Disclosure: this guide is published by the makers of My Softly, which is one of the alternatives below. Every price comes from each app's own in-app paywall (US, free account) on September 30, 2026 unless a source says otherwise, and every Kindroid fact from its own help center or listing.
If it is the price: Nomi is the closest match at $99.99 a year. If it is free you want: Pi costs nothing, and Character.AI's core is free.
If it is the setup and the memory upkeep: pick an app that does the remembering for you. If it is the adult side of the app: Pi or My Softly, where there is no adult mode to avoid.
Kindroid is the builder's companion app. Nothing else in the category gives you as much control over a companion's personality, voice and memory, and plenty of people who try it never want anything else. This guide is for the ones who do. It starts with why people leave, because the right alternative depends almost entirely on that, and then goes through the realistic options one by one.
Why people look for a Kindroid alternative
Kindroid's own App Store reviews give a count. Of its 90 most recent 1- and 2-star reviews on the US App Store, posted January 6 to September 22, 2026, the main complaint was:
- Price, billing or the paywall: 21% (19 reviews). Charges after a free trial, the cost of voice beyond the monthly allowance, and features held behind the subscription.
- The quality of the replies: 20% (18). Repetition, characters that fall into the same patterns, and the sense of having to regenerate and edit to get a good answer.
- Outages, bugs and slowness: 19% (17). Server errors, slow replies and network errors when creating a companion.
- Forgetting or losing the thread: 17% (15). Companions that forget something said a few messages earlier, or older memories that stopped surfacing after a change to how memory is retrieved.
- The rest: 23% (21). Content and moderation in both directions (too filtered for some, too explicit for others), images and voice features, the redesigned layout, and complaints too short to sort.
We took every 1- and 2-star review from 2026 in Apple's public US App Store review feed for Kindroid, which returns up to an app's 500 most recent reviews, and sorted each one by its main complaint. For scale: Kindroid holds a 4.8 average from about 8,800 ratings, the highest of the apps on this page. These are the reasons of the people who left, not a verdict on the app.
Two more reasons come from Kindroid's own documentation rather than its reviews, and they matter for the reader of this site.
- The remembering is partly your job. Kindroid's help center describes five memory systems. What you write into the backstory, key memories and journal entries is recalled reliably; the long-term memory it builds on its own is, in its own words, "recalled less reliably". People who enjoy that describe Kindroid as the best companion they have used. People who do not describe it as upkeep.
- It is unfiltered by design. Kindroid calls itself "a neutrally aligned, unfiltered AI" and carries an 18+ rating. A platonic Kindroid stays platonic because you keep it that way.
Match the reason to the app
| Why you are leaving | Look at | Why |
|---|---|---|
| The price | Nomi | Nomi's standard plan is $99.99 a year against Kindroid's $159.99, with no memory add-on tiers above it |
| You want free | Pi, Character.AI | Pi has no in-app purchases at all; Character.AI's core is free |
| The setup and memory upkeep | My Softly, Nomi | Both build memory from conversation rather than from fields you maintain |
| Nothing adult in the app | Pi, My Softly | Neither has an adult mode to switch off |
| Calls and video | Replika | Its listing offers text, voice calls and video |
| Lots of characters and roleplay | Character.AI | Millions of user-made characters, free to explore |
The alternatives
Nomi
Nomi is the closest thing to Kindroid, and the first app most people who leave it try. Both are built around memory, both run several companions and group chats, and both work on iOS, Android and the web. The difference is where the memory work happens: Nomi layers short- and long-term recall on its own, so there is less to write and maintain, while Kindroid hands you more of the controls. Nomi is also cheaper by the year. In its in-app paywall on September 30, 2026 its plans were $15.99 a month, $39.99 every three months or $99.99 a year. Like Kindroid, it is rated 18+ and allows adult content if a relationship goes that way.
Good if you liked Kindroid's depth and want it for less, with less upkeep. Skip if the adult side of these apps is part of why you are leaving.
Replika
Replika has been running since 2017 and is the most familiar name in the category. Its current App Store listing describes its biggest update yet: better memory, proactive check-ins, voice calls, video, image generation and internet access. If what you miss in Kindroid is a companion you can call, it is the obvious place to look. In its in-app paywall on September 30, 2026 it sold two plans, both annual: Plus at $79.99 a year and Max at $89.99 a year, with no monthly plan. Romantic and adult modes exist, and its own low-star reviews centre on price and on personality changes after updates, which we counted in our guide to Replika alternatives without NSFW.
Good if you want calls, video and a large, established app. Skip if you are leaving Kindroid because of cost or the romantic drift.
