If you're a small business owner trying to figure out which AI to use, you've probably noticed there's no shortage of opinions. Everyone has a take. Most of them are written by people who either work for one of the companies or haven't actually used both tools seriously.
I use both ChatGPT and Claude daily, in my own work and when setting up AI workflows for clients. Here's what I actually think.
The Quick Answer
Use Claude when: You're writing anything that needs to sound like a real person. Proposals, client emails, marketing copy, long-form content.
Use ChatGPT when: You need to search the web for current information, generate images, run code, or plug into an ecosystem of tools.
Use both when: You're serious about getting the best result and don't mind the extra step.
For most small business owners, Claude is the better default for day-to-day text work. But ChatGPT has capabilities Claude doesn't. They're not interchangeable.
What Each One Is Good At
Claude (Anthropic)
Claude's biggest strength is writing quality. When you need something that sounds like a thoughtful human wrote it, not an AI churning out bullet points. Claude is consistently better.
Where Claude wins:
- Business emails and proposals
- Long-form blog posts and guides
- Summarizing documents (it has a large context window, it can read an entire contract)
- Complex reasoning and analysis
- Following nuanced instructions
Where Claude falls short:
- No live web search (can't look up current info)
- No image generation
- Fewer integrations with third-party tools
- The free tier has usage limits
ChatGPT (OpenAI)
ChatGPT is the most widely used AI tool on the planet, and for good reason. The GPT-4o model is fast, capable, and connected to a massive ecosystem of integrations.
Where ChatGPT wins:
- Web search (can look up current information, prices, news)
- Image generation with DALL-E
- Code interpreter (can run Python, analyze spreadsheets, create charts)
- GPT store, thousands of specialized tools built on top of it
- Voice mode, genuinely useful for hands-free work
- Broader third-party integrations (Zapier, n8n, most automation tools)
Where ChatGPT falls short:
- Writing quality is good but often feels more "AI-ish"
- Less nuanced at following complex, multi-part instructions
- Can be overconfident and make up facts
Real-World Use Cases for Small Business Owners
Writing client proposals
Winner: Claude. The quality difference here is noticeable. Claude writes more persuasively and sounds less like a template.
Answering "what's the going rate for X" or researching competitors
Winner: ChatGPT. It can search the web. Claude can't.
Summarizing a long contract or document
Winner: Claude. Its context window (how much text it can read at once) is larger, and it handles long documents better.
Generating social media posts
Tie. Both are fine. Claude's tend to sound more natural. ChatGPT's are faster to get out.
Setting up automations (Zapier, n8n workflows)
Winner: ChatGPT for building the workflow logic. Both can help you write the instructions, but ChatGPT has more integrations.
Creating images for your website or social media
Winner: ChatGPT (DALL-E). Claude doesn't generate images.
Answering customer emails
Winner: Claude. The responses read better and require less editing.
Pricing Breakdown
Claude:
- Free tier: Limited usage
- Claude Pro: $20/month, best for heavy daily use
- API: Pay per token (roughly $0.003–0.015 per 1,000 tokens)
ChatGPT:
- Free tier: GPT-4o mini, limited GPT-4o access
- ChatGPT Plus: $20/month, full GPT-4o, image generation, web search
- API: Pay per token (similar pricing to Claude)
For most small business owners, $20/month for either is money well spent. If you're going to commit to one paid plan, Claude Pro is the better value for writing-heavy work. If you use images, web search, or voice mode heavily, ChatGPT Plus wins.
The Setup That Works Best
The small business owners I work with who get the most value from AI typically do this:
- Claude for first drafts, proposals, emails, blog posts, content
- ChatGPT for research, competitor pricing, market rates, current events
- Automation tools (Zapier, n8n) connected to Claude's API, for anything that runs on its own without human input
This isn't a $40/month commitment if you're budget-conscious. You can use Claude's free tier for writing and ChatGPT's free tier for search, and get meaningful value from both.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which AI is more accurate? Neither is perfect. Both make things up (it's called "hallucination"). Always verify anything factual before you use it publicly.
Can I connect them to my other business tools? Yes. Both have APIs that connect to tools like Zapier, n8n, Make, and hundreds of apps. Claude is newer to this ecosystem; ChatGPT has broader support.
Which one is better for my industry? For most service businesses (contractors, consultants, agencies, healthcare, legal), Claude's writing quality makes it the better daily driver. For e-commerce or data-heavy work, ChatGPT's code interpreter is more valuable.
Is the free version good enough? For occasional use, yes. For daily business use, the paid tiers are worth it.
What about Google Gemini? Gemini is good for anything inside the Google Workspace ecosystem (Gmail, Docs, Sheets). As a standalone AI, it's a step behind Claude and ChatGPT for most business tasks.
Not sure which AI setup makes sense for your business? Let's figure it out together. I work with small business owners to cut through the noise and implement tools that actually help.