AI business plan generators are flooding the market (quite literally).
And as someone who develops business plans professionally, I've been incredibly curious about these generators. Not from a competitive standpoint, but a genuine interest in how far the technology has come.
- Can these tools really understand business concepts?
- Can they spot market opportunities that aren't obvious?
- How much work is actually required to get a solid plan?
Well, I had to satiate my curiosity, so I tested nine different tools across a consistent idea.
Not to dismiss them, but to honestly explore what they bring to the table and where they might fit in the business planning process.
What are AI business plan generators?
AI business generators are software tools capable of generating professional business plans using AI. These tools can write, design, and structure business plans from scratch by seeking minimal business inputs.
How did I test AI business plan generators for this list?
I scrolled through Reddit threads and reviews on G2 and Capterra to find top contenders for this list.
To get comparable results across all tools, I needed a consistent business concept to test with. I settled on a local coffee shop with modern delivery capabilities.
Here’s how I explained my business idea:
Since I tested the free or base version of most tools, I kept my evaluation criteria straightforward and practical:
- The depth of follow-up questions or prompts it offered to gather relevant business details
- Editing is required on the AI-generated draft
- Quality of financial projections and market analysis sections
- Customization options available (even in premium tiers)
- Whether or not it generated relevant and essential business plan sections
9 Best AI business plan generators
Let’s now review each of the best AI business plan generators in detail:
1. Upmetrics
Unlike tools built around AI, Upmetrics built AI into its existing planning platform.
That is, instead of shouldering the entire planning burden alone, the AI here simply amplifies the extensive planning capabilities of Upmetrics.
To test Upmetrics’ AI capabilities fully, I entered the same basic details (we discussed earlier) and set up my workspace. In minutes, the AI generated a fully structured business plan for me.
I expected that. So that’s not an oomph factor here.
But what I didn’t expect was a feature that would let me customize my own questionnaire (Literal WOW!). In fact, none of the tools I reviewed in this blog offered that.
The AI-generated plan was pretty comprehensive. It wasn’t perfect, but it definitely got me to a good starting point.
I was digging for some surface-level fluff in the content. But to my surprise, the content read pretty well and was quite insightful. It covered depth and nuances specific to my cafe business.
I tried AI assistance to rewrite certain sections of my executive summary. And, it matched my tone expectations on the first go.
What I like most about Upmetrics is, it gives you extensive edit controls. You can add visuals and charts, remove the sections, and work on it in any chronological order.
The financial forecasting setup was simple. In just a few seconds, I was using AI suggestions to understand revenue streams for my business.
And while the forecasting process took some playing around, I never felt lost. I just intuitively knew what my next step should be.
I guess that’s the USP of a well-designed platform.
What makes it stand apart?
Upmetrics integrated AI into its existing comprehensive planning platform rather than building around AI. It offers extensive customization options, including the ability to create custom questionnaires for building nuanced business plans.
Also, it allowed an effortless switch between business plan, pitch deck, and financial forecasts.
- The AI suggestions for revenue streams and financial elements are found to be highly accurate
- Users found the extensive editing controls and intuitive workflow design helpful
- Users praised the dedicated individual support, especially beneficial for small organizations
- The platform provides accurate and visually appealing data that's easily shareable
In addition, these are the add-ons that are worth considering:
- Access to an AI-powered pitch deck generator
- 400+ fully detailed business plan samples
- Strategic planning templates
- Integration with Xero and QuickBooks
- Email and Chat support, plus a knowledge base to help and guide you
Sheri K
Building the plan takes a great deal of thought and work and time. But it was absolutely worth it. I never would have been able to put together such an incredible plan on my own. I had compliments on the fantastic work and thorough plan.
- The starter plan doesn’t offer AI features and functionality
- Users reported a learning curve to fully utilize all functionality
Alpesh V
It took us some time to learn the platform, but it has been great once you learn it. Adding a tutorial on the dashboard can help a person to learn faster.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Starter | $7/month |
| Premium | $14/month |
| Professional | $37/month |
Ratings
- G2: 4.8
- Capterra: 4.8
2. Bizplanr
Bizplanr endorses itself as a free business plan generator, so I definitely had to give it a try. And look, it’s number 2 on the list—for good reason.
The tool lets you get started almost immediately without asking for any personal information.
Once I entered my business idea, it asked me systemized questions about target customers, geographic location, funding details, and product offerings.
