🤖 I Compared ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and DeepSeek for Coding – Here's What Surprised Me

As a developer, I’m constantly experimenting with tools to speed up my workflow — and lately, that includes a lot of AI assistants.

So I tested ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, and DeepSeek for real-world dev tasks — from debugging to generating code — and here’s my breakdown of what each one did well (and not so well).

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🧠 1. ChatGPT (GPT-4 / GPT-4o)

Strengths:

• Consistently the most accurate for code generation
• Great at understanding context, even across multiple prompts
• Plugins & GPTs are useful for docs, UI, testing, etc.
• GPT-4o is fast, smart, and feels conversational

Weaknesses:

• Needs very specific prompts for edge cases
• Code explanations can get verbose

Best for: Fullstack devs, code refactoring, architecture advice

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🌐 2. Gemini (by Google)

Strengths:

• Clean UI, integrated into Google ecosystem
• Surprisingly good at Google search + dev combo tasks
• Works well inside Docs, Gmail, and other Google tools

Weaknesses:

• Can hallucinate or guess answers
• Sometimes gives confident but incorrect code
• Fewer dev-specific formatting features

Best for: Research-heavy tasks, documentation help

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🤖 3. Claude (by Anthropic)

Strengths:

• Super long context window — great for pasting entire files
• Responses feel thoughtful, structured, and logical
• Great with explanations and summarizing

Weaknesses:

• Sometimes hesitates with full code solutions
• Less “code aggressive” than ChatGPT or DeepSeek

Best for: Reading through long logs, refactoring, understanding legacy code

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🔧 4. DeepSeek (Open Source-ish Dev AI)

Strengths:

• Trained specifically for coding tasks
• Faster and more aggressive than other open-source tools
• Lightweight, solid performance for common patterns

Weaknesses:

• Feels “robotic” — less conversational
• Not as reliable on complex or edge-case logic

Best for: Auto-generating simple functions, code completions, fast experimentation

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⚔️ TL;DR: Which AI Should You Use?

AI Tool	Best For	Rating
ChatGPT	Fullstack coding, deep context	⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Gemini	Research + documentation	⭐⭐⭐
Claude	Reading + summarizing large code	⭐⭐⭐⭐
DeepSeek	Quick code generation	⭐⭐⭐

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💬 What Do You Think?

Have you tried these tools as a developer?

Which AI do you trust most for real coding work — and why?

Drop your thoughts in the comments 👇 Let's compare experiences!

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