TL;DR:
Decide what to compare before you look. Price, limits and conditions are different columns.
An assistant that sees both tabs can point at differences, but you check the numbers.
The choice depends on what you value, so it stays with you.
You have two phone plans open in two browser tabs. Each page is laid out differently, uses different words for the same things, and hides the catch in small print. Flipping between tabs, you forget what the first one said by the time you read the second.
Putting the two side by side fixes that. This article shows how to do it, and how an assistant that can see your screen can help without making the decision for you.
The short answer: choose the columns first
A comparison is a table. The rows are the two things. The columns are the questions you care about. If you start reading before you have the columns, you read everything and compare nothing.
For phone plans the columns might be monthly price, data allowance, what happens when the data runs out, the contract length, and any fees to start or leave. You can change them as you go, but write them down before you begin.
What happens step by step
You say what you are comparing and what matters to you.
The assistant looks at the first page and fills in the columns it can find.
It does the same for the second page.
It lines the values up and points out where they differ.
It flags anything it could not find, so you can look yourself.
You check the numbers against the pages and decide.
Walk-through: two phone plans in two browser tabs
These plans and numbers are made up for the example. Plan A costs $30 a month with 10 GB of data. Plan B costs $25 a month with 5 GB of data. Neither has a contract. Plan B charges a $10 fee to set up the line, and Plan A does not.
Item | Plan A | Plan B |
|---|---|---|
Monthly price | $30 | $25 |
Data per month | 10 GB | 5 GB |
Setup fee | $0 | $10 |
Contract | None | None |
Now the useful part: work out what the differences mean.
Price per gigabyte. Plan A: 30 ÷ 10 = $3.00 per GB. Plan B: 25 ÷ 5 = $5.00 per GB. If you would use all your data, Plan A gives more for your money.
Cost over a year. Plan A: 30 × 12 = $360. Plan B: 25 × 12 + 10 = $310. Plan B is $50 cheaper over twelve months, because you pay less per month and the setup fee is small.
The catch. Plan B costs less overall but gives half the data. If you use more than 5 GB, the plan is not really cheaper.
Recheck: 25 × 12 = 300, and 300 + 10 = 310. And 360 − 310 = 50. The result depends on how much data you use, which only you know.
Pointing at differences
This is where an assistant that can see the screen is useful. It can mark the data allowance on one page and the matching figure on the other, so you see the two numbers next to each other without hunting. It can also catch small print that you would scroll past, such as a speed limit after a certain amount of data.
DuckyHelper can see your screen and draw on it, so it can point at the number you should look at instead of only describing where it is. Treat what it marks as a lead and look at the page itself to confirm.
What to compare
Money you pay for sure: price, setup, fees.
Limits: data, speed after the limit, how many devices.
Terms: contract length, cancellation, price changes.
What is missing: things one page says and the other does not mention.
A blank on a page does not mean zero. If one page does not mention a fee, find out before you assume there is none.
What it can't do
It cannot see inside a page it cannot read, such as a price shown only in an image.
It can mismatch two items that sound the same but are different, such as per line and per account.
It cannot know that you will travel abroad next month, so it will not weigh roaming unless you say so.
It cannot decide for you. The best plan depends on your usage, your budget and your risk with fees.
You decide
A comparison gives you a clear picture, and the choice is still a judgment. Treat the assistant's summary as a draft and check each number you will rely on. When you decide, do the final sign-up yourself. If any assistant is allowed to buy for you, make sure it asks first.
Privacy and control
When you share two tabs, you also share whatever else is on them: your name, your address, an account page. Close tabs you do not want it to see before you ask. Check whether the tool keeps what it looks at.
Try it yourself
Open two real options you are choosing between: two plans, two laptops or two courses.
Write four columns that matter to you.
Ask the assistant to fill them in from the two pages and to say what it could not find.
Check three values against the pages. If they match, trust the rest a little more; if not, look closer.
Frequently asked questions
Should I trust the totals it works out?
Check them. Redo the sum yourself, as in the example. It takes seconds and catches slips.
What if the pages describe things in different ways?
Ask it to translate both into your columns, and to say when two words might mean different things.
Get started