Bizplanr also provided helpful examples with each question, like "busy professionals aged 25-40" rather than leaving me to figure out demographics alone.
Once I answered all the questions, Bizplanr generated a fully structured business plan. And to my surprise, it had all the necessary sections that make a business plan comprehensive.
The generated plan looked clean and skimmable. However, to make edits, it required switching to Upmetrics (its paid plan). And even for financials and collaborative editing, a paid plan was necessary.
What makes it stand apart?
Bizplanr is designed for early-stage founders who want to get ideas out of their heads and into something structured without complicated walkthroughs or questions.
- Users appreciate how the structured questions help them think deeper about their business ideas and actual projects
- Even the free version was found to offer substantial value
- Users found their mobile app extremely intuitive
Verified User
I had a great business idea, but when it came to writing an actual plan, I felt stuck. Bizplanr made the whole process so much easier. Its AI Assistant helped me create a solid business plan in minutes instead of days. It’s intuitive and perfect for startups like mine.
- Users wish there were more customization options for formatting the final document
- Entrepreneurs who required team-based planning found it lacking in collaboration features, which was limiting
Nishant G
I wouldn’t call it a complete solution if you’re raising capital or building a plan for a board presentation. But, it's great for beginners!
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Basic | Free |
| Starter | Starts at $7/month |
Ratings
- G2: 4.9/5
- Capterra: 5/5
3. PrometAI
PrometAI develops industry-standard valuations and business plan blueprints with unparalleled detailing.
I input the same company description we discussed earlier, and after a couple of minutes of processing, it churned out 42 pages of presentation.
The depth I would say was overwhelming in both good and challenging ways.
PrometAI didn’t follow the standard business plan structure; however, it did generate additional valuable sections for Porter and PESTEL analysis, risk and mitigation strategies, and valuations.
I liked the phased implementation plan it created with my details. While I would not consider launching catering services or investing in tech-integrated cafes, the ideas about collaborations and partnerships were indeed bright.
The business valuations aren’t beginner-friendly friendly and you would definitely need a significant understanding of your business to make sense of it.
But if you get past it, you will get an impressive business plan that will more or less perform like a consulting report.
What makes it stand apart?
The ability to churn entire presentations from your 2-line input. Promet AI develops and adds relevant visuals to your plan and builds industry-standard valuations for investor meetings.
- Users found the availability of real industry data helpful; however, expensive
- The structured approach of collecting information was found intuitive
- Users found it helpful for building business valuations
Elena
Very easy to use and quite customisable. Excellent framework to start work or a start-up. Nevertheless, even more flexibility would be great to be able to adjust some minor changes, comments, and ideas on presentations and business use calculations.
- Users wished for more flexibility to make minor adjustments and comments on presentations
- Users had to make heavy edits to make the first draft investor-ready
- Some users found AI-generated information to be irrelevant
- The pro plan, the one with strategy analysis and valuations, is quite costly
Hovnan
I used Prometai to draft a business plan for a software startup. It wasn’t perfect—some of the AI suggestions felt generic—but it was a great starting point.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Free forever | $0 |
| Basic | $55/month |
| Pro | $145/month |
| Business | $445/month |
Ratings
TrustPilot: 4.5/5
4. Venturekit
VentureKit is easy to get started with. Enter your business idea and its location, and the tool will weave a fully detailed business plan for you in seconds.
I noticed robotic patterns and tiring sentences in most tools that I used. But VentureKit stood out for its refreshingly human and beautifully structured writing.
The ‘Ask AI’ option was easy to toggle around. I simplified certain sections and asked it to elaborate on details about business models. It did just fine; however, I feel options to adjust tone could have been more helpful.
Language alone isn’t enough. For me, it was important to understand that the information in the plan was backed by substantial research. Sadly, most information (especially about numbers) was placed as a placeholder for you to research and fill.
The generated plan also had interactive graphs and charts to simplify concepts like target audience and marketing strategies. However, for the edits, I required a subscription to the paid plan.
Lastly, the financials were off-putting. There was no setup or guidance to help users build realistic financials.
What makes it stand apart?
Generates visually rich business plans to attract investors. However, I think VentureKit focuses more on beautification than adding depth or context to the plan.
