THE STACK

The tools we use (and recommend).

Every tool listed here is one we actually use or have used long enough to have a calibrated opinion about. We only link to tools we'd recommend without an affiliate program — the program just covers the cost of running the brand.

Affiliate disclosure: Where noted, signing up via the link below sends a small commission our way at no cost to you. We are FTC-compliant and disclose every affiliate link adjacent to where it appears. No "sponsored content" that isn't labeled. No paid placements that override honest recommendations.

Claude

by Anthropic

Best for: Writing, long-context reasoning, MCP-connected agents

Pricing: Free tier · Pro $17/mo annual · Max $100/mo

The tool the book is centered on. Strongest free tier on the market — persistent memory, 1M-token context, 200+ MCP connectors, ad-free.

Visit Claude →

ChatGPT

by OpenAI

Best for: All-around assistant, image generation, biggest community

Pricing: Free tier · Plus $20/mo · Pro $200/mo

Strong all-rounder. Best image generation in 2026. Note: shows ads on the free tier in the US as of February 2026.

Visit ChatGPT →

Perplexity

by Perplexity AI

Best for: Source-cited research

Pricing: Free tier · Pro $20/mo · Max $200/mo

Purpose-built for research with citations. Pairs well with Claude — research with Perplexity, synthesize with Claude.

Visit Perplexity →

Notion

by Notion Labs

Best for: Note-taking, project tracking, household OS

Pricing: Free for personal use · Plus $10/mo

The household-operations system many readers use as the source of truth for the Family Operations System framework in Chapter 5.

Visit Notion → (affiliate link — small commission, no cost to you)

Zapier

by Zapier

Best for: Workflow automation across apps

Pricing: Free tier (100 tasks/mo) · Starter $19.99/mo

For when MCP doesn't reach the app you need to connect. The connector-of-last-resort.

Visit Zapier → (affiliate link — small commission, no cost to you)

Make.com

by Make

Best for: Advanced workflow automation

Pricing: Free tier · Core $9/mo

Cheaper than Zapier at scale; more powerful for complex multi-step automations. Steeper learning curve.

Visit Make.com → (affiliate link — small commission, no cost to you)

What's NOT on this page.

Several categories of AI tools are heavily marketed but typically not worth paying for as a busy non-technical reader:

Standalone AI productivity apps that wrap a major LLM with a custom UI. You can almost always do the same workflow directly in Claude with better results.
AI agency "swipe files" marketed by influencers. Most of the prompts inside are obvious adaptations of patterns in this book.
Enterprise AI tools sold for personal use. Priced and scoped for organizations; overkill for individuals.
AI scheduling assistants at $10-30/month. Claude with a calendar connector does this free.

If you spot a tool on the page you've used long enough to disagree with us — email hello@aifrictionfree.com and tell us what we got wrong. We update this page when readers push back.