Free AI Girlfriend Apps in 2026: What Each Free Tier Really Includes
What a free account gets on nine AI companion apps, from SecretCrush AI to Nomi, from their own terms and help pages: daily messages, one-off credits, what stays paid.
By SecretCrush AI EditorialPublished 6 min read
Disclosure: SecretCrush AI publishes this blog. Facts about other apps come from their own public pages, checked on .
The short answer
Every AI companion app we checked is free to start, and none is free without a limit. The limit comes in one of three shapes: a number of messages a day, a one-off balance that does not come back, or a free tier with ads and fewer features.
SecretCrush AI gives you the free account you can actually keep using:
- 10 messages a day, every day. The count renews daily, with no card needed.
- Immersive, realistic roleplay from the first message. The free account talks to the same characters, in the same depth, as Premium.
- Free character creation, plus 20 welcome coins that cover three images.
- Images without a subscription. A free account can buy 300 coins for $10, about 20 cents an image (about 13 cents on the largest pack), and bought coins never expire. Of the nine apps here, it is the only one whose own pages say a free account can buy image credits without subscribing.
- Fast pictures. An image is ready in about 10 to 15 seconds, where 30 to 60 seconds is common elsewhere.
Among the other apps, Nomi, Secrets AI, Nectar AI and Xotic AI also publish a daily allowance; Kindroid gives a one-time preview, Candy AI's Terms cap a free user at 5 messages, and OurDream AI's own pages describe its free tier in different ways.
Three kinds of "free"
A daily reset. You get a fixed number of messages each day, and tomorrow you get them again. This is the only kind you can keep using without paying. It suits short daily chats and is frustrating in a long scene, because the count runs out mid-conversation.
A one-off balance. You get credits or messages once. When they are gone the account stays, but you cannot continue without paying. It is a trial: good for judging quality, not for ongoing use. The upside is that a balance can often be spent on anything, including images.
Ad-supported or feature-limited. Chat is open, and the app holds back memory, better models, images or voice for paying users, sometimes with ads on the free side. You can use it for a long time, but with the weakest version of the product.
Knowing which kind you are looking at matters more than the headline number. "55 credits" and "5 messages a day" sound similar and behave very differently after the first week.
Free tiers compared
| Free messages | Renews | Free images | Buy coins without a plan | Card to start | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SecretCrush AI | 10 a day, with immersive roleplay | Every day | 3 from 20 welcome coins, about 10–15 s each | Yes, from $10 for 300 coins | No |
| Xotic AI | 5 a day, on the free model | Daily | Listed as locked | No, subscribers only | Not published |
| OurDream AI | Its own pages disagree; 1 dreamcoin a message | Sources disagree | Sources disagree | No, subscribers only | No |
| Candy AI | A maximum of 5 | None mentioned | 1 image | Not published | Not published |
| SpicyChat | No cap found | Not applicable | Paid feature | Not applicable | Not published |
| Nomi | 50 a day | Daily | Not published | No, subscribers only | No |
| Secrets AI | 20 a day | Daily | 200 Moments once | No, subscribers only | Not published |
| Nectar AI | 15 a day | Daily | 10 generations a day | No, subscribers only | Not published |
| Kindroid | 50 once | No, one-off preview | 5 selfies, once | Not published | Not published |
Some detail behind the rows:
- SecretCrush AI. 10 messages a day with any character, renewed every day, and a one-off 20 coins. An image costs 6 coins, so that is three, each ready in about 10 to 15 seconds. Free accounts can create their own characters and can buy coin packs without subscribing: 300 coins for $10 (about 20 cents an image), up to 4,500 for $100 (about 13 cents), and bought coins never expire. Video, at about 40 seconds a clip, comes with Premium.
- Xotic AI. Its help docs describe 5 messages a day with the free chat model and one custom character, plus 200 XOT once; image and video generation are listed as locked.
- OurDream AI. Its own pages describe the free allowance differently (a one-off 55 dreamcoins, or 50 at sign-up plus 50 a day), and its help centre says images and video need a subscription.
- Candy AI. Its Terms of Service say a free user may generally send a maximum of 5 messages.
