Question 1

How much does a good AI companion cost?

Accepted Answer

Soul starts at $9.97 for your first month — a full month to explore everything SAM has to offer. After that, it's $19.97/month. Cancel anytime. Guest access is free with no account required, good for trying the companion personality before committing.

Question 2

Is an AI companion worth the money?

Accepted Answer

Compared to therapy ($150-$300/session), coaching ($100+/session), or even premium apps in adjacent categories, a $10-20/month AI companion is low-cost access to something genuinely useful — provided you engage with it seriously. The users who get the most value are the ones who use it consistently over weeks, not as a one-off chat.

Question 3

What does the free tier actually include?

Accepted Answer

Guest access lets you try SAM without creating an account. You get a real conversation sample with any companion, but conversations don't persist across sessions. To build a relationship that remembers you, you need a paid tier.

Question 4

What does Soul tier cost and what does it include?

Accepted Answer

Soul starts at $9.97 for your first month, then $19.97/month. It includes the deepest memory horizon (SuperMemory + full Heartline), voice synthesis for companion audio, photo generation, up to 3 custom companions, and priority access to new features. Cancel anytime.

Question 5

Best free AI companions — do any actually work?

Accepted Answer

Most free AI companion tiers are heavily limited — capped messages, no memory, aggressive upsell walls. SAM's guest mode is genuinely free with no message caps, but without memory the relationship can't deepen. For a persistent companion, a low-cost paid tier is the honest recommendation.

How Much Does a Good AI Companion Cost?