Sideview or Monica?
Monica is an all-in-one assistant with its own subscription. Sideview opens the AI chat you already use beside every tab. Compare the trade-offs.
By Sideview · Updated October 28, 2026 · Sideview 1.1.6
Monica and Sideview both keep AI one click away while you browse. Monica is an all-in-one assistant: it offers models through its own service, with its own interface, tools and subscription. Sideview opens the AI websites you already use, such as ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, in the browser’s side panel, signed in with your own accounts.
The short answer
- Choose Sideview to keep your existing ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini account, with its history, models and plan, open beside every tab.
- Choose Monica if you want one subscription that bundles several models and many extra tools, and you don’t mind working in Monica’s interface instead of each provider’s.
Side by side
| Sideview | Monica | |
|---|---|---|
| How you get AI | Your own provider accounts, on the providers’ own websites | Models run through Monica’s service |
| What you pay for AI | Your existing provider plan, free or paid | Monica’s plans, with usage limits set by Monica |
| Chat interface | Each provider’s full interface | Monica’s own interface |
| Account needed | None for the free version | A Monica account |
| Chat history | Stays in your ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini account | Stays in your Monica account |
| Extra tools | Focused: page, selection and screenshot to chat, prompts, compare and export with Pro | Broad: writing, reading and many other built-in tools |
Why choose Sideview
No second AI bill. If you already pay for ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini, Sideview uses that plan. The free version is free for good, and Sideview Pro is optional; neither includes or replaces an AI subscription.
The provider’s newest features, straight away. Because Sideview shows the provider’s own website, new models, projects, memory, canvases and file uploads appear in the panel as soon as the provider ships them, without waiting for a third-party tool to add them.
Several chats at once. Each Sideview tab is its own conversation. Keep ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini open together, or several chats with one provider, and switch between them without losing your place.
Less data in more places. The free version has no analytics and no Sideview account, and contacts no server. Your messages go only to the provider you picked.
Why choose Monica
One account for many models. If you would rather not keep accounts with several AI companies, Monica’s subscription covers that.
Lots of built-in tools. Monica packs many tools into one product. Sideview concentrates on keeping your chosen chat beside the page and, with Pro, getting the page into it.
Page reading on a free plan. Sideview’s free sidebar does not read the page you are on; that is a Pro tool that runs only when you ask.
Switching from Monica to Sideview
- Install Sideview and open the panel with Alt + Shift + S.
- Pick the provider you use most from the arrow beside + and sign in.
- Open more tabs for other providers. Hide the ones you don’t use in ⋯ > Settings > Providers.
- With Pro, save the prompts you used most in Monica to Sideview’s prompt library.
Monica’s plans and limits change. Check monica.im for its current pricing. This comparison reflects both products as of October 2026.
