Have you ever wished you could instantly brainstorm creative ideas, generate realistic images, or write compelling marketing copy without the talent—uh, time loss or inspiration?

While I'd be hard-pressed to recommend relying on generative AI tools for everything, these innovative AI-powered solutions are revolutionizing the way we approach content creation, design, and problem-solving.

I thought it'd be a great idea to put together a list of which generative AI tools are the most horrible. But since no one accepted that pitch, here's a list of the best generative AI platforms.

I've selected the 20 tools below based on a combination of my own experiences and the thousands of hours of testing the Zapier team has done.

The 20 best generative AI tools

• Anyword for writing support

• Jasper for AI-powered marketing content

• Shortwave for email writing and management

• Runway for freeform and creative videos

• Wondershare Filmora for polishing video 

• Midjourney for the best AI image results

• Adobe Photoshop for AI-generated image enhancement

• DALL·E 3 for easy-to-use AI image generation

• ElevenLabs for a comprehensive AI voice library

• Suno for easy-to-use AI music generation

• Beautiful.ai for automated presentation design elements

• Tome for applying data to your presentations

• Wix for intuitive website-building 

• Framer for AI-centric website-building

• Microsoft Power Apps for in-depth app development 

• Pico for fully automated app-building

• ChatGPT for versatility

• Claude for great writing skills

• Zapier Chatbots for custom-made chatbots

• Zapier Central for automating your work

What are generative AI tools?

The term "generative AI" can be a little vague in that it covers a wide range of tools and technologies. Here, I'm focusing on generative AI tools specifically designed to create entirely new assets or significantly enhance existing ones. The tools we'll explore below all excel at generating original content, such as text, images, audio, or a combination of all of those things.

Here's a breakdown of the key categories I'll be covering.

• AI writing and editing tools: These tools allow you to generate original written content, like blog posts, marketing copy, or even creative fiction. They can also assist with editing existing text, suggesting improvements for grammar, clarity, and overall flow. I've included AI email assistants in this category since they include a lot of generative AI.

• AI video generation tools: These tools create video content from scratch based on textual descriptions or prompts. Some tools specialize in generating photorealistic visuals, while others focus on creating more stylized or animated videos. Many of them can also be used to edit videos.

• AI image generation and editing tools: These tools help you generate entirely new images or manipulate existing ones. Some specialize in photorealistic creations, while others excel at creating artistic imagery. AI image editing tools offer functionalities like removing unwanted objects, enhancing resolution, or even generating entirely new image elements.

• AI voice and music generation tools: Some of these tools enable users to generate realistic-sounding human voices from text, offering a variety of voices with different accents and tones. Others let you generate music using natural language prompts.

• AI presentation apps: These tools leverage AI to streamline the presentation creation process. They can generate visually compelling slides based on your content, suggest improvements to structure and flow, and even provide data-driven insights to enhance audience engagement.

• AI website builders: These website creation platforms utilize AI to simplify the website-building process. They offer functionalities like automatic design generation, image resizing, and content suggestions, allowing users with no coding experience to build professional-looking websites.

• AI app builders: These tools create mobile or web applications without extensive (or, in some cases, any) coding knowledge. They leverage AI to automate various aspects of the development process, such as generating basic app layouts or implementing functionalities based on natural language instructions.

Given the ridiculous volume of generative AI apps available, there's no way my list of the top 20 is going to be the same as your list of the top 20. The goal here is to introduce you to some excellent apps—that have been put through the wringer by the Zapier team—and inspire you to explore the category even more.

What makes the best generative AI tool?

Not all generative AI tools are equally as powerful—the "Terminator" plots progressively reinforce that fact. Some generative AIs excel at specific tasks, while others offer a broader range of capabilities. I've leveraged insights from Zapier's team of app testers to bring you this analysis and explore the key features that define a truly great generative AI tool:

• Versatility: The most valuable tools offer a wide range of functionalities, allowing you to tackle diverse creative challenges, from crafting marketing copy to generating innovative product concepts.

