Google launched its AI Plus subscription tier in the US and 34 additional countries last week, pricing it at $7.99 monthly - strategically below ChatGPT Plus at $20. The rollout follows a September 2025 test in Indonesia, suggesting Google used emerging markets to validate pricing before tackling Western consumers.
What you actually get
AI Plus bumps token limits from 32K to 128K and adds 120 daily prompts split between Gemini 3 Pro (90) and Deep Research (30). You get 200GB storage, family sharing for five users, and enhanced access to NotebookLM and Flow video generation tools.
The free tier remains functional with Gemini 3 Flash and 15GB storage. AI Pro ($19.99) jumps to 1M tokens and adds Gmail/Chrome/Docs integration - features that matter if you're deep in Google Workspace. AI Ultra at $249.99 exists for reasons unclear to most.
The positioning problem
Google is clearly chasing ChatGPT's consumer base. ChatGPT Plus costs $20; ChatGPT Go launched at $8. Google undercuts both with Plus while keeping Pro competitive with ChatGPT Plus on price.
But this creates overlap. 9to5Google notes that downgrading from Pro strips out Deep Search, Personal Intelligence, and productivity features in Gmail and Chrome - the tools that justify paying Google anything. Plus looks less like a tier and more like "Pro lite" for people who mainly want higher token limits.
What this means in practice
If you're already paying for Google One's 2TB plan ($9.99), you get AI Plus features automatically - decent value bundling. If you're evaluating cold: the free tier works for casual use, Pro makes sense for Google Workspace power users, and Plus fills an awkward middle.
For enterprise teams evaluating Google's AI stack, these consumer tiers don't map to API pricing or Vertex AI costs. They're consumer retention plays, not signals about Google's enterprise AI strategy.
The real question: will Google sort out its tier positioning, or are we watching the company iterate in public while OpenAI and Anthropic keep their plans simpler?