How AI companion filters work, layer by layer

• The policy: what the app allows at all, set by the company
• The plan: whether that level is open to free accounts or only to paying ones
• The settings: switches the app itself documents, where it has them
• The medium: text and pictures are often held to different lines

Most confusion comes from mixing those layers up. Someone on a free plan hits a limit and calls it a strict filter, when the real answer is a plan gate. Someone else gets a refused picture on an app that allows adult text, and thinks the filter is broken, when images simply follow a tighter rule.

My take: before blaming a filter, ask which layer you're hitting. It saves a lot of frustration, and often money, because the fix is different for each one. A plan gate is solved with money, a setting with a click, and a policy only by changing app.

There's one more thing that looks like a filter but isn't. When a character suddenly changes the subject or forgets where a scene was going, that's often memory, not content rules. Long chats drift on many apps. That side is covered in my AI companion memory explainer, and it's worth ruling out before you assume you've been blocked.

The table right after this section, "The apps side by side", puts the six apps on this page next to each other, content policy included. Keep it in mind as you read the layers below.

That's why I read the policy line before anything else on an app's page. It answers the real question in one go: is this app even built for what I want? Everything else, the price, the free start, the features, only matters once the answer is yes.

The policy also tells you how honest an app's marketing is. An app that shows spicy characters on its homepage but allows only suggestive content is setting people up to feel filtered. An app that states its level plainly, even a strict one, is easier to trust.

• Candy AI: allowed on paid plans only; a free account was counted at 3-5 messages plus 3-5 images, no more
• GirlfriendGPT: allowed on paid plans only; Premium at $15.00 a month lists NSFW chat, and Deluxe at $35.00 lists uncensored chat access
• SpicyChat: allowed under its policy, with free unlimited text chat on the Default model
• Nomi AI and OurDream AI: allowed under their policies, with Nomi's permanent free plan at 50 messages a day
• Joi AI: allowed under its policy; Premium at $13.99 a month lists better chat models, uncensored ones among them

My view on paid-only policies: they're fair, as long as the free start is honest about it. The catch is that you can't preview the thing you're paying for. With Candy AI in particular, the free account is tiny, so you're buying on trust.

With a policy that allows it on every plan, you can judge the chat before paying. That's why I'd start with SpicyChat and Nomi AI when you want to see how an app handles a scene without a card.

For a ranked list built around the loosest policies, see my uncensored AI apps page.

The opposite happens too. Other reviewers report that SpicyChat's image setting is buried three menus deep, a profile display switch first and then a separate one for images in the conversation. If you only flip the first, the app still behaves as if it's filtered, and you'd reasonably think something is broken.

My take: a filter that surprises you in either direction is a design problem, not your fault. When it happens, check the app's documented settings first, then its policy, and leave the verdict on the app itself for last.

It's also worth knowing that apps rarely publish how their filter decides. None of the records on this page explain the rules line by line. So I'd treat anyone who claims to know the "exact trigger words" with suspicion.

That gap makes sense to me. A picture is a bigger risk for an app than a paragraph, so companies tend to be more careful with it. Candy AI is the clearest case of pictures being part of the deal: its 1-Month Plan lists 18+ images and videos as a paid benefit.

If images are what you want, don't judge an app by its chat policy alone. Look for image generation listed on the plan you'd buy. Joi AI adds a cost angle: one reviewer found Neurons are used up even when an image fails, so a refused or broken picture isn't free there.

My NSFW AI chat list compares apps on both chat and pictures, so you can see where the two lines sit for each one.

I also won't share prompts or tricks for it here, and I'd distrust any site offering them, since following one puts your account on the line. The safe route is always the same: find an app whose policy allows what you want, and use it as intended.

There's a practical side too. Even when a trick seems to work, the filter is likely to catch up in the middle of the scene you cared about. You end up fighting the app instead of enjoying it, and that's a poor way to spend an evening.

First, check the app's own settings. Where an app documents a content switch, use it. The records mention Safe Mode on GirlfriendGPT and the separate display and image switches on SpicyChat.

Second, check your plan. On Candy AI and GirlfriendGPT, adult content is a paid-plan feature. If you're on a free account, the limit you hit is the plan, not a stricter filter.

Third, switch app. If the policy itself doesn't allow what you want, no plan or setting will. Moving to an app whose policy fits is the clean answer. The table and the app sections on this page are there to help you choose.

Fourth, adjust the story. A lot of what reads as a hard block is a scene pushed past the app's level. A slower build often fits inside it. Let tension grow through dialogue and let the character react. That's writing advice, not a workaround, and it tends to make better stories on any app.

For short answers on related questions, from memory to billing, my help section on companion apps collects them in one place. It's the fastest way to find one answer without reading a full review.

The refund rule matters more than it seems, because filters are exactly the kind of thing you only understand after a few days. On this page, the rules differ a lot. On Candy AI, buyers outside the EU and UK get a 24-hour refund window from the moment they pay.

OurDream AI has a 14-day Quality Guarantee, decided case by case. Nomi AI's payments are nonrefundable, SpicyChat's fees are non-refundable once the account has been used, and GirlfriendGPT doesn't offer refunds for paid subscriptions except in limited cases. Joi AI treats subscriptions as generally non-refundable once they're activated.

My view: when the free start can't show you the content level, as on paid-only apps, a short refund window is your only safety net. That makes Candy AI's 24 hours worth knowing to the hour. Put a reminder on your phone the moment you pay, so the window doesn't slip past.