• Output quality: Ultimately, the success of a generative AI tool hinges on the quality of its results. Look for tools that produce highly realistic images, informative text formats, or creative content that aligns with your specific needs.

• User-friendliness: A great generative AI tool should be intuitive and easy to use, even for those without extensive technical expertise.

• Control and customization: While AI automates tasks, you still need control. The best tools empower you to refine prompts, tailor outputs, and guide the creative process effectively.

• Underlying technology: Many generative AI tools are powered by large language models (LLMs) and large multimodal models (LMMs)—complex algorithms trained on massive datasets. Understanding the models behind a tool can provide insights into its capabilities and potential limitations.

The best generative AI tools at a glance

The best generative AI tools for writing and editing

Anyword for marketing efforts

Anyword positions itself as the "AI writing platform built for marketing results." And true to form, it can help you generate marketing copy, product descriptions, website content, and even social media posts that convert. 

A key differentiator for Anyword is its focus on data-driven optimization. The platform integrates with A/B testing tools, so you can compare different variations of your content and find out which ones resonate most effectively with your target audience.

Pricing: Starter plan: $39/month; Data-driven plan: $79/month; Business plan: $349/month; Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

Jasper for maintaining brand voice

Jasper (formerly known as Jarvis) is a versatile AI writing assistant known for its user-friendly interface and extensive capabilities. From crafting blog posts and social media captions to generating creative sales copy and product descriptions, there's a lot that you can do with this tool. 

Its focus is on marketing campaigns, offering tools to craft high-converting copy, social media content, and blog outlines. But at $49/month, it's not exactly the cheapest AI solution on the market, so it may be too pricey for marketing teams with a tight budget.

I found Jasper's Brand Voice tool particularly useful. If you upload samples of content, Jasper will analyze your style, capturing elements like humor, tone, and use of listicles. Granted, a lot of people already do that with ChatGPT, but Jasper's dedicated tool feels a bit more refined.

Jasper also integrates with Zapier, so you can easily connect it to all the other apps you use at work. Learn more about how to automate Jasper, or get started with one of these pre-made workflows.

Jasper pricing: Creator plan: $39/user/month; Pro plan: $59/user/month; Business plan: Custom pricing

Shortwave for email assistance

On the email assistant front, Shortwave takes the crown for the most comprehensive suite of AI features. These functionalities reside conveniently in the top-right corner of your screen, symbolized by a magic star icon. Clicking the icon reveals the Shortwave AI assistant, a docked chat window on the right side.

One of Shortwave's unique features is the AI-powered email search. I don't know what your inbox looks like, but mine routinely causes me anxiety. Imagine effortlessly surfacing old emails and conversations by asking your inbox questions, eliminating the need to sift through mountains of messages.  

Shortwave can extract key data from email threads, generate content based on your email exchanges (like crafting a tweet summarizing your productivity tips), and even answer your questions in a ChatGPT-style format. 

Shortwave pricing: Free plan available; Personal plan: $7/user/month; Pro plan: $14/user/month; Business plan: $24/user/month

The best generative AI tools for video generation 

Runway for freeform and creative videos 

Runway takes a unique approach to AI video generation, positioning itself as a platform for creative exploration. Many generative AI tools that handle the video format do so with pre-defined templates. Runway takes it to a different level with the capacity to capture and generate unique videos from prompts.

It can be a bit trickier to grasp, as you have to try multiple times to get the result you want. But the good news is that there's no shortage of video tutorials for you to follow. Those kinds of resources really make that learning curve less curvy.

Runway pricing: Free plan available; Standard plan: $12/user/month; Pro plan: $28/user/month; Unlimited plan: $76/user/month; Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

Wondershare Filmora for polishing video 

While Runway is living its creative exploration fantasy, Wondershare Filmora takes a more streamlined approach to AI video generation. It integrates a suite of AI editing tools designed to enhance and polish existing video footage. Features like background removal, noise reduction, and automatic object tracking streamline the editing process, saving you time to focus on storytelling.

