NovelAI review
Updated September 28, 2026 · CompanionCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 26, 2026
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Our verdict
NovelAI suits adults who want anime personas, per story memory and image generation in one paid place. At $10 a month it sits under the site median of €13.15, and the trade-off is that images run on Anlas credits, on-demand top-up that sit outside the membership.
Key facts
- Best for
- Adults who want encrypted, per story anime writing with image generation included.
- Monthly price
- $10↗
- What is free
- Free trial for new users; no free plan↗
- Adult content policy
- No stated content restrictions↗
- Memory
- Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted↗
- Privacy and data
- Prompts not stored; stories end-to-end encrypted↗
- Credit system
- Anlas credits, on-demand top-up↗
- Image generation
- Yes↗
- Platforms
- Web, Mobile web↗
- Age verification
- 18+ required in terms↗
- Personas
- Anime↗
- Legal entity
- Anlatan Inc.↗
- Headquarters
- United States↗
- Support channels
- Email, Community↗
- Pricing model
- Free, Premium
- Official website
- novelai.net
Facts checked September 26, 2026, 3 sources
Pros and cons
Pros
- Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted is the feature that matters most: a per story lorebook keeps world rules and cast loaded without retyping them.
- Prompts not stored; stories end-to-end encrypted states that prompts are not stored and stories are end-to-end encrypted, so a private story stays on your side.
- Image generation is part of the same offering as the text rather than a separate product.
- free and premium covers both model tiers, and No stated content restrictions with 18+ required in terms keeps the audience clearly adult.
- Talkie costs $9.99 a month, so NovelAI sits close on price while adding lorebook memory and image generation.
Cons
- Free trial for new users; no free plan means the trial is the only part that costs nothing, and a paid membership takes over after it.
- Support runs on email and community, so email and a community forum are the listed routes, with no live chat line or phone number.
- Anlas credits, on-demand top-up puts image generation on a separate balance, so a heavy image month costs more than $10.
- Access is web and mobile web, so the same browser layout covers desktop and phone instead of separate app builds.
Who it suits
- Adults who write long anime stories and want memory scoped to each story, as in Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted.
- Readers who want chat and image generation under one membership rather than two subscriptions.
- People who put Prompts not stored; stories end-to-end encrypted first and are comfortable paying $10 a month for it.
Who should look elsewhere
- Talkie readers on a tight budget, since Talkie lists $9.99 a month and NovelAI's image credits sit on top of $10.
- CrushOn.AI readers after a lower entry point, because CrushOn.AI runs $3.90 to $14.90.
- Dippy AI readers who want the cheapest starting tier, since Dippy AI runs $4.99 to $12.99.
Using the service
Access runs through web and mobile web, so the same interface covers a desktop browser and a phone browser, with no install step. Image generation sits in the same offering as the text rather than being a separate product. The part that separates NovelAI from the chat apps beside it is Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted: each story carries its own lorebook, so a cast and a setting stay loaded for the length of that story instead of being rebuilt by hand in every session.
Memory, voice and media
Memory is a per story lorebook: Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted, so recurring characters and world rules stay loaded for the story you are writing rather than being retyped in each session. That is the practical difference from a companion whose context is one long chat scroll. Image generation is part of the same membership, so a scene can be illustrated without leaving the service. The two sit side by side, which is what makes the membership read as a writing tool rather than a chat window.
The company behind it
Anlatan Inc. is the legal entity behind the service, and it is headquartered in the United States, so the terms you accept are a US agreement. Support runs on email and community, which is email and a community forum. That covers account and billing questions, and it is the main practical limit for anyone who wants a live chat line or a phone call. For a service built around private writing, the arrangement works as long as email resolves things.
How NovelAI compares
9.3 vs 9.0
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 8.5
9.3 vs 9.1
Frequently asked questions
How much does NovelAI cost a month?+
Membership is $10 a month. That puts NovelAI under the site median of €13.15 and below the upper quartile of €21.70, so it sits in the lower part of the price field. Image generation is not part of that figure, since images run on a separate credit balance.
What is available before paying anything?+
Free trial for new users; no free plan. That is the entire offer without payment: the trial exists, the ongoing plan does not. After it, chat and images depend on the membership at $10 a month, with extra credits on top, so budget for a paid month from the start rather than a gradual step up.
Does NovelAI allow adult content, and who may sign up?+
The content policy reads No stated content restrictions, and 18+ required in terms applies, so the service is aimed squarely at adult readers. That makes it a poor fit for a shared or family account, because the terms set the audience rather than the content.
How does memory work in a NovelAI story?+
Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted. You write the setting once for a story and the service keeps it in play for that story, which saves a lot of retyping on a long serial. Because the scope is per story, two different stories can hold different versions of the same world without colliding.
What happens to my prompts and stories?+
Prompts not stored; stories end-to-end encrypted is the stated position: prompts are not stored, and stories are end-to-end encrypted. That matters more than the monthly figure when a story is personal, and the same encryption covers Lorebooks per story, end-to-end encrypted, so lorebook entries travel with the story text.
Does NovelAI work on a phone?+
web and mobile web is the access route, so the browser is the whole interface on desktop and phone. There is no separate store build in the listed platforms, so the trade is a single layout that works anywhere rather than a dedicated app.
Is image generation part of the membership?+
Image generation is part of the same offering as the text rather than a separate tool. The style on offer is anime, and free and premium means both model tiers are reachable from one account. Volume is metered through Anlas credits, on-demand top-up, so heavy image use costs more than the membership alone.
Who runs NovelAI, and how do I get help?+
Anlatan Inc. is the legal entity and it is based in the United States, so the terms are a US agreement. Support runs on email and community: email for account and billing questions, plus a community forum. Anyone who needs a phone conversation will not find one in those channels.
How does NovelAI compare with Talkie on price?+
Close. NovelAI is $10 a month and Talkie lists $9.99, so the two sit within a small gap of each other. The difference is what the money covers: NovelAI folds image generation and per story memory into the membership. If you only want text chat, Talkie is the cheaper of the two.
Sources
- novelai.net checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Adult content policy, Credit system, What is free, Image generation, Pricing model, Personas, Platforms, Monthly price, Support channels
“Generate original characters, scenes, and artwork in seconds. No restrictions. No compromises.”
- novelai.net/privacy checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Memory, Privacy and data
“Your stories, including their lorebooks, and your scripts and prompt chunks are encrypted in your browser before they are saved”
- novelai.net/terms checked September 26, 2026
Backs: Age verification, Headquarters, Legal entity
“You must be 18 years or older and be capable of entering a legal contract in the United States of America in order to use the Services.”
Compiled from 3 source pages, checked September 26, 2026. We did not open an account.
Not confirmed yet: Voice.
Related by the facts
NovelAI
Adults who want encrypted, per story anime writing with image generation included.