GoKawiilJoe Maring / Android Authority
Perplexity was my favorite AI search tool for a very long time. While Google’s AI Mode existed back then, too, it was marred by so many embarrassing problems that I was better off staying clear of it to avoid disruptions in my daily workflow. Google eventually heard everyone’s feedback, like a good kid, and fixed nearly every little issue people had with AI Mode. Now it doesn’t take tens of seconds to fetch results, nor does it hallucinate like crazy, at least not as terribly anymore.
As a result, it has become such a natural part of my workflow that opening Perplexity feels like going out of the way. Opening another website before I type my query is like unnecessary friction when I can just type it into the address bar and have Google Search do the trick with AI Mode.
However, the reason I have drifted away from Perplexity isn’t this convenience alone — Google Search’s AI Mode is actually much better in these three key areas.
Which AI search tool do you use the most? 18 votes Google AI Mode 56 % Perplexity 17 % ChatGPT Search 6 % I'll stick with regular Google Search 22 %
Conversational like a friend
Joe Maring / Android Authority
The core concept of AI-assisted web search is that you can ask follow-up questions. I can do that with both Perplexity and AI Mode, but the latter feels much more natural. There are times when I’m trying to understand complex concepts, and I’ve noticed that Google uses more comprehensible, everyday language to explain things to me, often with examples I would understand — especially when I ask it to simplify things.
Perplexity, on the other hand, continues to feel like a reliable and experienced teacher who sticks to their fixed teaching pattern.
Google uses more comprehensible, everyday language to explain things to me, often with examples I would understand.
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