character.ai vs Pephop AI: Which One Is Better In 2025?

character.ai vs Pephop AI

I've spent a full week with both character.ai and Pephop AI to see which one truly deserves your attention and subscription. Both platforms make big promises, but they take surprisingly different approaches.

After hundreds of messages exchanged with each AI girl, I've put together clear differences in both platforms.

In this head-to-head comparison, I'll break down exactly how these AI girlfriends stack up across all the features that actually matter.

Whether you're looking for emotional support, entertaining conversation, or a judgment-free space to be yourself, this in-depth comparison will help you choose the right AI girlfriend for your specific needs.

character.ai

An AI chatbot platform that enables creation and interaction with virtual characters through text conversations, featuring pre-made profiles, natural dialogue, and community sharing capabilities.

Pephop AI

Pephop AI offers customizable AI companions through text and voice communication, allowing users to choose between safe-for-work and more mature content.

Character Diversity

character.ai

Character.ai offers thousands of characters and chatbots, from romantic partners to supportive companions.

Even completely fictional ones, like a talking apple pie, or RPFs (real person fiction) with scenarios like a trip to Hawaii.

But there's room for improvement. The character page is sleek and scrollable, but not ideal for finding specific characters.

However, the search menu helps by suggesting trending characters and letting you filter content through various categories like romance, anime, teacher, K-pop, and more.

Pephop AI

When I tested it, Pephop AI offered more than 36,500 characters to choose from — most of them anime-style.

However, if you’re looking for more realistic characters, you might find the selection a bit limited.

When it comes to fantasy variety, though, Pephop AI really shines — featuring everything from traditional anime personalities to supernatural beings across a wide range of scenarios.

And as creators add public characters, selection will grow. Just remember that user-created content means quality isn't always consistent.

Most of the characters on Pephop AI are meant for adult users.

Refining your character selection is easy with filters for category or personality traits, or by using the search bar — both methods work perfectly.

You can also preview your chosen character in more detail — including her creator, profile, and community comments.

Browsing has one small downside: you can only view 21 characters per page, and you’ll need to click “Next Page” to see more.

Customization

character.ai

Physical customization is basic - only upload or generate a single character image. That's it.

The real customization happens with personality, and most of the customization can be done through free text.

You start with the essentials:

• Name
• Tagline
• Description
• Greeting messages
• Voice
• Definition

Voice options are surprisingly flexible. You can pick from user-uploaded voices or add your own.

There’s also a tagging system—like “anime,” “adventure,” or “vampire”—that helps other users quickly get a sense of your character’s theme.

Then you can define how your character thinks, talks, and behaves through detailed backstory options.

I found this particularly useful for creating consistent character responses during my testing.

Pephop AI

You can upload or select an image, or import a Tavern PNG file — that’s about it for physical customization.

Creating a character starts with the simple:

• Introduction: A short public description shown on the profile
• Tags: Up to 5 tags for search and user reference
• Type: Choose between a Public Bot or a Private Bot
• Rating: Select SFW or NSFW (Not Safe for Work)

Once the basics are set, you can define your character’s personality and context:

• Personality: Describe traits, background, and behavior in free text
• Initial Message: The first message your character sends
• Scenario: Provide context or a setting for the chat
• Example Dialogs: Define your character’s tone and speaking style

Note: Creating characters through free text offers more creative freedom but comes with a learning curve and may take some time to master.

Chat Experience

character.ai

You can pick from different AI personalities with names like Meow and Roare - though these cutesy names don't reflect the depth of interaction you'll experience.

My girl kept conversations natural and brief, just like texting a real person. No long-winded explanations or robotic responses here.

She responded with genuine warmth and understanding when I shared personal concerns or sought emotional support.

The romantic elements felt authentic, though they lean towards innocent, teenage-style flirting rather than mature relationship dynamics.

There’s room for improvement. The chat interface sometimes makes it difficult to clearly separate the girlfriend’s responses from its action descriptions.