- Users found the writing quality notably human-like and well-structured, though most of it was woven out of thin air
- The visual appeal and clean design of the generated plans were appreciated
- Interactive elements of the plan made complex concepts easier to understand
Kajal Mali
I was curious how Venturekit’s AI would handle a business plan, especially since I’ve had good results using Upmetrics before. Venturekit gave me a quick plan, but editing was a pain. I couldn’t change anything in the financials, and the structure felt too rigid
- Users reported automatic billing issues—being charged monthly even without active subscriptions
- The editing functionality was found to be limiting, especially for financial sections
- Users felt the content was too generic and didn't reflect their specific business characteristics
- The financial projections lacked logical backing
Escafandre Pe
I am not subscribed to any plan, yet I am being charged $19 automatically every month. Despite this, I am unable to access even the three business plans offered. I have sent emails and tried reaching out through the live chat, but after two days, I have received no response, even though they claim to respond within two hours.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Free | $0 |
| Plan | $8/month |
| Formation | $169/year |
Ratings
TrustPilot: 3.8/5
5. 15MinutePlan
One needs to walk through 7 pages of a guided questionnaire to build a business plan on 15MinutePlan. And I did get my first rough draft in more or less 15 minutes.
You can choose from one of 15+ languages to get your business plan writing started.
Now, their questionnaire method was pretty straightforward to follow. For every question about product, target market, and investment, it also offered AI suggestions.
I think those suggestions would have worked well for someone who didn’t have a very specific cafe idea. But for a micro niche like mine, they were flawed.
After collecting a whole lot of details, it did generate a business plan. The plan was structured and clear enough to skim details.
I tried editing my executive summary with its “talk to plan” feature. And, although it was easier to use, the results weren’t that impressive. A lot many language bloat.
Overall, I feel they could have done a more impactful job crafting content and filling gaps, especially since I provided a whole lot of information.
What makes it stand apart?
The questionnaire method and AI suggestions were truly intuitive. Had I not known business planning, this tool could have offered a great starting point.
- Users appreciated the professional guidance and structured process for filling out business plans
- The process of creating projections based on easy input was found helpful
- Multi-language support was seen as a valuable asset
Barbara Morrison
The system leads you through the whole process with all relevant questions. Every section is supported by suggestions - but you can also use your own wording. Even financial figures are generated with easy input. Different languages are an asset.
- You don’t get any pricing information until the plan is generated. At that time, you either purchase a plan or let go of the generated plan entirely.
- Users found the content overly generic and lacking specificity for their particular business models
- Users questioned the reliability of information sources used by the platform
- Users felt the financial projections were oversimplified and lacked actionable insights
- Despite a professional appearance, many found it felt more like a cookie-cutter template than a dynamic tool
Rita Diaz
I recently used the service for a kids' play area business plan, and while it had some helpful features for financial forecasting, the insights overall were overly generic. The lack of depth was evident, especially since the customization options weren't up to par for catering to my specific business needs. It left me needing to fill in gaps manually, and there also seemed to be questionable information sources.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Starter | $ 69-lifetime access |
| Professional | $ 99-lifetime access |
Note: I had to ask its bot to get the pricing details because apparently, there was no pricing page.
Ratings
TrustPilot: 4.6/5
6. Liveplan
LivePlan doesn’t offer a free trial or a free plan, but it did make it to a list for the brand value it carries.
The tool offers an AI assistant that works right inside its business plan builder. Its “help me write” feature works beautifully to get you a first working draft of your business plan.
Simply jot down some ideas and suggestions, and let the AI auto-populate content for your plan.
Go further and use it to rewrite the sections, or generate more ideas about what to include in each section. It's intuitive and propels thinking instead of filling the plan with placeholder information.
I found LivePlan’s financial performance dashboard to be the best amongst all the other tools in this list. It looks visually appealing, but more so, easier to navigate around. It draws actionable insights from financial analysis, helping you make quick decisions.
What makes it stand apart?
LivePlan’s AI is heavily integrated into the entire planning process, but doesn’t overpower your own inputs or suggestions. Its writing is surprisingly nuanced, and its AI-powered financial suggestions are reportedly accurate and on point.
- Users found they could input minimal details or comprehensive information and still receive well-written, accurate output
- The AI was found to bring up options users hadn't considered, expanding their strategic thinking
- Users appreciated the intuitive financial dashboard that was visually appealing and easy to navigate
- The AI synthesized actionable insights from financial analysis and helped users with quick decision-making
Zelda
I like the fact that I don't have to think about the parts of a professional business plan; the software has it all laid out in the order it should be written, along with sample templates to use for almost every type of business.
