Independent category guide
Martin alternatives in 2026
The best Martin alternative is Pally if you want no app at all: it lives in your texts, is free, and completes bookings, purchases, and calls for you. Poke suits visible automations, and Lindy suits meeting-heavy work.
Martin is one of the most complete personal assistants in this group. Its polished iOS app, voice mode, SMS and phone access, calendar autopilot, email workflows, reminders, and talking alarm make it hard to replace for someone who wants to speak to an assistant.
Pally
Best Martin alternative with no app
Pally removes the app and makes your texts the assistant's home. It is the best alternative when you want a free assistant that also handles your WhatsApp, checks out on the web, and answers a number you give out, but Martin remains stronger for app-based voice mode.
Pros
- Lives in your texts, with no app or account setup
- Daily brief and proactive alerts from your connected apps
- Finishes the replies, bookings, and purchases you ask for
Tradeoffs
- No app-based voice mode or talking alarm
Pricing: Pally is free, with almost unlimited usage limits. No waitlist or invitation. Cloud Mac is a paid add-on. See what's included
Poke
Best for messaging channels and visible Recipes
Poke is a no-app assistant available through Apple Messages, RCS, Telegram, and WhatsApp. Its Recipes make repeated and scheduled automations visible, and its permanent free plan plus $19 Pro tier give it a gentler price path than Martin.
Pros
- Four messaging channels with no app required
- Named Recipes for repeated and scheduled work
- Permanent free plan and lower-priced Pro tier
Tradeoffs
- Calls go through Poke Human on the $199 Ultra plan
- No app-based voice mode
Pricing: Poke has a permanent free plan with all app connections. Pro is $19 a month and adds frontier models for complex tasks and higher limits for real-time automations. Ultra is $199 a month, with frontier models for every action, the highest automation limits, Poke Human, and optional pay-as-you-go usage beyond its credits. Check latest pricing
Lindy
Best for inboxes and the full meeting lifecycle
Lindy is an AI teammate pitched Slack-first at work teams, also reachable over iMessage, RCS, or SMS, with deep inbox and meeting workflows. It is the stronger Martin alternative when recording, notes, preparation, and follow-up across a meeting's full lifecycle matter more than personal voice features.
Pros
- Proactive inbox triage and drafting
- Meeting scheduling, recording, notes, prep, and follow-up
- More than 1,000 integrations, by Lindy's own count
Tradeoffs
- No lasting free plan
- Narrower focus on work than Martin or Pally
Pricing: Lindy offers $50 in free credits with no card required, but they expire after seven days. Paid Team usage starts at $29.99 per user a month for 3,000 credits, pooled across the team. Larger credit packs are available, top-ups cost $10 per 1,000 credits, and Enterprise pricing is custom. There is no ongoing free allowance advertised. Check latest pricing
Saner.AI
Best for a notes and task workspace
Saner.AI brings notes and tasks into one AI workspace.
Pros
- One place for notes and tasks
Tradeoffs
- Not a voice-first phone assistant
Pricing: Saner.AI has a free plan with 30 AI messages a month and 100 notes. Its pricing page displays Starter at $8 a month and Standard at $16 a month, with a billing-frequency selector. External AI model usage can cost extra. Check latest pricing
Motion
Best for automatic work planning
Motion combines AI tasks, projects, calendar, and meetings in a work app.
Pros
- Automated work planning
Tradeoffs
- No comparable personal voice mode
Google Gemini
Best for Android and Google services
Google Gemini is integrated with Android and Google apps.
Pros
- Integrated with Google services
Tradeoffs
- Less focused on delegated calls and bookings
Pricing: Google lists a free Gemini plan at $0 a month with a Google Account. In the US, Google AI Plus is $4.99 a month, Pro is $19.99, and Ultra starts at $99.99; plans raise usage limits and add features. Prices and availability vary by region. Check latest pricing
Reclaim
Best for calendar time protection
Reclaim is an AI calendar for protecting time across work and life.
Pros
- Calendar-based time planning
Tradeoffs
- Not a broad voice assistant
Carly AI
Best for delegating inbox work
Carly AI takes delegated email, calendar, and workflow tasks.
Pros
- Delegation across email and calendar
Tradeoffs
- Less focused on personal voice interaction
Pricing: Carly has a free plan for MCP access, ten workflows, and calendar and task tools. Its Personal plan is $35 a month; Organization is $35 per seat a month. Paid plans add custom agents, email and SMS delegation, and credits. Check latest pricing
Bottom line
How to choose
Pally is the closest fit for someone leaving Martin because they want the assistant to disappear into their texts and keep working across personal and professional accounts. Poke is better if messaging reach and explicit Recipes are the priority, while Lindy is the specialist choice for an inbox-and-meetings workday.
If voice mode or a polished iOS app is why you use Martin, stay with Martin. Pally's calling is a different feature, not a substitute for voice-first interaction.
Questions
Common questions
Does Martin have a free plan?
No. Martin starts with a seven-day free trial, followed by paid Basic or Pro plans. Pally is free, with almost unlimited usage limits. Poke offers a permanent free plan.
Which Martin alternatives can I text?
Pally lives in your texts, with no app. Poke uses Apple Messages, RCS, Telegram, and WhatsApp, and Lindy uses iMessage on iPhone and RCS or SMS on Android.
What is the difference between Pally and Martin?
Martin centers voice, notifications, and settings in a polished iOS app, although texting works without it. Both make calls for you. Pally has no app, lives in your texts, is free, checks out with your payment wallet, and answers a number you give out.
Which Martin alternative is best for meetings?
Lindy has the deepest meeting-specific workflow in this list, covering scheduling, recording, notes, preparation, action items, and follow-ups. Pally does not record meetings itself; it reads notes from Granola, Fathom, Fireflies, or Plaud.
Facts checked October 12, 2026. Pally pricing comes from its pricing section. Competitor facts and pricing come from the public sources below.