7 Best Character AI Alternatives for Roleplay in 2026

Ranked for people leaving Character.AI who want the same chat format, a free plan and fewer filters. Mythx (#5) is our app; every cell below comes from each app's own site, help pages or store listing, checked October 4, 2026.

App	Best for	Free plan	Content filter	Age rule	Platforms
1. Janitor AI	Character.AI's format with fewer filters	Yes; Janitor+ is optional	Adults can switch mature content on; apps start in safe mode	18+; age check in the UK, Australia, Brazil	Web, iOS, Android
2. SpicyChat	Adult roleplay with the fewest limits	Yes, with ads	NSFW bots allowed if marked NSFW	18+	Web, Android (APK)
3. Chai	Fast bot chats on your phone	Yes; reviews report a daily message cap	Mature themes allowed; refuses sexually explicit content	18+	iOS, Android
4. AI Dungeon	Free text adventures, teens included	Yes, no ads	Safe, Moderate or Mature setting	13+; Mature needs 18+	Web, iOS, Android
5. Mythx	Roleplay you can see, in a living world	Yes, 10 scenes a day	Filtered; no mature setting	13+; minors need a parent's consent	Web, iOS, Android
6. SillyTavern + Chub cards	Full control over model and characters	Free, open source; you bring the AI model	None of its own; set by your model	None of its own (self-hosted)	Windows, Mac, Linux, Android (Termux)
7. Replika	One companion who remembers you	Yes, chat is free	Roleplay options are paid	18+	iOS, Android, web, Meta Quest

Under 18? Character.AI removed open-ended chat for under-18s, effective no later than November 25, 2025. Of the seven, AI Dungeon and Mythx are the two whose terms allow users from 13.

How we ranked them

Apps closest to Character.AI's chat-with-a-character loop come first, then a usable free plan, then filter and age rules. The two story apps sit in the middle: they suit people who mostly ran scenarios on Character.AI rather than one-on-one chats. These apps change often, so check the linked pages before you pay for anything.

The 7 picks in detail

1. Janitor AI: closest swap for adults

Janitor AI works like Character.AI, with a big library of community-made characters and a plain chat window, but looser content rules. Its iOS and Android apps start in safe mode. Adults switch mature content on with the "Enable NSFW for App" toggle in the website's settings.

Since June 2026 there's an optional Janitor+ plan at $12.99 a month for "5x more context" and priority replies. Janitor says the free version "stays completely free." Technical users can also connect another model through a proxy and their own API key.

The service is for adults only. People connecting from the UK, Australia or Brazil must pass a one-time age verification. Bots are community-made, so quality varies from one to the next.

2. SpicyChat: fewest filters

SpicyChat is a character-chat site built for adult roleplay. Its docs describe a space "without the limitations our competitors have." Its community guidelines require every user to be at least 18 and every explicit bot to be marked NSFW.

Core features stay free, with ads. Paid tiers start at $5.95 a month after a September 2026 price rise; the cheapest removes ads and adds key-detail memory.

SpicyChat runs in the browser, and the Android app is an APK from SpicyChat's own site. There's no iOS app, though you can add the website to your home screen.

3. Chai: fast bot chats on your phone

Chai is a phone app with a large stream of user-made bots. Its EULA limits it to users 18 and older and warns you may see "mature themes and fictionalized violence." Its safety page says the models are designed to refuse sexually explicit content, and optional filters can hide mature content in search.

Chai is free to download, on iOS and Android only. Reviews on its App Store page report the free plan has tightened to a small daily message allowance, so check what's free where you live. The same listing sells Premium at $13.99 a month.

4. AI Dungeon: free text adventures, teens included

AI Dungeon runs text adventures. You type what you do or say, and the AI narrates what happens. That suits people who used Character.AI for scenarios more than for chatting with one bot.

Its App Store listing promises free play "without spam for as long as you want," with no ads. The free plan on its pricing page includes nine story models with up to 4K tokens of context; paid memberships listed there start at $14.99.

Its terms let anyone 13 or older play. The AI safety setting has three levels, Safe, Moderate and Mature, and you must confirm you're 18+ to turn Mature on. It runs on the web, iOS and Android.

5. Mythx: roleplay you can see, in a living world

Mythx is a single-player AI roleplay game with pictures. You arrive as the newcomer in a persistent, hand-built world whose people have jobs, routines and relationships, and they remember you. You say or do anything in your own words, and the AI plays everyone else.

