100
- Our score for one job, like writing or coding, compared with everything else out today. 100 is the best available today. For AI models we build it from public data, such as Arena's blind votes and Epoch AI's independent tests; apps and tools are scored on our own checklist. The same tool can score differently for different jobs, and where two likely ranges overlap, we call it a tie.
- Our verdict
- Use it: a top choice for most people. Worth trying: good, and worth a go. Depends: good for some people or one kind of job. Wait: too early to tell, or not out for everyone yet. Skip: something else does the job better.
- First look
- Just released. We say what it is and whether to bother, and give it a score once public results exist.
- No score yet
- None of the public sources we use covers it yet, or the only evidence is from a source whose numbers we can't use, so we describe it in words instead.
- Best buy
- Nothing cheaper scores as well for that job.
- Best free
- The best score for that job that costs nothing, through a free plan or by running on your own computer.
- Pay as you go
- No monthly plan: you pay for each use, usually through a developer account.
- Checked
- The day we last confirmed the score and the price against the sources. Prices change often, so check the date.
- AI model
- The engine underneath, like GPT or Claude. You use it through an app or, if you code, directly.
- Open source
- Free to download and run on your own computer, so nothing leaves your machine.
The short answer
For writing, Claude Opus 5.5 leads Arena's Creative Writing board and scores 100, and Gemini 4 Argon scores 99, a range that overlaps, so treat them as tied; Argon comes with Google AI Plus at $4.99/month, though its votes are still early.
- Best
- Claude Opus 5.5100$20/motied with Gemini 4 Argon
- Best free
- Claude Sonnet 5.585Free
Read our full take
Gemini 3.8 Flash scores 91, though its rank is still marked preliminary, and it is the value pick for the API at $0.75 / $3.75 per 1M input / output tokens against $4 / $20 for Opus 5.5, with a free API tier, but its API prices double on 1 Jan 2027. For free use, Claude Sonnet 5.5 scores 85 and PCWorld reports it is the default on Claude's free plan; among the apps, the Gemini app on Google AI Pro ($19.99/month) and Claude on Pro ($20/month) both score 70 on our checklist. We would not pay for GPT-6 Astra for writing (80), since GPT-6.1 Sol scores 83, a range that overlaps, at a fifth of the token price, and ChatGPT (GPT-6) scores 50.
Our opinion, checked 11 Oct. The picks come straight from the scores below. How we score
This take recommends a product made by Anthropic, whose Claude models help draft our reviews. It also names the best pick from another maker.
Everything we cover for this job, best score first. Scores whose ranges overlap are tied, so choose on price and fit.
- 1Claude Opus 5.5Anthropic
Top public pick for coding, agents and hard questions at a mid price; skip it for bulk work where Sonnet 5.5 is enough.
Best for Coding and agent jobs; ranks first on the web app and agent boardsYou give up Twice Sonnet 5.5's token price; thinking can't be turned off
10096–100$20/mo - 2Gemini 4 ArgonGoogle
Google's top model, first in Arena's text votes, now in Google AI Plus from $4.99/month; votes are still early.
Best for Everyday chat and writing at the top of Arena votes, from $4.99 a monthYou give up Votes still early; ranks 10th for web app coding, and API price doubles on 1 Dec
9993–100$4.99/mo - 3Gemini 3.8 FlashGoogle
Low-cost Google model near the top for writing and maths; rankings are preliminary and API prices double in January.
Best for Writing, maths and video or audio input at a low token priceYou give up Weak at web app coding (rank 31); API prices double on 1 Jan 2027
9189–93$19.99/mo - 4Claude Sonnet 5.5Anthropic
Near-top coding, agents and research for half Opus 5.5's token price; for writing, pick Opus 5.5 or Gemini 3.8 Flash.
Best for Everyday coding and agents with near-top results on a budgetYou give up Behind the leaders on creative writing; breaking API changes from Sonnet 5
8580–89Free - 5Muse Spark 1.3Meta
Solid coding and agent model at a low token price; GPT-6.1 Sol and Claude rank higher if quality matters most.
