Sideview or Sider?
Sider sells you AI usage through its own credits. Sideview puts the AI accounts you already have beside your tabs. Here is how to choose.
By Sideview · Updated October 28, 2026 · Sideview 1.1.6
Sider and Sideview both put AI beside the page you are reading, but they work in different ways. Sider is an AI assistant with its own chat interface and plans: you use models through Sider and spend its credits. Sideview opens the providers’ own websites, such as ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini, in your browser’s side panel and uses the accounts you already have.
The short answer
- Choose Sideview if you already use ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini, free or paid, and want that same chat, history and plan beside every tab without paying for AI twice.
- Choose Sider if you don’t have an AI account, want many models behind one subscription, or want its built-in reading and writing tools on the free tier.
Side by side
| Sideview | Sider | |
|---|---|---|
| How you get AI | Your own provider accounts, on the providers’ own websites | Models run through Sider’s service |
| What you pay for AI | Your existing provider plan, free or paid | Sider’s plans, with credit allowances that vary by model |
| Chat interface | Each provider’s full interface, including its history and projects | Sider’s own interface |
| Account needed | None for the free version | A Sider account |
| Reads the page | With Pro, when you ask | Yes, including on its free tier |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge and Firefox | Several browsers, plus its own apps |
Where Sideview is the better fit
You already pay for an AI. A ChatGPT Plus or Claude Pro plan works in Sideview exactly as it does on the website, with the same models, memory, projects and limits. With a credit-based assistant you pay a second time, and the models it offers and how much you can use them are set by its plan.
You want your real chat history. Conversations you start in Sideview are ordinary ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini chats. They appear on your phone and on the website, and they stay in your account if you remove Sideview.
Privacy matters to you. The free version of Sideview has no Sideview account, no analytics, and contacts no server. Your messages go only to the provider you chose. The permissions page lists what the extension can and cannot do.
Where Sider is the better fit
You don’t have an AI account and don’t want one per provider. One Sider subscription covers several model families. Sideview needs you to sign in to each provider you use, though most offer a free plan.
You want page tools for free. Sider’s free tier can summarize and answer questions about the page you are on. In Sideview, the free sidebar does not read pages; sending a page, selection or screenshot to the chat is part of Sideview Pro.
You want an all-in-one toolkit. Sider bundles extra tools, such as writing helpers and document features, into its own interface. Sideview deliberately stays a window onto the chat you already use.
Can you use both?
Yes. They don’t conflict, although Chrome shows one side panel at a time. Some people keep Sideview for their main ChatGPT or Claude account and use another tool for occasional one-off features.
Sider’s plans and credit allowances change often. Check sider.ai for its current pricing. This comparison reflects both products as of October 2026.
