X.ai
← Back to All AI Tools1. Should you try X.ai? Overview
| What it is | Grok = real-time-social-native frontier assistant: grok.com + iOS/Android apps + X-integrated pane → prompt with live web/X DeepSearch (40+ sources, <1 min reports) → Big Brain extended reasoning → Grok Imagine image/video (Aurora + Imagine. |
| Country / HQ | Palo Alto, USA (xAI) |
| Best for | X-native marketers / creators tracking real-time sentiment & trends |
| Check before buying | Watch out: Regulated industries (finance/health/legal) needing strict audit + guardrails |
| Pricing signal | Free tier + paid from $8/mo |
2. Features What it does
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| Models (Aug 2026) | Grok 4.6 flagship (500K ctx, $2/$6, Aug 12 2026), Grok 4.5 (500K, same price), Grok 4.3 (1M ctx, $1.25/$2.50, native video input), Grok 4.20 reasoning/non-reasoning/multi-agent, Grok 4.1 Fast ($0.20/$0.50, 2M ctx), Grok Build 0.1 (coding $1/$2) — Legacy grok-3/4/4.1-fast retired May 15 2026 → redirect to 4.3 |
| DeepSearch | Live web + X firehose, 40+ sources, inline citations, <1 min synthesis, DeeperSearch preset — Free 10/day, paid 20/2h (now within weekly pool) |
| Big Brain | Extended reasoning mode, configurable effort none/low/med/high — API bills reasoning tokens at output rate |
| Grok Imagine | Aurora images + Imagine video (480p/720p, audio); consumer draws from weekly pool; API $0.02–0.07/img, $0.05–0.07/sec video — Loosest content filters of frontier labs |
| Voice | Spoken chat, TTS $15/M chars, STT $0.10–0.20/hr, Voice API $3/hr — No iOS system-level push |
| Grok Bot (beta) | AI teammates: cloud machine per bot, observes user, bot-manages-bot, signs into inboxes/CRMs; Heavy/Cursor Ultra only — Launched Aug 11 2026, no independent reli test yet |
| Grok Build | Coding agent CLI/TUI, Cursor-trained, code execution sandbox — Replaces Grok Code Fast 1 (deprecated in Copilot May 15 2026) |
| API surface | api.x.ai OpenAI-compatible, cached input ($0.30–0.50), server tools web/X search $5/1K calls, code exec $5, file $10, collections $2.50; Live Search $25/1K sources — Endpoint migrates to SpaceXAI URL within 12+ mo, no break yet |
| Enterprise | Grok Business $30/seat (RBAC, no-train opt), Enterprise custom (SSO/SCIM/CUME/audit) launched Jan 2026 — Azure AI Foundry deploy since Sep 2025 |
3. Pricing Pricing (2026-10, USD)
| Plan | Price / mo | Key limits & who it fits |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 Grok 4 Mini (text+web+X), no Imagine Separate chat/voice caps, own reset |
| X Premium | $8 | — Grok 4 inside X, tight caps Buy only if you want X blue/ads |
| SuperGrok Lite | $10 | — Grok 4, 1 agent, 480p/6s video Mar 25 2026 entry tier |
| SuperGrok | $30 | $300 ($25/mo) Grok 4.5/4.6 rolling, DeepSearch, Big Brain, Imagine, Voice Main paid seat |
| X Premium+ | $40 | — Same + X ad-free/perks Only if X-native |
| SuperGrok Plus | $100 | — Higher weekly pool, 1080p video, priority peak For $30-ceiling users |
| SuperGrok Heavy | $300 | $3,600 Full Grok 4.5/4.6 + Grok 4 Heavy multi-agent + Grok Bot Researcher/heavy agentic |
4. Integration Access & integrations
| Access type | Details |
|---|---|
| Access | access_type: web-app-plus-mobile-plus-api access_display: grok.com · 📱 iOS/Android · 🔌 X.com pane · api.x.ai (OpenAI-compatible) · Azure AI Foundry · Cursor/Grok Build CLI · no MCP server documented, no native HubSpot/Salesforce connectors |
5. Reviews & Sources External reviews
| Source | Rating | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Stackaible / AI Rankings | “Situational yes — X firehose native, 4.6 frontier-class at half Claude Opus 5 API cost; ecosystem/integrations trail OpenAI/Anthropic” | |
| G2/Capterra | Not G2-listed as traditional SaaS; app-store ratings ~4.3 iOS, complaint axis = tier confusion + Imagine throttling after 50–100 gens | |
| Trustpilot | Mixed; billing cancels less angry than Semrush/Ocoya, but “SpaceXAI rebrand broke my bookmarked docs” confusion | |
| Independent bench | Grok 4.6 AA Intelligence Index 61 (level with GPT-5.6 Sol), under Claude Opus 5 on coding reliability, over all on X-sentiment |
6. Best for / Not for Fit
| ✔ Suitable | ✘ Not suitable |
|---|---|
| • X-native marketers / creators tracking real-time sentiment & trends • Cost-sensitive API builders (high-volume $2/$6 or $0.20/$0.50 Fast) • Researchers doing live-event synthesis (DeepSearch + X) • Coding agents on Grok Build / Cursor (price-per-token) • Heavy agentic multi-model fans (SuperGrok Heavy $300) |
• Regulated industries (finance/health/legal) needing strict audit + guardrails • Teams wanting deepest prose/long-form (Claude) • Non-X shops where firehose differentiator evaporates • Enterprises needing SSO/SCIM today without waiting SpaceXAI transition • Casual users who won’t use X/Imagine/Voice — Free is enough |
7. Competitors How it compares
| Competitor | How it differs | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT (OpenAI) | Generalist default, GPT-5.6, broadest ecosystem | $20/mo, $5/$30 API |
| Claude (Anthropic) | Prose/reasoning/coding reliability, safest | $20/mo, $5/$25 API |
| Gemini (Google) | Google-stack native, 1M+ ctx, Veo image/video | $20/mo, $1.25–2.5 API |
| Perplexity | Citation-first answer engine, no image/video | $20/mo |
| DeepSeek | Cheapest API ($0.14/$0.28), no X firehose | $0.14/$0.28 |
| Mistral/Cohere | Enterprise EU/US alt | custom |
8. Summary Verdict
| Who should pick it | X-native marketers / creators tracking real-time sentiment & trends |
| Who should skip it | Regulated industries (finance/health/legal) needing strict audit + guardrails |