kitio.aiHighcharts Assist vs Columns AI
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. Highcharts Assist is completely free, while Columns AI is freemium.
At a glance
Best for
Category
Pricing model
Starting price
Free plan
Made by
Based in
Rating
Key features
- Charts from natural language
- Paste spreadsheet data
- Multilingual prompts
- Iterative refinement
- Highcharts code output
- AI data cleaning
- Workflow automation
- Chart and story builder
- Columns Drive, Flow and Graph
| Feature | Highcharts Assist | Columns AI |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Chat assistant that turns pasted data into Highcharts chart code | Data cleaning, workflow automation and charts in one platform |
| Category | Data & analytics | Data & analytics |
| Pricing model | Free | Freemium |
| Starting price | Free | See pricing page |
| Free plan | Yes, fully free | Yes |
| Made by | Highsoft | Columns AI |
| Based in | Norway | – |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
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Pricing compared
Highcharts Assist is completely free, while Columns AI is freemium.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
Prices in USD, checked Nov 5, 2026 or later. Plans change often, so confirm on each tool's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
Highcharts Assist
- Free to design and explore
- Produces code for a mature chart library
- Works with prompts in many languages
- Publishing needs a paid Highcharts license
- API access limited to a waitlist
- Output may contain errors
Columns AI
- Cleaning, automation and charts together
- Plain-language chart requests
- Good for recurring reports
- Pricing not clear from the site
- Three products to learn
- Less known than big BI tools
Which one should you choose?
Choose Highcharts Assist if you want:
- Free to design and explore
- Produces code for a mature chart library
- Works with prompts in many languages
Watch out: publishing needs a paid highcharts license.
Choose Columns AI if you want:
- Cleaning, automation and charts together
- Plain-language chart requests
- Good for recurring reports
Watch out: pricing not clear from the site.
Highcharts Assist vs Columns AI FAQ
What is the difference between Highcharts Assist and Columns AI?
Highcharts Assist: Chat assistant that turns pasted data into Highcharts chart code. Columns AI: Data cleaning, workflow automation and charts in one platform. Both are data & analytics tools.
Is Highcharts Assist or Columns AI cheaper?
Highcharts Assist is completely free, while Columns AI is freemium.
Do Highcharts Assist and Columns AI have free plans?
Highcharts Assist: Yes, fully free. Columns AI: Yes.
Who makes Highcharts Assist?
Highcharts Assist is made by Highsoft, based in Norway.
Who makes Columns AI?
Columns AI is made by Columns AI.
Which should I choose, Highcharts Assist or Columns AI?
Choose Highcharts Assist if you value free to design and explore and produces code for a mature chart library. Choose Columns AI if you value cleaning, automation and charts together and plain-language chart requests.