Here's who is spending money on AI subscriptions, and how much they cost

MoneyWatch Here's who is spending money on AI subscriptions, and how much they cost .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Megan Cerullo Megan Cerullo Reporter, MoneyWatch Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting. Read Full Bio Megan Cerullo April 17, 2026 / 10:35 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Spending on AI subscriptions is starting to become a part of some households' budgets as users choose to upgrade to more powerful versions of publicly available generative AI tools, like OpenAI's ChatGPT.The share of U.S. households that now pays for a generative AI subscription is up roughly 155% compared to last year, according to new data from PNC Bank. However, only about 2% of all U.S. households, many of them upper-income, spend money on such tools. Not a lot of churnConsumers who pay to use AI tools appear to be satisfied with the products they're spending money on, according to PNC data, which found that subscriptions are "getting stickier." In other words, once users sign up, they tend to remain subscribers for a long period as opposed to dropping the plans. The average length of a subscription is seven months, according to PNC."That suggests many users are finding ongoing value in these services rather than simply trying them out for a month or two," the report's authors said. How much does Gen AI cost?Among households that pay for generative AI subscriptions, the vast majority are shelling out $20 a month, which is roughly the going rate for most consumer-facing tools, according to PNC. A much smaller share of households opt for more expensive "pro" plans.OpenAI's most basic ChatGPT offering is free, but comes with limitations. An $8 per month "Go" offering lets users send more messages th...