What is the best free alternative to Merlin AI?
Sider is the closest free alternative to Merlin AI: same Browser Extensions & Copilots sub-category, and it is free tier + paid. ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini in a browser sidebar
Best free Merlin AI alternatives
Looking for a free alternative to Merlin AI? Here are 9 browser extensions & copilots worth trying — 9 with a free tier. Merlin AI itself is free tier + paid.
| Tool | Merlin AI (you searched) | Sider | Monica | MaxAI.me |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing | freemium | freemium | freemium | freemium |
| Best for | Works on any website | ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini in a browser sidebar | All-in-one AI copilot for the browser | One-click rewrite, reply and summarize |
| Visit | Open ↗ | Open ↗ | Open ↗ | Open ↗ |
Merlin AI alternatives — straight answers
Are there free Merlin AI alternatives?
Yes — 9 of the 9 alternatives listed here are free or freemium: Sider, Monica, MaxAI.me, Opera Browser AI (Aria), Page Assist. None of them are paid-only.
Is Merlin AI free?
Merlin AI is free tier + paid. There is a free tier you can work in, with paid plans above it.
How were these Merlin AI alternatives chosen?
They are the other tools in Browser Extensions & Copilots, then the rest of AI Chat & Assistants, ordered free tiers first and capped at 9. There is no sponsorship and no paid placement in that ordering — only the pricing tier decides.
All Merlin AI alternatives
Browse Browser Extensions & Copilots →Sider
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini in a browser sidebar.
- ChatGPT/Claude/Gemini in a browser sidebar
- Summarize any page, PDF or YouTube video
- Translate, rewrite and explain selections
- Works across every website
Monica
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — All-in-one AI copilot for the browser.
- All-in-one AI copilot for the browser
- Access to GPT, Claude & Gemini
- Writing, translation and search tools
- Desktop app and memo features
MaxAI.me
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — One-click rewrite, reply and summarize.
- One-click rewrite, reply and summarize
- Chat with any page or image
- Instant translation and grammar fixes
- Prompt library built in
Opera Browser AI (Aria)
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — Free, native AI assistant built into Opera's mainstream and GX browsers, no separate app needed.
- Free, native AI assistant built into Opera's mainstream and GX browsers, no separate app needed
- Powered by a mix of OpenAI GPT and Google Gemini models under the hood
- 2025-2026 upgrade added faster models, higher usage limits and access to open-source local models
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — Open-source (MIT) sidebar and ChatGPT-style web UI for local models via Ollama, LM Studio or Chrome's built-in Gemini Nano.
- Open-source (MIT) sidebar and ChatGPT-style web UI for local models via Ollama, LM Studio or Chrome's built-in Gemini Nano
- Chat with the current webpage without sending data to a cloud service
- Works on Chrome, Edge, Brave, Firefox, Vivaldi and Zen; about 8.2k GitHub stars
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — Gemini side panel that answers questions about the current tab and across tabs.
- Gemini side panel that answers questions about the current tab and across tabs
- Summarizes pages and videos, compares products
- Available on desktop and Android for US users; expanded to Canada, NZ, India and more
- Auto browse agent reserved for paid Google AI plans
Harpa AI
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — AI web automation and monitoring.
- AI web automation and monitoring
- Track prices and page changes
- Scrape and summarize sites
- Custom command workflows
Brave Leo
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — Built directly into the Brave browser sidebar — no separate site, no account, no signup required for free tier.
- Built directly into the Brave browser sidebar — no separate site, no account, no signup required for free tier
- Access to Claude, Mixtral and Llama models without opening a separate chatbot site
- Conversations never stored on Brave's servers and not used for model training
Dia
Browser Extensions & Copilots
✦ WhyA Merlin AI alternative — AI-native Chromium browser (from the makers of Arc) with AI chat built into every tab, not bolted on as a sidebar.
- AI-native Chromium browser (from the makers of Arc) with AI chat built into every tab, not bolted on as a sidebar
- Free for light AI use; a Pro tier lifts the usage caps
- Now backed by Atlassian after its 2026 acquisition of The Browser Company