- SpicyChat. A free tier with ads; memory, better models and in-chat images are paid features.
- Nomi. 50 messages a day with no card; group chats, video and voice are locked on the free plan.
- Secrets AI. 20 messages a day and 200 Moments once at sign-up.
- Nectar AI. 15 messages a day, 10 image generations a day and 1 custom companion.
- Kindroid. Since 1 October 2026, a one-time preview of 50 messages and 5 selfies, then read-only.
What you can do with 10 messages a day
Ten messages is one short scene, or a few lines of catching up. Used well it is enough to find out whether you like a character and how the app writes.
- Open with a full message. A first message that says where you are and what you want gets a better reply than "hi", and costs the same one message.
- Pick a character with a scene already set. Characters under scenario start in the middle of something, so you do not spend three messages setting up.
- Use the welcome coins on purpose. Twenty coins are three images. Ask for one in a chat you are enjoying instead of spending all three on the first day.
- Build one character of your own. The builder is open to free accounts and the photo costs 6 coins, which the welcome coins cover.
If you find yourself hitting the limit most days, that is the point at which Premium makes sense: unlimited messages with advanced memory, premium models, 500 bonus coins every month (600 on yearly), custom and in-chat AI video, all adult content unlocked and full content privacy. It is $16.99 a month, $12.99 a month on the quarterly plan or $8.99 a month on the yearly plan. If it is images you want rather than more messages, you can skip the plan: free accounts can buy a $10 coin pack.
What about Character.AI?
Character.AI is free to use with unlimited messaging, but it does not allow adult content, so it is not in the table above. On 12 October 2026 its parent company filed for Chapter 11 to sell the business; it says the platform stays up for now and will be wound down if no buyer offers to keep it running. We explain the filing in is Character.AI shutting down?. If you are looking for a new home for your roleplay, SecretCrush AI is free to start, built for immersive, realistic roleplay, and lets adults go further; see Character.AI alternatives for adults.
What is always paid
Across the apps we could verify, a free account does not get:
- Unlimited messages. Every app that states a limit lifts it only on a paid plan. On SecretCrush AI Premium, messages are unlimited and come with advanced memory.
- Video. On SecretCrush AI, a clip takes about 40 seconds and comes with Premium. Xotic AI and Nomi also lock video on free accounts.
- A larger currency allowance. The monthly coins, XOT or dreamcoins come with the plan. SecretCrush AI Premium adds 500 bonus coins every month, 600 on yearly.
For the paid side, with prices, see what an AI companion app really costs.
How we checked
We read each app's own terms, help docs or home page on 14 October 2026 and took the free allowance from there; SecretCrush AI figures are our own.
FAQ
- Is there a completely free AI girlfriend app?
- Free to start, yes; free without limits, not among the apps we could verify. Each one caps the free account by messages per day, by a one-off balance, or by showing ads and holding back features. SecretCrush AI's free account keeps going: 10 messages a day that renew every day, free character creation, and coin packs for images without a subscription.
- How many free messages does SecretCrush AI give?
- 10 messages a day on a free account, and the count starts again each day. New accounts also get 20 coins once, which is enough for three images, and can create their own characters for free.
- Which free tier resets every day?
- SecretCrush AI's 10 messages renew every day, and so do Nomi's 50, Secrets AI's 20, Nectar AI's 15 and Xotic AI's 5; of the apps we checked, those five publish a daily allowance. Kindroid's free preview is one-off, OurDream AI's own pages disagree about its free allowance, and Candy AI's Terms set a maximum of 5 messages without mentioning a reset.
- Do I need a credit card to try these apps?
- Not for SecretCrush AI: a free account needs no card. OurDream AI and Nomi also say on their own pages that no credit card is needed to start. For the other apps we did not find a statement.
- Can you generate images on a free account?
- On SecretCrush AI, yes: the 20 welcome coins cover three images, and free accounts can buy more coins, 300 for $10, about 20 cents an image. Nectar AI's free tier lists 10 image generations a day. OurDream AI's own pages disagree: one says its 55 free dreamcoins can go on images, its help centre says images need a subscription. Xotic AI's docs list image generation as locked until you subscribe.