How to Use Secrets AI: Complete Beginner's Guide (2026)

You've heard about Secrets AI and you want to try it without wasting your first 200 free Moments on the wrong things. That's exactly the right concern. Those 200 Moments are a one-time starting credit — they don't refill — and spending them on a full-length video before you've found a character you like means you'll hit the wall before the platform has had a chance to show you what it can actually do. This guide walks you through setup, first choices, and the decisions that actually matter in your first hour.

If you want to understand the platform's capabilities before starting, the feature overview and full review provide the full picture.

Step 1 — Create Your Account

Your First Hour Begins Here: account creation takes under 60 seconds.

1. Open any browser (Chrome, Safari, Firefox) and go to secrets.ai
2. Click the "Sign Up" button
3. Enter an email address and create a password — no real name is required
4. Confirm your account if an email verification is sent
5. You're in

What you receive immediately on a free account:

• 200 Moments (one-time starting credit — does not refill monthly on the free tier)
• Full access to the character library for browsing and basic chat
• 20 messages per day

No app download is needed. Secrets AI is entirely browser-based. If you're on mobile, open the site in Chrome or Safari — it's touch-optimized and works well on a phone screen. To create a home screen shortcut for easier access, see the mobile access guide.

Privacy note: Signup requires only email and password. No phone number, no real name, no social media login. If you want additional anonymity, use a dedicated email address created specifically for this account.

Step 2 — Choose Your First Character

The character you pick for your first session matters more than most new users expect. The AI's personality, tone, and conversation style are shaped by the character profile — choosing carefully gives you a better first experience.

Option A — Browse pre-built characters (~94 available):

The character library is immediately accessible. Browse by appearance and preview the character's personality baseline before selecting. Each character has preset personality traits and a defined scenario context. For a first session, a pre-built character is recommended — it puts you in a conversation faster.

Option B — Create a custom character (first one is free):

Custom character creation uses these parameters:

• Ethnicity: 9 options
• Skin tone, eye color, hairstyle
• Body type: 6 options
• Voice: 6 options
• Personality sliders: confidence, playfulness, dominance, intelligence
• Profession: 5 preset categories
• Personality trait presets: 5 options
• Hobbies and a free-text details field

The free-text field is the most powerful option — use it to describe the relationship dynamic, backstory, or specific traits you want the character to embody. This input shapes AI responses from the first message.

After character creation, 4 images are automatically generated at no Moments cost. This is worth keeping in mind when budgeting your starting 200 Moments.

Step 3 — Start Your First Conversation

When you open a chat, conversation starters are provided — roughly half casual, half suggestive. Using one of these for your first message is recommended over a blank opening because it signals the tone you want to establish early.

How free-tier chat works:

• 20 messages per day maximum (resets every 24 hours)
• 500-character limit per message
• Memory resets after 2–3 exchanges — the AI does not remember what you discussed once that window passes

First-session advice:

• Be specific in your responses — the more detail you provide, the better the AI engages
• Set the tone clearly in your first message; the AI calibrates its register to yours
• Test a few different conversation directions to understand how the AI handles different types of exchange
• Don't spend Moments on images or video in your first session — evaluate conversation quality first

The 20-message free limit is usually reached within a single focused session. If the conversation quality convinces you the platform is worth exploring, the plan comparison explains which upgrade makes sense at what point.

Step 4 — Explore Media Features

Once you're confident in the conversation quality, these are the media features available and what they cost.

Generate Images

• Tap the image generation option within a chat
• Cost: 25–50 Moments per image
• Standard and Advanced generation models available (Advanced on higher tiers)
• 4 images auto-generate when you first create a character (no additional cost)

Start with images before committing Moments to video — images cost 12–24× less per generation and let you establish a visual benchmark for your character.

Create Videos

• Select an existing companion image and write a prompt describing the movement or action
• Generation time: approximately 2 minutes per clip
• Cost: ~50 Moments for a short 3-second clip; ~600 Moments for a full-length clip
• Full video quality is best on Premium or Ultimate tiers

Video is the most Moments-intensive feature. A full-length clip at 600 Moments represents 3 times your entire free starting credit. Reserve video for when you've found a character worth investing in, and start with short 3-second clips to assess quality before spending on longer ones.

