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Best free AI apps for Android in 2026
This page compares 8 free AI apps for Android. Knotwork, Maskan and Switchboard come first, followed by ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Canva, Picsart AI Photo Editor and Facemoji AI Emoji Keyboard.
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The first three have a lot in common. All cost nothing, none shows ads, and each carries an open-source license: Apache-2.0 for Knotwork and Switchboard, GPL-3.0-only for Maskan. They are also small, between 15.5 MB and 61.6 MB.
The other five are the big names. ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Picsart each have over 1 billion installs on Google Play, and Canva has over 500 million. Ads and in-app purchases show up more often here, and ChatGPT, Picsart and Facemoji all display ads.
Apps in this category
Google Gemini
Free Google AI assistant with Gemini Live and Gmail, Calendar links
Canva
Template-driven photo, video and AI design editor, free with ads off
Picsart AI Photo Editor
AI photo and video editor with background remover and templates, Android 6.0+
Facemoji AI Emoji Keyboard
Free emoji keyboard with 6000+ emojis, fonts, themes and AI stickers
Knotwork
Free open-source Android AI agent that runs on-device and asks first
Maskan
Free, open-source Android AI chat with 11 providers and your own API key
Switchboard
Free native Android client for your self-hosted LibreChat server
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Top 5 picks
Knotwork
Knotwork runs an AI model on the phone and asks before it does anything destructive or sensitive. Conversations pass through a graph of nodes you can edit, and it keeps long-term memory with search and export. It needs Android 14 and about 2 GB of free RAM, and the interface is English only. Version 0.12.2.
Maskan
Maskan is a chat client where you bring your own API key, with 11 providers covering cloud and local models. It adds image input, voice input in Arabic, English and Thai, and export. Conversations stay on the device, and keys are encrypted with AES-256-GCM. The license is GPL-3.0-only and the download is 34.6 MB.
Switchboard
Switchboard is a third-party native client for LibreChat, and it is not affiliated with the official project. You need your own self-hosted LibreChat server, since there is no hosted service. It supports multiple accounts, offline reading of opened conversations and dictation. The app weighs 15.5 MB and is licensed Apache-2.0.
Google Gemini
Google Gemini comes with no ads and no in-app purchases. It names Gemini 3.6 and Gemini Omni as its models, and Gemini Live lets you talk ideas through or share a screen or camera. It can connect to Gmail, Calendar, Google Photos and YouTube.
Canva
Canva is the design pick here, with a 4.8 Google Play rating and over 500 million installs. It combines templates for social posts, invitations, resumes and presentations with a photo editor, background eraser and prompt-based generation. It shows no ads but lists in-app purchases. Version 2.384.0 was updated November 4, 2026.
Questions and answers
How is this list ordered?
Knotwork, Maskan and Switchboard are placed first, and the five better-known apps follow.
Which of these apps have no ads?
Five of the 8: Google Gemini, Canva, Knotwork, Maskan and Switchboard. ChatGPT, Picsart AI Photo Editor and Facemoji AI Emoji Keyboard list ads.
Do any of these apps need extra setup?
Three do. Maskan needs your own API key from a supported provider. Switchboard needs your own LibreChat server. Knotwork needs Android 14 and about 2 GB of free RAM.
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Check requirements before installing. Knotwork needs Android 14 and about 2 GB of free RAM, and on some phones the screen freezes while the model runs on the GPU, so switching it to CPU is the listed fix. Maskan and Switchboard are only useful if you already have an API key or a LibreChat server.
For the larger apps, compare the ratings. Picsart holds 3.9 on Google Play, the lowest in this set, while ChatGPT and Canva both sit at 4.8. Facemoji lists 4.7. Every app here is priced at zero, but ChatGPT, Canva, Picsart and Facemoji all list in-app purchases.