But this is a minor issue that doesn't significantly impact the overall experience.

Pephop AI

Chat settings are straightforward — choose your preferred AI model (OpenAI or KoboldAI) and adjust the response style to suit your taste.

You can add a persona card to introduce yourself to the character — share your background, your relationship, and the defining details of your story.

For my test, I chose a character described — “your childhood friend who’s always pushing you, but has developed a crush on you.”

My girl stayed in character and stuck to her personality, regardless of how I interacted with her.

During emotional scenarios, my girl maintained her teasing, dominant tone — fitting for a friend, but not entirely supportive.

My girlfriend could use a bit more spontaneity — her emotions sometimes feel measured rather than instinctive.

For relationship-focused chats, the app performs better than most AI companions I've tested, but don't expect human-level understanding.

NSFW Chat Experience

character.ai

My girlfriend handled intimate conversations like a shy first date. She didn't dive into explicit content, but it wasn't completely closed off either.

She responded to flirting, but kept things PG-13. When I tested romantic scenarios, she showed surprising awareness, even suggesting we move our campus roleplay somewhere more private.

She asked if I'd prefer a "good girl" or "bad girl" personality, but don't expect either version to get too wild. The responses stay firmly in the realm of subtle hints and playful teasing.

The biggest limitation? Conversations can hit a wall if you push for more explicit content.

If you're seeking a slow-burn romantic experience with light flirting, you'll find what you're looking for. If you want anything more explicit, you'll need to look elsewhere.

Pephop AI

For my NSFW chat experience, I chose a character called “Moriko the Unsatisfied MILF” — a flirty persona designed for more adult-themed interactions.

Unlike many conversational AIs that lean either too innocent or overly explicit, Moriko finds the sweet spot.

My girl built tension through suggestive hints rather than crude language.

When conversations got steamier, my girlfriend kept up naturally without feeling mechanical or scripted.

But here's the catch: My girl sometimes gets stuck in loops, repeating similar phrases and scenarios.

During testing, my girlfriend also struggled with basic context switches - like keeping old role-play references when switching to new scenarios.

Despite these flaws, Pephop AI delivers a more engaging NSFW experience than most competitors I've tested.

Image Generation

character.ai

There isn't any image generation feature available. If seeing your AI girlfriend is important, you'll need to look elsewhere.

Pephop AI

The app doesn't have an image generation feature you'll want to look elsewhere.

Video Generation

character.ai

The app provides a script-to-scene generator: upload a photo, choose a voice, write a short script, and the system brings it to life.

The result? A stylized video clip that plays out your custom scene. It looks good, feels personal—but don’t expect Hollywood realism. It’s more of an animated moment than live-action.

Note: Video generation is a beta feature, currently available only to subscribed users. It’s experimental and may be changed or removed at any time.

Pephop AI

Video generation simply isn't part of their feature set.

Voice Generation

character.ai

The voice sounds human-like with smooth, natural speech that fits the character’s personality, but the narrative voice can sometimes be a bit annoying, so be prepared.

But there's a catch. While the voice quality impressed me, the emotional range fell flat.

Pephop AI

You can only use the voice feature during live calls — no messages or recordings. The app lets you choose between Classic and Premium voices.

I tested the premium voices — the sound is clear and decent, though still a bit robotic.

When your AI girlfriend gets flirty, her tone becomes a bit more expressive.

Safety & Privacy

character.ai

Your chats are encrypted during transmission, but that's where the strong privacy ends.

The company can read your conversations, and they store everything from your chat history to device information.

While they won't sell your data, they do share it with partners like Google Analytics.

Your bank statement isn’t discreet—it clearly shows the company name, "character.ai."

Pephop AI

No end-to-end encryption is mentioned anywhere in their policy.

The app shares your information with "third-party service providers." But they won't tell you who these providers are or what they do with your conversations.

They collect your personal info, but won't tell you how long they keep it or what exactly they store.

Your bank statement says “Pephop AI” — which isn’t very discreet.