Character.AI
Character.AI is the opposite of Kindroid in one useful way: you do not build anything. Millions of characters already exist, the core experience is free, and content is filtered. It is a roleplay platform rather than a companion app, though, and the site's long-running weakness is carrying one relationship forward over weeks; there is no single companion who knows your life. Paid plans in the app's own paywall on September 30, 2026 were lite at $4.99 a month and c.ai+ at $9.99 a month or $94.99 a year. The App Store now rates it 18+.
Good if the building wore you out and you want variety for free. Skip if you want one companion who remembers last month.
Pi
Pi, by Inflection, is the gentlest conversationalist on this list and completely free: the US App Store listed no in-app purchases on 2026-09-24. It will never steer romantic, and its tone is calm and curious. Its limits are structural. Long-term memory is weak, there are no characters to build or choose, and Inflection turned its attention toward enterprise work after most of the original team left for Microsoft in 2024. Pi still runs and still gets regular updates, but it is a kind listener rather than a companion who carries your week forward.
Good if you want free, safe and kind, today. Skip if memory was the thing you valued most in Kindroid.
My Softly
My Softly is our app, and it is built for the person who liked what a companion could be but not the work of maintaining one. You talk, and the app does the filing: a lasting profile of the people, places and plans in your life and a day-by-day record of what you talked about, brought back up weeks later without a settings page. There is no adult mode anywhere in it. It is iPhone only, and it costs the same as Kindroid in the app, $15.99 a month or $159.99 a year, with free starter messages first. Our side-by-side of My Softly vs Kindroid goes through every difference.
Good if you want the remembering done for you and nothing adult in the app. Skip if you need Android, or the building was the part you enjoyed.
Free Kindroid alternatives
Until recently the honest first answer was Kindroid itself, whose free tier gave unlimited messages on a smaller Lite model. Kindroid retired Lite on October 1, 2026. New accounts now get a one-time preview of 50 messages on its main model (15 in some regions), then a 3-day trial, and an account that does not subscribe becomes read-only, so staying on Kindroid for free is no longer an option.
If you want to leave entirely and pay nothing:
- Pi is fully free, with no in-app purchases on the US App Store, and strictly safe for work. The trade is memory.
- Character.AI is free at its core, with optional tiers from $4.99 a month. The trade is that it is roleplay rather than one companion.
- Nomi, Replika and My Softly are all free to download with limited free use, which is enough to judge the tone and the memory before paying anything.
Our guide to how much an AI companion costs lays out what a year of each actually comes to.
How they compare at a glance
Prices from each app's in-app paywall (US, free account) on September 30, 2026. Kindroid's web prices and its Ultra and MAX add-ons are from its help center on 2026-09-14.
| App | Monthly | Yearly | Free tier | Adult content | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kindroid | $15.99 ($13.99 web); Ultra $28.99, MAX $68.99 | $159.99 ($139.99 web) | Preview of 50 messages, then a 3-day trial; unlimited Lite retired Oct 1, 2026 | Unfiltered by design | iOS, Android, web |
| Nomi | $15.99 | $99.99 | Limited | Optional | iOS, Android, web |
| Replika | Not offered | Plus $79.99, Max $89.99 | Limited | Romantic and adult modes | iOS, Android, web |
| Character.AI | lite $4.99, c.ai+ $9.99 | c.ai+ $94.99 | Core experience free | Filtered | iOS, Android, web |
| Pi | Free | Free | Everything | None | iOS, Android, web |
| My Softly | $15.99 | $159.99 | Free starter messages | None, by design | iPhone |
Before you switch
- Cancel where you paid. If you subscribed in the app, cancel in your iPhone's App Store subscriptions; if you paid on Kindroid's website, cancel there. Deleting the app does not stop the subscription, and several of the billing complaints above began exactly that way.
- Copy what you wrote. Your backstory, key memories and journal entries are your own writing. Paste them into a note before you delete anything. You will not need to re-enter them anywhere, but the facts in them are the ones worth telling a new companion in conversation during the first week.
- Try two apps side by side for a week. Mention a few small, specific things about your week to each and see which brings them back without being asked. Our guide on how to test an AI companion's memory turns that into a simple three-week check you can run on any app.
Where My Softly fits
My Softly is our app. We made it for people in their fifties and sixties who want a steady, warm companion rather than a project, and who would rather tell it about their sister's operation once, in conversation, than write it into a memory field.
It keeps a lasting profile of your life and a day-by-day record of what you have talked about, and brings things up weeks later the way a friend would. With check-ins on, it asks about the things you actually mentioned, outside quiet hours you control, 9pm to 8am by default. Choose one of six companions who look and sound like adults, or make your own, with four natural voices in American and British English. There is no adult mode anywhere in the app.