- Doesn’t offer research assistance right within the interface
- Some users found the tool lagged behind in strategic planning assistance compared to competitors
- Some users found the learning curve steeper than expected for maximizing all features
Mohammed Okla
I have been using LivePlan for over two years, and my overall experience with it has been good. However, I still face issues with the lack of language support (Arabic) in my case. I have requested this feature multiple times, but there has been no response so far.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Standard | $15/month |
| Premium | $30/month |
Note: I had to ask its bot to get the pricing details because apparently, there was no pricing page.
Ratings
- Capterra: 4.5/5
- G2: 4.1/5
7. PlanPros
PlanPros follows a straightforward questionnaire method to gather basic business details from you.
The process isn’t overwhelming, and you won’t have to scratch your head trying to figure out what to answer. You will also get a checklist of suggestions to input answers for your marketing strategies, products, and finances.
However, the depth ended at the surface.
While most of its questions were well-crafted, the AI's responses felt templated. My coffee shop plan read similarly to what I imagine a restaurant or retail store plan would look like—same structure, different industry keywords.
The tool claims to use the latest GPT models to transform your ideas into concrete content. And while the language may seem polished, be prepared to spend hours editing the fluff information.
What makes it stand apart?
PlanPros is developed by business plan professionals with over 30 years of experience. It just isn’t another AI tool with no relevance to business planning.
- Users found the structured questionnaire method and prompts quite helpful
- The tool received praise for being developed by actual business planning professionals rather than just tech developers
- Users found the interface intuitive and user-friendly
- Some users encountered technical problems during setup and account management
- Some users encountered technical problems during setup and account management
- The absence of in-depth financial modeling and scenario planning capabilities was noted as limiting
Pricing
There’s only one plan available at $97 annually.
8. Venture Planner
I had to offer some basic business details and register my email with Venture Planner to get started with its free plan.
I simply followed the instructions and set up my plan.
There were roughly 17 core questions with nested dependencies. With every question, it offered AI suggestions that were pretty relevant and helpful.
Now, Venture Planner doesn’t aim to generate your business plan in 10 minutes (and honestly, that’s the best part). It lets you think about each and every business aspect in depth without making you feel overwhelmed.
Towards the end, it also asked me to choose from different business plans and gave a rough estimation of the time it would take to edit.
But after all these details, I expect to see at least the first draft of my business plan, right?
Well, there was more to the setup, and after I completed all of it, I figured out that it doesn’t offer AI support to rewrite sections of the plan.
What makes it stand apart?
The first draft of the plan was visually attractive and included all the necessary sections. The edits, however, take extremely long.
- Users appreciated the sleek and intuitive interface design
- The tool was found to be easy to use and time-saving
- Users liked the streamlined approach to plan generation
Prabhjot
I used Venture Planner for a week before turning to Upmetrics. Initially, it seemed a sleek and structured tool, but it didn’t work for my business plan. So, it basically uses Gen AI models to auto-generate a business plan, which is generic and undercooked most of the time. I preferred Upmetrics coz it balances AI with human use, and allows me to customize.
- Several users experienced persistent billing issues after canceling subscriptions
- PDF and Word exports have poor formatting and alignment problems
- Plans were described as "undercooked" and needing significant additional work
- Doesn’t offer business plan samples, pitch deck builder, or strategic planning toolkit
Nimish Sethi
The concept is good, but it's just an auto-write for inputs that are very similar. Also, when you export as PDF or Word, there is no alignment at all. Feels like a waste.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Business plan | $14/month |
| Consultant plan | $40/month |
Ratings
- Capterra: 4.0
- TrustPilot: 2.9
9. ProAI
ProAI lets you test its AI business plan generator, but it’s not very insightful. All they let you see is a 2-paragraph executive summary, and everything else is locked behind a paid plan.
Now, its features are extensive. They are far beyond the comprehensiveness that any of these tools offer. It can generate on-demand industry insights using proprietary data sources and lets you match with investors from their extensive database.
Users get an AI business advisor with ProAI. This intelligent copilot offers customized guidance for the local market and helps with tips to outmark the competitors.
The tool is more useful for advanced strategic planning and might not cater to pre-seed or seed stage entrepreneurs.
What makes it stand apart?
ProAI has garnered positive reviews from its users, and its proprietary research feature is extremely helpful for micro niche businesses. Users also get live chat support with their paid Pro AI plans.
