Compare/Head to head

Cue vs Poke

Same facts, side by side: starting price, free tier, MCP, API and what each one is actually built for.

Starting price

Cue

Quote Free tier

Cue is Manus's personal agent app: each agent gets its own email, phone number, wallet and computer, takes calls for you and can work with other agents. Free in early access with an invite code; later pricing is not published.

Where Cue fits

  • Early adopters who want an agent with its own phone and inbox
  • Recruiters who want calls and callbacks handled and summarised
  • People testing multi-agent setups

Poke

$19/mo Free tier

Poke is an AI assistant you simply text on Messages, WhatsApp or Telegram to handle email, calendar and reminders, with proactive updates and background automations. Free forever plan; Pro $19/mo, Ultra $199/mo. Owned by Cognition since July 2026.

Where Poke fits

  • Recruiters who live on their phone
  • Solo recruiters who want email and calendar help by text
  • Anyone who wants to try an agent free

At a glance

DetailCuePoke
Starting priceQuote$19/mo
Free tier✓Yes✓Yes
MCP server–No–No
Public API–No–No
Listed underAI assistantsAI assistants

Where they pull apart

Cue

Stands out: Giving each agent a real phone number and inbox is unusual. An agent can field calls, follow up by email and report back, which suits recruiters drowning in scheduling and callback admin.

Watch out: It is invite-only early access with no published pricing, phone numbers only work in some countries, and agents that can pay and message on your behalf need tight budgets and permissions. Security researchers reported a prompt-injection flaw in Manus in 2026.

Not the right fit for

  • Teams that need guaranteed access and predictable pricing
  • Handling sensitive candidate data during early access

Poke

Stands out: Nothing to install and nothing to learn: you text it like a person. Its approval to text natively on Apple Messages and its friendly, proactive style made it one of the most used assistants of its kind, with 100 million messages in three months.

Watch out: It is a personal assistant, not a team tool, and it reaches deep into your inbox and messages. Cognition bought it to shape its coding agent Devin, so the consumer roadmap may change.

Not the right fit for

  • Teams that need shared workspaces and admin controls
  • Companies with strict rules on connecting work email to consumer apps

Pros and cons

Cue

  • Free during early access
  • Agents get real email and phone numbers
  • Several agents can work together
  • Invite code needed
  • No published pricing after early access
  • Phone numbers limited to some countries

Poke

  • Free forever plan
  • No app to install
  • Proactive updates by text
  • Personal use only, no team admin
  • Ultra is a big jump from Pro
  • Roadmap now tied to Cognition

What each one costs

Cue

Quote

Cue is in early access and free to use with an invite code; people who get access receive extra codes to share. Manus has not published what Cue will cost after early access, and agent phone numbers are live only in some countries. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 16 Oct 2026

Poke

$19/mo

Poke has a Free forever plan with no card that connects your apps, email and calendar. Pro is $19/mo with frontier models for complex tasks and background automations, and Ultra is $199/mo with frontier models on every action, the highest limits and pay-as-you-go usage beyond its credits. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.

Checked 16 Oct 2026

Common questions

Can you try Cue or Poke for free?
Cue and Poke carry a free tier on our listing.

Not the pair you wanted?

All Cue alternatives All Poke alternatives Every AI assistants tool

Editorial listings, never paid rankings. Prices checked 16 Oct 2026. Confirm current terms on the vendor site. Spot an error?