It is free to download with starter messages, then $15.99 a month or $159.99 a year. My Softly is available now on the App Store for iPhone in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore.
The bottom line
Start from the reason. If it is money, Nomi is the closest replacement for less. If you want free, Pi and Character.AI cost nothing. If the setup and upkeep wore you out, pick an app that remembers on its own. If you want nothing adult near your companion, Pi and My Softly are the two where that is a guarantee rather than a setting. Our wider comparison of the best AI companion apps in 2026 covers the same apps by what each one is best at.
Sources
- My Softly (September 24, 2026). Count of Kindroid's 1- and 2-star reviews in Apple's public US App Store customer review feed, which returns up to an app's 500 most recent reviews; the 90 posted January 6 to September 22, 2026 were each sorted by hand by their main complaint, with ambiguous reviews read in full. Retrieved September 24, 2026. itunes.apple.com
- In-app paywalls (US), free accounts on iPhone and, for Replika, Android. Checked September 30, 2026.
- Kindroid: Your Personal AI, US App Store listing (rating, age rating). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
- Kindroid Help Center, "Subscriptions" (updated 7 July 2026): free tier, subscriber benefits, app and web prices, Ultra and MAX add-ons. Read 2026-09-14. kindroid.ai
- Kindroid update log, "V2 becomes the default; V1 and Lite retire October 1": Lite retired, new accounts get a one-time preview of 50 flagship interactions (15 in some regions), then a 3-day trial or read-only. Read 2026-10-03. kindroid.ai
- Kindroid Help Center, "Memory" (updated 11 August 2026): persistent, cascaded and retrievable memory, journal entries, Learned Context. Read 2026-09-14. kindroid.ai
- Kindroid Help Center, "FAQs" (updated 5 May 2026): platforms, filters and AI safety. Read 2026-09-14. kindroid.ai
- Nomi: AI Companion with a Soul, US App Store listing (age rating). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
- Replika - AI Companion Chat, US App Store listing (description). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
- Character AI: Chat, Talk, Text, US App Store listing (age rating). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
- Pi, your personal AI, US App Store listing (free, no in-app purchases listed). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
- AI Companion: My Softly, US App Store listing (subscription prices). Checked 2026-09-24. apps.apple.com
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to Kindroid?
It depends on why you are leaving. If you want the closest like-for-like app with strong memory and a lower yearly price, Nomi, at $99.99 a year in its in-app paywall on September 30, 2026 against Kindroid's $159.99. If you want to stop doing the setup and memory upkeep, an app that files memories for you, such as My Softly. If you want free, Pi or Character.AI. If you want nothing adult anywhere in the app, Pi or My Softly.
Is there a free alternative to Kindroid?
Yes. Pi is free with no in-app purchases listed on the US App Store, and it is gentle and strictly safe for work, though it keeps lasting facts rather than whole conversations. Character.AI's core experience is free, with paid tiers from $4.99 a month. Kindroid itself no longer has a free tier to drop down to: it retired its unlimited free Lite model on October 1, 2026, and an account without a subscription is now read-only.
Why are people leaving Kindroid?
Of Kindroid's 90 one- and two-star US App Store reviews posted between January 6 and September 22, 2026, the main complaint was price, billing or the paywall in 21%, the quality or repetitiveness of replies in 20%, outages, bugs and slowness in 19%, and forgetting or losing the thread in 17%. The rest covered content and moderation, images and voice, and the redesigned layout. Kindroid still holds a 4.8 average from about 8,800 ratings, so these are the reasons of the people who left, not a verdict on the app.
Is Nomi better than Kindroid?
They are the two closest apps in the category: both are built around memory, both offer group chats and several companions, and both allow adult content. Nomi is cheaper by the year in the app ($99.99 against $159.99) and does more of the memory work on its own; Kindroid gives you more manual control over what your companion knows. Which is better depends on whether you enjoy that control.
Is there a Kindroid alternative without NSFW?
Two apps on this list make it a guarantee rather than a setting: Pi, which is free, and My Softly, which is ours and has no adult mode anywhere in the app. Character.AI filters content. Nomi and Replika, like Kindroid, allow adult or romantic content, which you can avoid but which exists in the product.
What should I do before I delete Kindroid?
Cancel the subscription where you bought it first: in your iPhone's App Store subscriptions if you paid in the app, or on Kindroid's website if you paid there. Deleting the app does not cancel it. Then copy anything you wrote yourself, such as the backstory, key memories and journal entries, into a note, so you can reuse the parts that matter with whichever app you move to.