Filmora also offers AI-powered text-to-video generation capabilities—the internet's AI video generation bread and butter. You can use a script or outline to automatically generate a video storyboard complete with royalty-free music and transitions. 

Wondershare Filmora pricing: Cross-platform quarterly plan: $29.99/quarter; Cross-platform annual plan: $49.99/year; Perpetual plan: $79.99

The best generative AI tools for image generation and editing

Midjourney for the best AI image results

I've put a lot of time and prompts into Midjourney, and trying to get exactly what I need feels like a game of charades. Once you nail down your prompt, though, it's hands-down the best quality AI art generator. Sure, you'll occasionally get a six-fingered hand or the odd twisted face, but Midjourney is flexible, so you can easily fix those mistakes.

Midjourney pricing: Basic plan: $10/month; Standard plan: $30/month; Pro plan: $60/month; Mega plan: $120/month

Adobe Photoshop for AI-generated image enhancement

Known for being the industry-standard image editing software, Adobe Photoshop wasn't immune to the AI effect. While not solely an AI image generation tool, Photoshop leverages Adobe's Sensei and Firefly AI with a range of generative features. 

You can easily remove unwanted objects from images, enhance resolutions for better clarity, and even generate entirely new image elements to complement existing ones. For those of you already familiar with Photoshop's workflow, this integration of AI functionality significantly boosts your creative toolkit. It won't make Photoshop any easier to learn, but it'll help you create much better results.

Adobe Photoshop pricing: Monthly plan: $34.49/month; Annual plan: $22.99/month; Annual prepaid: $263.88/year

DALL·E 3 for a futuristic AI image generation

Developed by OpenAI, DALL·E 3 stands at the forefront of AI image generation. It must not be easy to be ChatGPT's younger sibling with all the pressure and the audience. But DALL·E 3 shows a lot of potential for producing incredibly realistic and detailed visuals. 

It pushes the boundaries of what's possible with generative AI. From crafting photorealistic portraits based on descriptions to generating surreal landscapes, DALL·E 3 offers exceptional versatility and very high quality. But access to DALL·E 3 is currently limited to ChatGPT Plus users (or via API).

You can connect DALL·E to all the other apps you use with Zapier, so you can automatically create images from any app. Learn more about how to automate AI image generation, or get started with one of these pre-built workflows.

DALL·E 3 pricing: $20/month through ChatGPT Plus

The best generative AI tools for voice and music generation

ElevenLabs for a comprehensive AI voice library

ElevenLabs takes a comprehensive approach to AI voice generation, making the tool useful for creators, businesses, and individuals alike. The platform is home to a library of ultra-realistic, human-sounding voices across various languages and accents.  

This versatility allows you to tailor the voice perfectly to your project, whether it's a casual explainer video, a dramatic audiobook narration, or a professional-sounding podcast intro. 

Beyond voice selection, ElevenLabs provides users with granular control over speech parameters. Adjust the pace and pitch, and even add subtle emotional inflections to fine-tune the generated voice and ensure it aligns with your tone and message.

ElevenLabs pricing: Free plan available; Starter plan: $5/month; Creator plan: $22/month; Pro plan: $99/month; Scale plan: $330/month

Suno for easy-to-use AI music generation

Suno is a more streamlined and user-friendly tool. Most importantly, it's really fun to work with. Capable of generating entire songs based on prompts and descriptions, Suno can create music complete with instruments, vocals, and theatrical effects. Suno has an intuitive interface, making it easy for even non-technical users to jump right in and start generating high-quality voiceovers.

While Suno doesn't offer the same level of granular control as ElevenLabs, its strength lies in its ease of use and focus on delivering consistently impressive results. This makes Suno a valuable tool for users who prioritize speed and simplicity without sacrificing quality.

