Stop Using Free ChatGPT This Tax Rush

Today's Tip: Stop using Free ChatGPT This Tax Rush

You've probably tried ChatGPT for work or personal things.

We know it, we love it: it can help with drafting docs, reviewing contracts, writing client communications, tax research, making checklists, and more. It's easy to access, easy to use, and entirely free...

But that doesn't mean it's the best.

That's like saying McDonald's has the best burgers because they're cheap and all over the place.

Today I want to point out some alternatives to ChatGPT free that you can use this tax season without the drawbacks of data security concerns, performance limits, and team features.

If you use AI in your practice, ChatGPT free is not the best option. There's far better tools for very affordable rates.

AI chat tools to use as a tax pro

1. Paid version of ChatGPT

Before you jump ship to another chat tool, it's worth checking outChatGPT's paid plans: Plus and Pro (as well as their Team plans).

If you use ChatGPT in your practice, you have to get a paid ChatGPT seat. They have different options:

• Plus ($20/month) - bigger limits on prompts and input files, you can pick newer cutting edge models, make your own GPT apps, advanced voice and video inputs
• Pro ($200/month) - not necessary for most people, useful if you do a LOT of experimental video, audio generation work that needs top quality
• Team Pro ($25/seat/month) - billed annually for 2 seat minimum, the team plan is great if you have others working with you in your practice. Your workspace is more secure, you get an admin portal, and you get the benefits of a Plus plan.
  

If you want to stick with ChatGPT - get a paid plan. It's worth the investment.

ChatGPT is best at text-based use cases (not numbers). I'll talk about detailed use cases and ChatGPT workflows in upcoming emails.

BONUS TIP: if you use any kind of ChatGPT, make sure to turn off data sharing so your client data isn't shared with OpenAI. Go to profile>settings>data controls then turn off 'Improve the model for everyone'

2. Perplexity

A close runner-up in the AI race, Perplexity is a great backup to have in your toolbelt. Most of my AI-super-user friends have a paid Perplexity and ChatGPT plan so they can compare answers across both to get the best results.

Perplexity is better for search queries, research, gathering real-time data, and finding web sources. Perplexity responses pull info from the web in real time and cite sources.

• Pro ($20/month) - comes with 300+ Pro searches a day, which gives more detailed replies. Think of it like an research assistant that crawls the web for you.

3. Gemini

Developed by Google, Gemini is a high-performing alternative to ChatGPT. It comes with a Google One subscription and is built into all the Google apps - Docs, Sheets, Photos...

Gemini is actually more powerful than ChatGPT. Since it's connected to Google Search, the Gemini chat window has a neat feature that lets you check real websites as sources.

It also has a much larger context window (the size of your possible input). So it's perfect for those mega long IRS docs, legal docs, or other financial statements.

• Pro ($20/month) - 1M token context limit (that's over 1000 pages of a document)
  

I definitely recommend a Gemini subscription if your team is already in the Google ecosystem.

4. Claude

Just looking at performance, Claude is pretty similar to the others.

The big difference is that the company behind it - Anthropic - is very ethics and data safety focused. Claude's responses are often more conservative and guarded. Using Claude can help your firm project a safety-first, professional brand.

Claude also has a unique dashboard UI with collaboration and organization features that some people prefer over the other AI chats. You'll just have to try it for yourself.

• Pro ($18/month) - access to newer models, higher usage limit, better organization features
• Team ($25/seat/month) - collaboration features, admin features
  

Next steps

If you're on ChatGPT free and you plan to use it this tax season, it's time to make a switch. Just choosing to not go free plan is the important thing - which plan you choose is totally up to you.

With way superior models available, higher context limits, better data security, and better availability, the $20/mo pro plans most of these chats offer are worth it, especially if you use them as a team.

Many of my power-user friends have subscriptions to multiple pro plans. When they need a great result, they give the same input to all the chats and compare answers. Each AI system has its quirks and nuances.

And once you pay for these tools, a funny thing happens. You want to make your money's worth. So you start to use it more, and quickly find more ways it can help you!

I hope this first edition of the email series was helpful. In the coming emails I'll dive into ways you can use AI chats for really powerful workflows as a tax pro, so stay tuned.

P.S. this email series is by CleanUpBuddy.ai, which helps you turn a tangle of bank statements into a clean P&L in under a minute using AI.

It's great for those Schedule C clients without clean books. You know who I'm talking about. Feel free to check out our siteto see how we can help you reclaim hours of manual work this tax rush without outsourcing or hiring.

We also invite you to join our Discourse community for other bookkeepers & tax pros using CleanUpBuddy here. We'll add more content there as well as announce events, special promos, and more.

Thanks for tuning in, happy to help with any questions. Just drop a reply.

Touch base next week,

~Toni, CEO of CleanUpBuddy.ai