Practical digital skills

Choose an AI assistant for a specific task

Compare tools on the same prompt, with accuracy, privacy, sources and correction effort in view.

Step-by-step guideUpdated
Follow the method ↓
A person compares AI assistant outputs against the same task and sources

The answer in 30 seconds

A polished answer is a poor basis for choosing a tool. The right choice depends on what you will actually do, the information you may share and how much checking the output needs.

Write one representative task and its success criteria before testing two or three tools. Compare their outputs against independent sources, review data controls and total cost, then record the edits needed to make the result usable.

Examples to adapt

Summarising a report

Check whether each summary preserves caveats and cites the relevant passages.

Drafting an email

Measure useful editing time rather than apparent fluency.

Looking up a current rule

Require a dated primary source and verify it outside the assistant.

Follow the method

  1. 1
    Define the task

    Choose a real prompt, acceptable output and facts that must be correct.

  2. 2
    Check data boundaries

    Read the service's controls before entering private or client information.

  3. 3
    Run a fair comparison

    Give the same context to each tool and retain both useful and failed answers.

  4. 4
    Verify and decide

    Check key claims independently, calculate correction time and review price or usage limits.

A checklist to keep

Use these checks to record what you found. The grid supports a decision; it does not make one for you.

Choose an AI assistant for a specific task: checklist
CheckWhat to examineAction
TaskIs the test representative of real work?Define
AccuracyWhich claims survive independent checks?Verify
SourcesDo links actually support those claims?Open
PrivacyWhat information may be entered?Limit
EffortHow much correction and cost remain?Compare

Download the CSV checklist

Free, no sign-up. UTF-8 text with semicolon-separated columns.

What to check

Citations can point to sources that do not support a claim.

Features and data settings can differ by plan or workspace.

A one-off successful answer does not establish reliability for other tasks.

Common questions

Should I pick the tool with the longest answer?

No. Prefer the output that meets the task with the least unsupported content and correction work.

Can an assistant verify its own answer?

It can suggest checks, but confirm material claims in independent sources.

Sources and documentation

Documentation consulted on . Examples are illustrative; interfaces and results may change.

Continue exploring

All English guides →