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View detailsDeepSeek is a Chinese AI lab whose free chat app and low-cost API have made it one of the most talked-about AI tools of the year. The chat app is free, runs on the latest DeepSeek models, and offers thinking modes and web search.
Key Features
- Free AI chat app with thinking modes
- Very low-cost API per million tokens
- Open model weights under the MIT licence
- Web search and document analysis
- 1M-token context window on the API
- OpenAI-compatible API format
Pricing
| Plan | Price | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Free chat | $0 | Web chat and mobile apps are free, with no paid consumer plan and no published daily message cap. |
| API deepseek-flash | From $0.15/1M input tokens | Off-peak $0.15 input and $0.60 output per 1M tokens; double at peak hours. 1M-token context, vision, and thinking mode. |
| API deepseek-v4-pro | From $0.66/1M input tokens | Off-peak $0.66 input and $1.98 output per 1M tokens; double at peak. Strongest reasoning and coding model, no vision. |
Prices as listed in 2026 research. Always check the official site for the latest price — plans change. Free plan: Yes — it has a free plan.
Best for: developers and users who want frontier-class AI at the lowest possible cost.
Popular with: Developers, Students, Writers
Popular with: Developers, Students, Writers
How it works
The API is where DeepSeek stands out: it is among the cheapest routes to frontier-class AI, with per-token prices starting from $0.15 per million input tokens off-peak on the Flash model. The model weights are also published under the MIT licence, so developers can run them themselves.
DeepSeek is a strong choice for cost-sensitive developers and curious users, but it comes with a caveat: its privacy policy says data is processed and stored in China, and inputs may be used for training unless you opt out.
Pros and Cons
✓ Pros
- Chat app is completely free
- API is among the cheapest available
- Open weights allow self-hosting
✗ Cons
- Data is processed and stored in China
- Inputs may be used for training unless you opt out
- Support and documentation can be thin
Frequently Asked Questions
Is DeepSeek free?
Yes — DeepSeek has a free plan. Free chat; API from $0.15/1M tokens
What is DeepSeek best for?
developers and users who want frontier-class AI at the lowest possible cost.
What kind of tool is DeepSeek?
DeepSeek is a AI Chatbots tool on VerlumoAI.
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View detailsLast reviewed: November 2026