Where It Shines
At first glance, Perplexity’s desktop interface looks a lot like Google’s — a text box centered on a sparse landing page.
But as soon as you start typing, the differences become obvious. When you ask a question, Perplexity doesn’t give you back a list of links. Instead, it scours the web for you and uses AI to write a summary of what it finds. These answers are annotated with links to the sources the AI used, which also appear in a panel above the response.
I tested Perplexity on hundreds of queries, including questions about current events (“How did Nikki Haley do in the New Hampshire primary?”), shopping recommendations (“What’s the best dog food for a senior dog with joint pain?”) and household tasks (“How long does beef stew stay good in the fridge?”).