Scenes are illustrated (every scene on Premium), and characters keep the same face and outfit from one scene to the next.

Polly and Tom in Bellsworth, the Mythx Victorian district: the market yard by day, the canal at dusk, the coffee house at night. The same two faces in every scene.

There are 13 worlds. They include Emberhollow (a cozy fantasy village), Bellsworth (gaslit Victorian London) and The Hollow Lantern (a run-down tavern you inherit, with debt due at Quarter Day). Browse the worlds to meet their casts.

Free play gives you 10 scenes a day; your first scenes come illustrated, then free scenes continue in text. Premium costs $4.99 a week, $9.99 a month or $79.99 a year for unlimited story and 100 illustrated scenes a day. It runs on the web, iOS and Android.

It won't suit everyone. Mythx is filtered with no mature setting, it has no voice, and there's no library of personas to chat with one-on-one. Players must be 13 or older, and minors need a parent or guardian's consent.

Start in Emberhollow

6. SillyTavern with Chub cards: full control

SillyTavern is free software you install yourself. Its docs call it "a locally installed user interface" for AI models, released as open source under the AGPL-3.0 license. You connect the model: a paid API or one running on your own computer.

Character cards are the draw. SillyTavern's "Import from URL" accepts Chub character links (the Chub importer is in its source code), so you can bring community characters over without retyping them.

SillyTavern adds no filter of its own; the model you connect decides. Its FAQ warns that paid web AI services "are often censored." Setup takes some effort, with install guides for Windows, Linux and Mac, Android (through Termux) and Docker.

7. Replika: one companion who remembers you

Replika gives you a single AI companion instead of a library of characters. You talk with the same one, and its App Store listing says it remembers your preferences.

Chatting is free, and Replika says it "will always be free." Subscriptions add voice calls, roleplay options and more customization. Replika's terms bar anyone under 18, and it runs on iOS, Android, the web and Meta Quest (the VR app is in beta).

Also worth a look

• PolyBuzz. A large Character.AI-style library with voiced characters. Its Google Play listing calls chat free (the app shows ads) and is rated Mature 17+; the US App Store rates it 18+.
• Talkie. Chat with user-made AI personas ("Talkies") in a creator community. On Google Play it's "Talkie: Creative AI Community," rated Teen, with ads. The US App Store lists it as Talkie Lab, rated 18+, with subscriptions from $9.99 a month.
• Nomi. A companion app that's free to start with no credit card and says it aims to "remain unfiltered and uncensored." Its terms bar anyone under 18.
• Kindroid. A companion you design, from personality to voice. It's 18+ and runs on web, iOS and Android; the free tier is 50 messages (15 in some regions) before plans from $13.99 a month on the web.

Which should you pick

• You want Character.AI's format with fewer filters: Janitor AI.
• You want adult roleplay with as few limits as possible: SpicyChat.
• You chat mostly on your phone: Chai, or PolyBuzz and Talkie from the list above.
• You're under 18: AI Dungeon or Mythx, both open to 13+ under their terms.
• You want stories rather than chat: AI Dungeon for open text adventures, Mythx for illustrated living worlds. More options are in our AI Dungeon alternatives guide.
• You want to pick your own model and import any card: SillyTavern with Chub.
• You want one companion who remembers you: Replika, Nomi or Kindroid.
• You're coming from an anime scenario app like Isekai Zero: see the best Isekai Zero alternatives.

Common questions

What's the best free Character.AI alternative? For chat, Janitor AI: chatting on its own model is free, and Janitor+ is optional. For stories, AI Dungeon's free plan includes nine story models and no ads.

Which Character.AI alternative has the fewest filters? SpicyChat allows NSFW bots for its 18+ users, per its guidelines. Janitor AI lets adults switch mature content on, and AI Dungeon's Mature setting needs you to confirm you're 18+. Chai's models are designed to refuse sexually explicit content, and Mythx is filtered.

Is there a Character.AI alternative for under-18s? AI Dungeon's terms and Mythx's terms allow users from 13; Mythx asks minors for a parent or guardian's consent. Janitor AI, SpicyChat, Chai, Replika, Nomi and Kindroid are 18+ only.

Which alternatives show pictures? Mythx illustrates scenes automatically: every scene on Premium (up to 100 a day) and your first scenes on the free plan. AI Dungeon's plans include image generators, and SpicyChat's True Supporter tier adds in-chat images.