Best for Low-cost coding and agent work through Meta's APIYou give up Ranks well below GPT-6.1 Sol on agent tasks; the cheapest tier uses your data
8381–86$5/mo - 6GPT-6.1 SolOpenAI
Near-top coding and agent work at a fifth of GPT-6 Astra's price; pick Claude Opus 5.5 or Gemini for creative writing.
Best for Coding and agent work near the top without top-model pricesYou give up Weak at creative writing (rank 26); not on ChatGPT Free or Go
8378–87$20/mo - 7GPT-6 AstraOpenAI
Second on WebDev and Agent boards, but GPT-6.1 Sol is close for a fifth of the price; middling at creative writing.
Best for The hardest coding and agent jobs, where a small lead is worth paying forYou give up Five times GPT-6.1 Sol's token price; middling at creative writing
8077–84$20/mo - 8Grok 4.7xAI
Decent agent and web-app work, weak at writing; GPT-6.1 Sol ranks higher for less per task.
7370–77$30/mo - 9Gemini appGoogle
Good for writing on AI Pro with 3.8 Flash; weak at coding and hard questions, where Claude and ChatGPT score higher.
Best for People who already pay Google for storage and want a writing helperYou give up Free plan runs a much weaker model; usage limits are not published in numbers
70Checklist$19.99/mo - 10ClaudeAnthropic
Free runs Sonnet 5.5, near the top for coding and hard questions. Pay for Pro for agents and for writing with Opus 5.5.
Best for Free help with coding and hard questions; Pro for agent work and writingYou give up Free plan's model is weaker at creative writing; usage limits are not given in numbers
70ChecklistFree - 11Mistral Large 4Mistral AI
Mistral's 1T preview scores no higher than 72 in any job; weights due 31 Oct. Use GLM-5.3 or Kimi K3 now.
5955–63Pay as you go - 12ChatGPT (GPT-6)OpenAI
Good for agent work and coding on Plus with GPT-6 Astra. For writing, Gemini AI Pro and Claude Pro score higher.
Best for People who want one app for agent tasks and coding on the $20 Plus planYou give up Writing scores 50
50Checklist$20/mo
Score against cost
Up is a better score, left is cheaper. Plans are the cheapest that unlock the scored feature. 1 without a monthly price is left off; see Pay per use.
Writing: free gets you a score of 85. About $20 a month gets you 100; paying more buys no better score.
Names in one box share a score band and a price step; each shows its own score, best first.
Best value: Claude Sonnet 5.5 (85, free) · Gemini 4 Argon (99, $4.99/mo) · Claude Opus 5.5 (100, $20/mo)
Not on the map, as they have no monthly price: Mistral Large 4 (59).
Show as a table
| Name | Score | Cheapest plan | Price step | Best value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claude Opus 5.5 | 100 · likely 96–100 | $20 a month | $10 to $29 | Yes |
| Gemini 4 Argon | 99 · likely 93–100 | $4.99 a month | Under $10 | Yes |
| Gemini 3.8 Flash | 91 · likely 89–93 | $19.99 a month | $10 to $29 | |
| Claude Sonnet 5.5 | 85 · likely 80–89 | Free | Free | Yes |
| Muse Spark 1.3 | 83 · likely 81–86 | $5 a month | Under $10 | |
| GPT-6.1 Sol | 83 · likely 78–87 | $20 a month | $10 to $29 | |
| GPT-6 Astra | 80 · likely 77–84 | $20 a month | $10 to $29 | |
| Grok 4.7 | 73 · likely 70–77 | $30 a month | $30 to $99 | |
| Gemini app | 70 | $19.99 a month | $10 to $29 | |
| Claude | 70 | $20 a month | $10 to $29 | |
| Mistral Large 4 · open source | 59 · likely 55–63 | No monthly price | ||
| ChatGPT (GPT-6) | 50 | $20 a month | $10 to $29 |
Up is a better score, left is cheaper to run. Cost to run one typical agent task (arena.ai, middle of the range), for the 9 scored here that have one; the others are left off rather than mixed with figures from another test.
