KI-Kochhilfe vs. Chefkoch Plus
Two German cooking services, two fundamentally different philosophies. We show honestly where Chefkoch Plus is stronger — and why KI-Kochhilfe is the better choice for many modern households.
The short version
- Chefkoch Plus is Germany's largest recipe database: 360,000+ community recipes, a huge selection, thousands of ratings per recipe. You search — and almost always find something.
- KI-Kochhilfe flips the principle: instead of searching a database, the AI generates a recipe in 10 seconds from what you have right now — including air fryer cooking times, allergen check and family diet profiles.
- Price: Chefkoch Plus is significantly cheaper at ~€29.99/year. KI-Kochhilfe starts at €7.99/month (€79.90/year on the Basis annual plan) and offers features Chefkoch doesn't have.
- Bottom line: If you enjoy browsing and cooking classics → Chefkoch Plus. If you regularly use up leftovers, use an air fryer or need to watch for allergies → KI-Kochhilfe.
Feature comparison at a glance
| Feature | KI-Kochhilfe | Chefkoch Plus |
|---|---|---|
AI-generated recipes (on-demand) ↳ KI-Kochhilfe: Every recipe unique, adapted to your ingredients. | ||
Recipe database (community) ↳ Chefkoch: 360,000+ user-submitted recipes. | ||
Air fryer mode with device-specific cooking times | ||
Allergen detection (automatic) ↳ KI-Kochhilfe: In Premium — the AI detects + replaces allergenic ingredients automatically. ↳ Chefkoch: Tag filters only, you have to check yourself. | partial | |
Diet profiles per family member (up to 6) | ||
AI-generated photo guide per recipe | ||
Weekly menu planner + shopping list | ||
Ad-free on all plans | ||
Community ratings + Q&A | ||
Mobile app (iOS + Android) ↳ KI-Kochhilfe: PWA + native app in preparation. | partial | |
Made in Germany, GDPR, EU hosting | ||
Cancel monthly ↳ Chefkoch: Plus billed primarily annually. | partial |
How are the recipes created?
This is the biggest difference — and the reason the two services solve different problems.
Chefkoch Plus: community database
On Chefkoch you find recipes that other people have uploaded, commented on and rated over the past 25 years. That has clear advantages: a classic carbonara recipe often has thousands of ratings there. So you know before you cook whether the result tastes good. The downsides: you have to search, compare, scroll — and finding the right recipe for exactly the ingredients in your fridge often takes 15–20 minutes of research, if at all.
KI-Kochhilfe: live generation
With us there's no database to click through. You enter what you have (“chicken breast, sweet potato, rosemary”), optionally choose your device (air fryer, oven, pan) and your diet — and the AI generates a complete recipe in about 10 seconds with quantities, cooking times, calories and step-by-step instructions. Every recipe is new. There are no “top-rated” recipes, because every result is tailored individually to your input.
Air fryer
Air fryers are now in over 40% of German households — and this is exactly where Chefkoch shows a real gap. There are air fryer recipes, but no structured air fryer mode: no device-specific cooking times, no temperature table, no way to convert an existing recipe to be “air-fryer-ready”.
KI-Kochhilfe has a dedicated air fryer section: every recipe can be switched to air fryer mode with one click, cooking times and temperatures are adjusted automatically, and a separate temperature table helps you look things up for your own experiments.
Allergens + family diets
Chefkoch offers tag-based filters (“lactose-free”, “gluten-free”, “vegan”). That helps narrow things down, but the tags are user-generated and not always reliable. There is no real allergen engine that checks a recipe line by line and replaces problematic ingredients automatically.
KI-Kochhilfe Premium automatically detects the 14 EU-mandatory allergen groups during generation and replaces them with suitable alternatives. Up to 6 family members can create their own profiles (e.g. “child, 8 years, no nuts” + “partner, lactose-free”), and the recipe is generated so that it's safe for everyone.
What costs what?
Chefkoch Plus
~€29.99 / year
equals ~€2.50 / month · billed annually
- · Ad-free on web + app
- · Digital cookbook
- · Weekly planner
- · Premium recipes from professional chefs
KI-Kochhilfe (from Basis)
€7.99 / month
or €79.90/year (2 months free) · cancel monthly
- · Unlimited AI recipe generation*
- · Air fryer mode
- · Ad-free on all plans
- · Made in Germany, GDPR-compliant
- · Standard (€11.99) + Premium (€18.99) with allergen engine & weekly menu
*Fair-use limit per plan, see the pricing page.
Honest note: Chefkoch Plus is nominally cheaper. But: at its core it's an ad-free version of the existing database. KI-Kochhilfe is a fundamentally different class of service — the price-per-feature is barely comparable at first glance.
Which service is right for you?
Choose Chefkoch Plus if…
- · you enjoy searching for classic, proven recipes
- · you read community ratings before cooking
- · you want regional/seasonal German classics
- · €2.50/month is enough and you search yourself
- · you need a digital recipe archive
Choose KI-Kochhilfe if…
- · you often want to use up fridge leftovers
- · you use an air fryer
- · you or your family have allergies / diets
- · you want individual recipes instead of database hits
- · you'd rather cook than search for 20 minutes
Frequently asked questions
What's the main difference between KI-Kochhilfe and Chefkoch Plus?
Chefkoch Plus is a community database with over 360,000 user-submitted recipes. KI-Kochhilfe, by contrast, generates every recipe fresh with AI — adapted to your ingredients, your device (e.g. air fryer), your diet and your allergies. Both have their place, but they solve different problems.
Which service is cheaper?
Chefkoch Plus costs around €29.99 per year (≈ €2.50 per month) and is billed primarily annually. KI-Kochhilfe starts at €7.99/month (Basis), with quarterly and yearly options — yearly Basis is €79.90. At first glance Chefkoch Plus is significantly cheaper, but the feature scope isn't directly comparable.
Does KI-Kochhilfe have an air fryer feature?
Yes. KI-Kochhilfe has a dedicated air fryer mode with device-specific cooking times and temperatures. On Chefkoch you'll find air fryer recipes as ordinary community posts, but no structured air fryer workflow.
Can I store allergies in KI-Kochhilfe?
Yes, KI-Kochhilfe automatically detects and replaces allergens on the Premium plan. You can create up to 6 separate diet profiles per family member. Chefkoch Plus only offers tag-based filters — you have to check yourself whether a recipe is really allergen-free.
Is Chefkoch Plus ad-free?
Yes, that's one of Chefkoch Plus's main selling points: ad-free browsing on web and in the app. KI-Kochhilfe is ad-free by default on all plans — including the Basis tier.
Which service is right for whom?
Chefkoch Plus suits you if you enjoy browsing classic, community-proven recipes and need a recipe archive. KI-Kochhilfe is the better choice if you regularly want to use up leftovers, own an air fryer, need to watch for allergies, or simply no longer want to spend 20 minutes searching the recipe pool.
Want to try it yourself?
Your first 2 recipes are free — no sign-up, no credit card. You'll see in 10 seconds whether AI generation is right for you.
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