Suno pricing: Free plan available; Pro plan: $8/month; Premier plan: $24/month

The best generative AI tools for presentations

Beautiful.ai for automated presentation design elements

Beautiful.ai delivers a user-friendly interface that integrates seamlessly with popular design tools like Figma and Sketch. This collaborative approach makes it ideal for teams collaborating on visual presentations. 

Beyond collaboration features, Beautiful.ai stands out with its AI-powered design automation. You simply upload your text content, and Beautiful.ai will generate a visually cohesive presentation complete with layouts, fonts, and images. It also provides "smart" slide suggestions based on your content, helping you refine your message and structure your presentation for maximum impact.

Beautiful.ai pricing: Pro plan: $12/month; Team plan: $40/user/month; Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

Tome for data-driven presentations

Tome is specifically designed for sales and marketing teams, enabling users to craft presentations that resonate with their target audience. It leverages AI to analyze your text content and generate data-driven insights on factors like audience engagement and clarity.

Tome also integrates seamlessly with popular CRM platforms, allowing you to personalize presentations with customer-specific data and insights. Imagine crafting a sales pitch that dynamically adjusts based on the prospect's industry or past interactions with your company. This level of personalization can significantly enhance the effectiveness of your sales presentations.

Tome pricing: Free plan available; Professional plan: $16/month; Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

The best generative AI tools for website building

Wix for intuitive website-building  

Wix is a household name in the website-building space, and for good reason: it offers a perfect blend of ease of use and powerful features. Its AI capabilities are particularly noteworthy.

The Artificial Design Intelligence (ADI) tool streamlines the website creation process from start to finish. Simply answer a few questions about your desired website type and functionality, and Wix ADI will generate a personalized website template complete with layouts, content suggestions, and even royalty-free images. This is a fantastic option for users who want a professional-looking website up and running quickly.

Beyond ADI, Wix integrates AI throughout its platform. Users can leverage AI-powered features like automatic image resizing, background removal for photos, and even a logo maker to create a cohesive brand identity for their website.

Wix also connects to Zapier, so you can automate all your website workflows. Learn more about how to automate Wix with Zapier, or get started with one of these templates.

Wix pricing: Light plan: $17/month; Core plan: $29/month; Business plan: $36/month; Business Elite plan: $159/month

Framer for AI-centric website-building

While Wix caters to a broad audience, Framer is the AI website builder for designers and creative professionals. The platform includes powerful AI design tools like Auto Layout, which automatically fine-tunes the spacing and arrangement of website elements. It’s the closest thing to the dream "type a prompt and get a website."

Just keep in mind that its editor interface has a more code-centric approach: that could be a drawback, but it also allows users with design expertise to have more control over the website creation process.

Framer pricing: Free plan available; Mini plan: $5/site/month; Basic plan: $15/site/month; Pro plan: $30/site/month; Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

The best generative AI tools for app building

Microsoft Power Apps for in-depth app development 

Like most Microsoft tools, Power Apps uses Copilot for that AI touch. You can initiate the app creation process with a simple text prompt describing your desired functionality. Imagine outlining your vision for an app, like "an app for creating and sharing grocery lists," and letting Copilot translate that into a basic prototype.

Following your prompt, Copilot generates a starting point, including a database schema tailored to your app's needs. You can then interact with Copilot through a chat window on the right side of the Power Apps dashboard, so you can refine the database schema by adding, removing, or modifying fields using natural language instructions.

Microsoft PowerApps pricing: Free Developer plan; Power Apps Premium: $20/user/month

Pico for fully automated app-building

Pico, a new contender in the market, also turns app development into a straightforward, novice-friendly, prompt-based experience. As you enter your initial prompt describing the app's functionality, a line appears on the screen, showcasing the AI diligently generating the code in real-time. You get to watch the seamless flow between HTML, CSS, and JavaScript as your app comes to life before your eyes, line by line.

This isn't a one-shot deal. Once you have this foundational structure, Pico allows you to refine your app further through natural language prompts. Dictate changes to button labels, alter the app's background, or tweak the input fields displayed on the screen—all through simple commands.