| # | Name | Score | Source | Cheapest plan | Our verdict | Why |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Claude Opus 5.5Anthropic · AI model | 100likely 96–100Tied with #2 | Our score | $20/mo | Use itBest buy | Top public pick for coding, agents and hard questions at a mid price; skip it for bulk work where Sonnet 5.5 is enough. |
| 2 | Gemini 4 ArgonGoogle · AI model | 99likely 93–100Tied with #1 | Our score | $4.99/mo | Use itBest buy | Google's top model, first in Arena's text votes, now in Google AI Plus from $4.99/month; votes are still early. |
| 3 | Gemini 3.8 FlashGoogle · AI model | 91likely 89–93Tied with #4 | Our score | $19.99/mo | Worth trying | Low-cost Google model near the top for writing and maths; rankings are preliminary and API prices double in January. |
| 4 | Claude Sonnet 5.5Anthropic · AI model | 85likely 80–89Tied with 4 others | Our score | Free | Use itBest buyBest free | Near-top coding, agents and research for half Opus 5.5's token price; for writing, pick Opus 5.5 or Gemini 3.8 Flash. |
| 5 | Muse Spark 1.3Meta · AI model | 83likely 81–86Tied with #4, #6, #7 | Our score | $5/mo | Worth trying | Solid coding and agent model at a low token price; GPT-6.1 Sol and Claude rank higher if quality matters most. |
| 6 | GPT-6.1 SolOpenAI · AI model | 83likely 78–87Tied with #4, #5, #7 | Our score | $20/mo | Use it | Near-top coding and agent work at a fifth of GPT-6 Astra's price; pick Claude Opus 5.5 or Gemini for creative writing. |
| 7 | GPT-6 AstraOpenAI · AI model | 80likely 77–84Tied with #4, #5, #6 | Our score | $20/mo | Depends | Second on WebDev and Agent boards, but GPT-6.1 Sol is close for a fifth of the price; middling at creative writing. |
| 8 | Grok 4.7xAI · AI model | 73likely 70–77 | Our score | $30/mo | Skip | Decent agent and web-app work, weak at writing; GPT-6.1 Sol ranks higher for less per task. |
| 9 | Gemini appGoogle · App | 70Tied with #10 | Our checklist | $19.99/mo | Depends | Good for writing on AI Pro with 3.8 Flash; weak at coding and hard questions, where Claude and ChatGPT score higher. |
| 10 | ClaudeAnthropic · App | 70Tied with #9 | Our checklist | $20/mo | Worth trying | Free runs Sonnet 5.5, near the top for coding and hard questions. Pay for Pro for agents and for writing with Opus 5.5. |
| 11 | Mistral Large 4Mistral AI · AI model | 59likely 55–63 | Our score | Pay as you go | Wait | Mistral's 1T preview scores no higher than 72 in any job; weights due 31 Oct. Use GLM-5.3 or Kimi K3 now. |
| 12 | ChatGPT (GPT-6)OpenAI · App | 50 | Our checklist | $20/mo | Depends | Good for agent work and coding on Plus with GPT-6 Astra. For writing, Gemini AI Pro and Claude Pro score higher. |
Nothing matches all of that. , or try everything.
What changed
New leaders and rating changes in writing; our working is under Details. All news
- Better: Claude: writing rating moved up.
Details
Audit under our rule that each plan is rated on the best model it includes: Anthropic names no default for Pro, so Pro is now rated on its best model for each job instead of an assumed Sonnet 5.5. Writing on Pro rose to 7/10 on Opus 5.5. Other ratings unchanged. Dropped the 27 Aug Tom's Guide test, which predates the current models, and stopped counting the Opus 5.5 test toward the Free plan, which runs Sonnet 5.5.
- Better: Claude Sonnet 5.5: writing rating moved up.
Details
Audit: re-derived the ratings with our rule of counting each model once on a leaderboard. Coding moved down a step (Text Coding is 16th of distinct models, below its WebDev rank). Writing moved up a step (Instruction Following is 10th of distinct models). best_category now agents. Agent cost relabelled as the 14-day median; PCWorld cited for the free-plan model.
- Better: Gemini app: writing rating moved up.
Details
Audit under our rule that each plan is rated on the best model it includes: Google names no default for AI Pro, so AI Pro is now rated on its better model, 3.8 Flash, instead of the lower-ranked 3.1 Pro. Writing rose to 7/10. Research, coding and agents unchanged. Verdict now depends: it scores best for writing, where Claude Pro scores the same, so Gemini is not outclassed there.