DeepSeek: what it is and how to use it for free

TL;DR

• DeepSeek V3.2 is a free, open source alternative to ChatGPT
• No usage limits, no subscription required
• 3 ways to use it: web (chat.deepseek.com), mobile app, or local with Ollama
• DeepThink activates advanced reasoning; Search enables up-to-date web search

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DeepSeek has become one of the most powerful alternatives to ChatGPT, and the best part is that it’s completely free. In this guide, I’ll explain what it is and the different ways to use it without paying anything.

What is DeepSeek?

DeepSeek is a Chinese artificial intelligence company founded in 2023 by Liang Wenfeng. Its chatbot of the same name competes directly with ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, but with a key difference: it’s open source and free.

The most recent model is DeepSeek V3.2, released in December 2025, which rivals GPT-5 and Gemini 3 Pro in reasoning, programming, and math tasks. The V3.2-Speciale version has even won gold medals in competitions like the International Mathematical Olympiad.

Why is it causing such a stir?

Three main reasons:

1. Performance comparable to market leaders at a fraction of the development cost
2. Open source under Apache 2.0 license, allowing commercial use
3. Completely free with no usage limits or subscriptions

How to use DeepSeek for free

You have several options depending on your needs:

Option 1: From your browser (no registration)

The quickest way to try DeepSeek:

1. Go to chat.deepseek.com
2. Start typing your query
3. No account needed for basic use

If you want to save your conversation history, you can register with your email.

Option 2: Official mobile app

DeepSeek has official apps for iOS and Android:

• Android: Search for “DeepSeek - AI Assistant” on Google Play Store
• iPhone: Search for “DeepSeek - AI Assistant” on App Store

The app is free and offers the same features as the web version, with the advantage of notifications and a mobile-optimized interface.

Option 3: Local installation with Ollama

If you prefer running DeepSeek on your own computer (useful for privacy or offline use):

1. Install Ollama from ollama.com
2. Open your terminal and run:

ollama run deepseek-r1:8b

This will download and start a “distilled” version of the model. Available versions range from 1.5B to 70B parameters. Start with a small version and scale up based on your hardware capacity.

For a friendlier graphical interface, you can use Open WebUI with Docker:

docker run -d -p 8080:8080 --network=host \
  -v open-webui:/app/backend/data \
  -e OLLAMA_BASE_URL=http://127.0.0.1:11434 \
  --name open-webui \
  ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main

Then access http://localhost:8080 and select the DeepSeek model.

If you want to dive deeper into why more companies are choosing to run AI locally, read why companies are fleeing AI cloud.

Main DeepSeek features

DeepThink (reasoning mode)

When you activate the DeepThink button in the interface, DeepSeek “thinks” before responding, showing its reasoning process between <think> tags. It’s especially useful for:

• Complex math problems
• Logical analysis
• Programming tasks
• Questions requiring multiple steps

Web search

With the Search button activated, DeepSeek can search for up-to-date information on the Internet and cite sources in its response.

File analysis

You can attach documents and files for DeepSeek to analyze, similar to what ChatGPT does with its analysis feature.

DeepSeek vs ChatGPT: key differences

Aspect	DeepSeek	ChatGPT
Price	Free without limits	Free with limits, Plus from $20/month
Open source	Yes (Apache 2.0)	No
Reasoning	Excellent (comparable to o1)	Excellent in paid versions
Programming	Very good	Very good
Privacy	Local use possible	Cloud only

Privacy considerations

DeepSeek stores user data such as chat history and text inputs on its servers (located in China). If privacy is a priority for you, consider:

• Using the local version with Ollama
• Not sharing sensitive information in conversations
• Reviewing their terms of service

Conclusion

DeepSeek represents a serious and free alternative to ChatGPT. Its performance in reasoning, programming, and math tasks is on par with the best commercial models, with the added advantage of being open source.

If you haven’t tried it yet, I recommend starting with the web version at chat.deepseek.com and experimenting with different types of queries. The barrier to entry is practically non-existent: no registration needed, no usage limits, and it costs nothing.

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DeepSeek is one of the most relevant AI trends in 2026. If you want to understand how AI models are changing the industry, start there.