GirlfriendGPT is the most layered example. Premium at $15.00 a month lists NSFW chat. Deluxe at $35.00 a month lists uncensored chat access, voice messages, in-chat images, video and 8K memory context. So on that app, the filter loosens step by step as the price rises, which is worth knowing before you pick a tier.

Joi AI works in a similar way. Its Premium plan at $13.99 a month lists better chat models, including uncensored ones, and one reviewer described free chat as stiff while paid chat felt warmer.

If you're curious how facts like these are gathered and dated, my note on how I check the apps explains the sources. Everything on this page comes from official pages or clearly labelled reviewer reports.

So on the free side you meet the filter almost immediately, and it isn't telling you much about the paid experience.

Once you pay, the 1-Month Plan at €13.99 lists unlimited text messages, custom companions, 18+ images and videos, and 100 tokens a month. That's a full package.

What bothers me is buying blind. With so small a free start, you commit money before you know if you like the characters. My advice: if you try it, start with the monthly plan, not the 12-month offer at €47.88, and remember the refund window.

Outside the EU and UK, the refund window closes 24 hours after payment, and nothing comes back once it has passed.

Two reviewer reports shape what you get for the money. Images are described as highly realistic, with a character's look staying consistent across generations. But about 1 in 8 image generations reportedly comes back with visible errors, with no free retry. If that rate is right, budget a few extra tokens for re-rolls.

On discretion, the charge shows as EverAI, not Candy AI. For a lot of people, that neutral name is a real plus, especially on a shared card or a statement someone else might open.

Cancelling is simple on paper: the Terms let you cancel whenever you like under Settings / Unsubscribe in your account. Each plan rolls over on its own when its period ends, at the length and price shown at checkout, so cancel early if you only want one month.

Candy AI also lets you build your own companion rather than picking from a list. If that's the part that excites you, my step-by-step walkthrough for creating an AI girlfriend goes through what to decide first, looks, personality and the kind of story you want, so you're not designing on a paid clock.

• Starting free: Free tier
• Lowest price: €3.99 monthly (12-Month Plan)
• Allowed: mature chat, paid plans
• Runs on: web

The free plan lists 55 Dreamcoins to start. The help centre, though, says it does not currently offer free dreamcoins, so the number may change. Either way, a coin-per-message free start runs out fast, and you'll be deciding on a subscription sooner than on a free-chat app.

Standard at $19.99 a month removes the per-message cost with unlimited messages and adds image and video generation plus 1,000 dreamcoins every month. The yearly Standard plan brings that down to $9.99 a month, billed $119.88. Deluxe goes much higher: each month brings 5,000 dreamcoins, 50 videos and 100 minutes of calls.

One reviewer found the videos brief, costly in coins and hit-and-miss, yet still a real surprise next to rivals. Another noted that voice calls drained coins fast. My read: the policy is open, but the coins are where you'll feel the limits, so watch the balance rather than the filter.

On refunds, OurDream AI is kinder than most: a 14-day Quality Guarantee lets you ask support for a credit, a replacement or a refund, case by case. The charge shows as DREAM STUDIO LLC AL on statements, which is fairly neutral. To cancel, go to your profile page, click Cancel subscription and confirm; you keep access for the rest of the period you paid for.

One more reviewer note: the free tier that existed in an earlier test was described as much thinner in a 2026 retest. That fits the coin caveat above, so I'd treat the free start as a short preview, not a way to live on the app.

It also lists group chat, which few apps here have. If you like shaping how each character talks and reacts, my guide on how to customize an AI companion's personality helps you get more from custom characters, whichever app you choose.

• Starting free: Free tier
• Lowest price: $9.99 monthly (Standard Annual)
• Allowed: mature chat permitted
• Runs on: web

The picture side is stricter. A free account can make 2 images daily, while subscribers receive 40 image credits every day. But one review found that image generation works from a pre-made gallery rather than your own prompts, and frequently refuses adult content. So if you arrive expecting the chat and the pictures to match, they won't. That's not a bug in the chat filter, it's a tighter rule on images.

My take: Nomi AI is a companion-first app, and it shows. The same reviewer called the chat and roleplay quality the best of the apps tested, fluid and human-like, with long-term memory that starts a Mind Map of you around the 500-message mark. If conversation is what you want, the careful image side is a small price.

Standard costs $15.99 a month, $39.99 a quarter or $99.99 a year, and adds unlimited messages of up to 800 characters, voice calls, up to 10 active Nomis and group chats. Payments are nonrefundable, so use the free plan to decide. One reviewer also reported payment processing trouble at checkout, sometimes needing a US region to complete it, which is worth knowing if you're outside the US.

Voice is another place where the experience differs from text. On voice calls, one reviewer waited 15-20 seconds after each message before the reply could be heard. My voice calls explainer covers how calling works across apps and what to expect.

On bank statements the charge reads NOMI.AI, and on the web you cancel through the profile icon, the Subscription tab and Manage Subscription. Short version: Nomi AI is where I'd send someone who wants an open chat policy with a free way in, and doesn't mind that pictures are held to a stricter line.

• Starting free: Free tier, 50 free messages daily
• Lowest price: $8.33 monthly (Standard Plan Yearly)
• Allowed: mature chat permitted
• Runs on: web, ios, android