For a more granular level of control, Pico offers additional settings that allow you to modify the app's visual style, properties, and even the data it connects to. The beauty lies in its accessibility—even if you lack coding expertise. 

Pico pricing: Free plan available: Pro plan: $29/month; premium plan: $49/month; Business plan: $129/month

The best generative AI chatbots

Chatbots stand on strange grounds as far as the definition of generative AI goes, but they are capable of generating content, interacting with users, answering questions, and simulating human interactions, making them part of the pack.

ChatGPT for versatility

The original, the most known, the first of its kind—ChatGPT rose to the top of the AI chatbot food chain quickly. But since it initially took over the conversation, it's turned from a party trick into a genuinely useful tool. Especially with the release of its newest multimodal model, GPT-4o, its versatility is unmatched.

ChatGPT can answer questions, browse the web, analyze images, create charts, translate across languages, write code, understand audio—the list goes on. If you're looking for one generative AI tool to do it all, this is the one.

ChatGPT integrates with Zapier, which means you can connect it to thousands of other apps and access the power of ChatGPT from any software you use. Learn more about how to automate ChatGPT, or get started with one of these pre-made workflows.

ChatGPT pricing: Free plan available; Plus plan: $20/month; Team plan: $25/user/month (billed annually); Enterprise plan: Custom pricing

Claude for great writing quality

Claude is amazing at tackling your text-based needs. You can use it to summarize documents, analyze text, and create unique marketing copy—folks tend to agree it beats ChatGPT in the quality of its default writing. Claude also operates with a much larger context window, allowing it to process a lot more data at a time.

Claude also integrates with Zapier, so you can connect it to all the other apps you use. Here are some ideas for how to automate Claude, or you can try one of these templates.

Claude pricing: Free plan available; Pro plan: $20 per person per month; Team plan: $100 per person per month

Zapier Chatbots for custom-made chatbots

Zapier Chatbots allows you to design your own custom AI chatbots using an intuitive automation platform. Connect your knowledge sources, give your chatbot some basic instructions using natural language, and you're well on your way to a customized chatbot that your customers can interact with, straight from your website. There are even pre-built templates for all sorts of use cases if you're not sure where to start.

You can then connect your chatbot to thousands of other apps to help streamline your marketing, sales, and support efforts. Learn more about how to use Zapier Chatbots.

Pricing: Free plan available; premium plan: $20/month; Advanced plan: $100/month

Zapier Central for automating your work

With Zapier Central, you can create and interact with AI bots specifically designed to streamline your tasks. These bots can be trained to understand your needs and perform actions across the thousands of apps Zapier integrates with. You could create a planning bot, a job search bot, or anything else that will help you streamline your work.

These bots follow your instructions to complete tasks in various apps you use, like moving data between spreadsheets or updating a project management tool. Simply tell your bot what you need to be done, and Zapier Central handles the rest, freeing up your time for more strategic work. Learn more about how to use Zapier Central.

Pricing: Free plan available; Premium plan: $50/month; Advanced plan: Custom pricing

A final note on generative AI tools

The world of generative AI extends well beyond the tools I've listed here. While tools like AI writing assistants and video generation are impressive examples of content generation, plenty of other AI tools incorporate generative features. For example, AI sales assistant apps use generative AI to personalize outreach emails or craft follow-up messages. The only reason I didn't include apps like those here is because their core function isn't original content creation.

While I'm not shouting Skynet at my computer, I'm convinced that this rapid growth of generative AI is the beginning of something great (scary?). What started as basic chatbots has turned into an integration for every facet of business, from marketing and sales to product development and customer service.

Generative AI is powerful, but it often exists within a specific platform. Zapier acts as the bridge, allowing you to connect your favorite AI tools with the other apps you rely on every day and unlocking the potential of generative AI by integrating it into your existing workflows.  

Related reading:

• The best AI marketing tools

• The best AI productivity tools

• What is GPT?