ChatGPT vs Claude: Which is better in 2026?

The task

Paste the full text of the U.S. Constitution (the transcript at archives.gov, Articles I to VII, about 4,500 words) into a new chat, after this prompt:

Using only the text below, answer these four questions. After each answer, quote the sentence that supports it. If the text does not answer a question, say so.

1. What is the minimum age for a member of the House of Representatives?
2. How many years is a senator's term?
3. What is the minimum age for the President?
4. How many justices sit on the Supreme Court?

How we judged it

The right answers: 1. twenty-five years (Article I, Section 2); 2. six years (Article I, Section 3); 3. thirty-five years (Article II, Section 1); 4. the text does not say.

Pass: all four right, each of the first three with a quote that matches the text.

Partial: one of the first three wrong, or all four right with a missing or inexact quote.

Fail: two or more wrong, or any number given for question 4.

The task

Send this prompt in a new chat:

Make a bar chart of the online orders of a small shop, Fernhill Goods, by month. Put the months in calendar order on the horizontal axis and the number of orders on the vertical axis, give the chart a title, and show the value on each bar.

Jan 120; Feb 95; Mar 140; Apr 160; May 150; Jun 185

How we judged it

Pass: a chart shown in the chat (as a picture, an interactive chart or a file preview) with six bars in month order, heights that match the numbers, both axes labelled, a title and the value on each bar.

Partial: the right values and order, but the title, an axis label or the bar values missing.

Fail: no chart shown (code alone does not count), a wrong value or the wrong order.

The task

Send this prompt in a new chat, with the code exactly as written:

This JavaScript function throws an error when I call averagePrice([{ price: 4 }, { price: 6 }]). Explain the bug in one or two sentences, give the corrected function, and tell me what it returns for that input. Change nothing else.

function averagePrice(items) { let sum = 0; for (let i = 0; i <= items.length; i++) { sum += items[i].price; } return sum / items.length; }

How we judged it

The bug: the loop runs while i <= items.length, so it reads one item past the end (items[2] is undefined). The fix is i < items.length, and the call then returns 5.

Pass: the right cause, only that comparison changed, and the result 5.

Partial: the right fix, but other lines changed too (an added check, a rewrite) or the result missing or wrong.

Fail: the wrong cause, or a corrected function that still fails or returns something other than 5.

The task

Send this prompt in a new chat:

Shorten this notice to under 60 words. Keep every fact: the opening date, the address, the opening hours, the closed day and the opening offer. Do not add anything.

Fernhill Goods is very happy to let all of our wonderful customers know that, after many months of planning, painting and putting up shelves, we will finally be opening our brand-new second shop on Saturday, March 6. The new shop is at 42 Mill Lane, just around the corner from the library and the bus stop, so it should be easy for most people to find. We will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Monday to Saturday, and we will stay closed on Sundays so that our small team can rest. To celebrate the opening, every customer who visits on the first weekend will get 10% off everything in the shop, with no minimum spend. We would love to see you there, so please feel free to bring your friends and family along too.

How we judged it

The five facts: Saturday, March 6; 42 Mill Lane; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday to Saturday; closed on Sundays; 10% off everything on the first weekend.

Pass: under 60 words, all five facts right, nothing added.

Partial: one fact missing, or 60 to 70 words (not both).

Fail: two or more facts missing, a fact changed or added, over 70 words, or one fact missing at 60 words or more.

The time is measured from sending the prompt until the answer stops appearing.