- Users found it particularly effective for fintech and specialized startups with well-suited industry questions
- The tool was praised for providing in-depth competitor analysis and strategic next steps
- Users appreciated the balance of enough input to make plans bespoke without being overly complicated
Rob B
Having used past AI tools to get business plans, they really were not looking in-depth enough at competitors or overall next steps to boost the business. That's when I found ProAI, it does it all, enough user input to make it bespoke but not too much to make it difficult, very user-friendly.
- The tool is pricey and doesn’t offer any monthly plan
- The tool needs more questions to make financial forecasts better suited to individual startups
- The tool has limited market feedback yet
Jeremy
It needs to ask a few more questions to make the forecasts more suited to each startup.
It only allowed for 5 people when we had 7.
Pricing
| Plan | Pricing |
|---|---|
| Entrepreneur starter kit | $56/annually |
| Investor magnet | $104/annually |
| Market insight essentials | $351/annually |
Note: ProAI offers no monthly plan
Ratings
- Capterra: 5
- G2: 4.8
You can create a complete business plan even if you're at the stage that only <50% of the information you need is available. The plan is very detailed and will fill in the blanks and is even ahead with output that was on your to-do list. The ease of use is great and the plan is so complete that you can execute is almost instantly.
Marchell S, G2 user
In a nutshell
After testing these 9 tools to create a business plan, here are my final thoughts:
- Upmetrics for me stands at the top. Its end-to-end business planning resources and the integrated AI approach remain unparalleled compared to other tools.
- Use Bizplanr if you need quick idea validation without spending a buck
- PrometAI’s industry-standard valuations seemed worthy; however, they weren’t what I was looking for. Besides, I found them on a pricier note
- VentureKit generated remarkable writing, but that’s not the only benchmark I would chase when spending my bucks on a business planning tool
- 15MinutePlan was a pass for me. The plan required way too many edits, and even then, the writing was fluff
- For me, LivePlan was a close contender, but if I am getting all that functionality and features at half the price (read Upmetrics), I would choose that
- I wouldn’t pick PlanPros for its lack of collaborative features and financial planning depth
- Venture Planner was visually appealing but lacked the basic AI rewriting feature
- ProAI was simply not the right fit for my business planning needs
AI plan generators vs experts: What do you need?
After testing these tools, I can certainly say that AI business plan generators can build plans for you.
But like anything AI, you need to make it work.
You can't expect it to churn out an investor-ready draft in one go with details as little as "a coffee shop in Austin." Sure, that can be a starting point, but there's no shortcut to planning and understanding your business.
You have to be more thorough with your inputs, spend time refining prompts, and iteratively improve the outputs to build a business plan that can win funding.
Does that replace experts?
Not really. Experts bring intellectual depth and nuanced thinking that AI tools often fail to imitate. Besides, the decision to move with an expert often comes down to budget and timeline.
Business plan experts typically charge between $500-$8,000+, depending on the complexity of the business idea and the customization it requires.
That investment won't possibly make sense if you are bootstrapping or need a plan quickly for internal use. But if you're raising significant capital or entering a highly competitive market, an expert may prove to be a better choice.
Get your expert-crafted business plan with PlanGrowLab
That said, test the tools and read the reviews before you commit to a paid subscription. However, if you think your business plan can benefit from the insights and expertise of a business plan writer, PlanGrowLab can be of help.
With over a decade of expertise, our expert writer knows exactly what makes your business plan a hot sell for an investor.
Don’t commit yet. Simply book a free 30-minute consultation call, and let’s figure it out.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all AI business plan generators free?
No, most tools either offer free versions or free trials on their AI business plan generators. The free version may give you an understanding of how the tool works and the functionality it offers, but premium editing and forecasting features are often locked behind paid plans.
How long does it take to create a business plan with AI?
Most AI generators create a first draft in 10-30 minutes after you answer their questions. However, editing and customizing the output to match your specific business usually takes 2-5 hours of additional work.
Can AI business plan generators replace hiring a professional?
AI tools excel at structure and speed but struggle with nuanced strategy and industry-specific insights. They're great for initial drafts, but to capture the depth of complex or unique ventures, you would need expert input.
Do investors accept AI-generated business plans?
Investors care about clarity and substance, not creation method. If your AI-generated plan clearly and comprehensively explains your business idea without missing critical details, investors won't care if you created it using AI.
What are the top AI business plan generators?
Based on my testing, Upmetrics leads in overall quality and features. I also found Venture Planner, ProAI, and Bizplanr to be solid options, each with different strengths depending on your budget and business complexity.
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