Try Voice Calls

• 6 voice options available
• Cost: 100 Moments per minute
• Natural, adaptive tone rated 4.3/5 by reviewers

Voice is expensive relative to text (1–2 Moments per message). A 2-minute voice session costs the same as approximately 100–200 text messages. It's a premium experience worth trying once you're on a paid tier with a higher Moments budget.

Step 5 — Manage Your Moments

Your Moments balance is visible in account settings. Tracking it actively prevents the common experience of running out mid-session unexpectedly.

Cost hierarchy from least to most expensive:

1. Text messaging: 1–2 Moments per message
2. Image generation: 25–50 Moments per image
3. Short video (3 sec): ~50 Moments
4. Voice calls: 100 Moments per minute
5. Full video: ~600 Moments per clip
6. New character creation: 1,000–1,500 Moments

Monthly Moments by plan:

• Free: 200 starting Moments (one-time, no monthly refill)
• Lite ($5.99): 1,000 Moments/month
• Plus ($9.99): 3,000 Moments/month
• Premium ($19.99): 8,000 Moments/month + 10% bonus on top-ups
• Ultimate ($39.99): 15,000 Moments/month + 15% bonus on top-ups

If you need more Moments outside of a plan upgrade, bulk purchases are available from 1,980 Moments ($5.99) up to 118,800 Moments ($249.99). The pricing page has the full Moments cost breakdown.

Step 6 — Enable Privacy Features

Private Mode encrypts your conversation end-to-end and prevents it from being used to train the AI. To activate it:

• Go into conversation settings within any active chat
• Enable Private Mode before the conversation begins
• This applies to that conversation only — not globally

Important: Private Mode is per-conversation and not retroactive. Any conversation started before enabling Private Mode is not encrypted by this feature. If privacy is a priority for you, enable it before sending your first message in any session.

Billing note: all charges appear on your statement as "Sun Clinical Laboratories" — no reference to AI companion services, the platform name, or adult content.

Tips for New Users

Practical advice from the patterns that consistently produce better first experiences:

• Start free, don't skip it — the free tier is a real evaluation tool for conversation quality, even if the Moments and message limits are restrictive
• Spend your first 200 Moments on images, not video — image quality testing lets you assess visual output without depleting your budget in one clip
• Build detailed character profiles — the more specific your character setup, the better every subsequent conversation
• Upgrade memory before upgrading for Moments — the jump from free (2–3 exchange recall) to Plus (30-day memory) has more impact on experience quality than the raw message count increase
• Use Plus ($9.99) as your starting paid tier — unlimited messaging, 3,000 Moments, and 30-day memory covers the majority of use cases without overcommitting
• Add secrets.ai to your phone home screen for app-like access without needing a native app

Common Issues and Solutions

Messages not sending

Check whether you've hit the daily message limit. Free accounts cap at 20 messages per 24 hours. Lite caps at 100. If you've reached the limit, you'll need to wait for the 24-hour reset or upgrade to a plan with unlimited messaging (Plus and above).

AI seems forgetful

Free-tier memory only spans the last 2–3 exchanges. If the AI seems to have no recall of earlier details, this is working as designed at the free tier. Upgrading to Plus gives 30-day memory recall. Premium adds an unlimited emotional timeline.

Slow responses

Peak hours cause noticeable delays on the platform. Secrets AI serves 100,000+ users globally; high-traffic periods produce slower response times. Try accessing the platform during off-peak hours (typically early morning or late night in your time zone) for faster performance.

Can't generate video

Video generation requires at least the Lite plan ($5.99/month) and sufficient Moments. Free-tier users cannot generate video. Check both your plan tier and your Moments balance if video generation is unavailable.

Forgot password

Use the "Forgot Password" link on the login page at secrets.ai. A reset link will be sent to your registered email address.

FAQ