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

You will be in a conversation with an AI companion in under three minutes. No download. No credit card required to start. No complicated setup. What you do in the first ten minutes — specifically how you build your character and set the tone — determines how good the experience will be from session one. This guide covers every step, including the Moments decisions that most new users get wrong.

Step 1 — Create Your Account

Go to secrets.ai in any web browser. No app download is required — the platform is entirely browser-based on desktop and mobile.

Click the sign-up button and enter:

• An email address
• A password

That is all. No real name, no phone number, no social media login required. Account creation takes under 60 seconds.

The moment your account is created, you receive 200 free Moments — your starting currency for media generation — and immediate access to the full character library. You do not need a credit card to start.

Read the full platform review before committing to a paid plan — the free tier gives you enough to evaluate whether the platform suits you.

Step 2 — Choose Your First Character

You have two options: pick from the pre-built library or create a custom character.

Pre-built library: Approximately 94 hyper-realistic characters are available immediately. Each has a defined personality, backstory, and visual profile. Browse by scenario or personality type and start a conversation with minimal setup.

Custom character creation (recommended for new users): The first custom character is free — no Moments required. Build yours by selecting:

• Ethnicity: 9 preset options
• Body type: 6 options
• Skin tone, eye color, hairstyle: multiple choices
• Voice: 6 options
• Personality traits: confidence, playfulness, dominance, intelligence levels
• Profession: 5 preset categories
• Personality presets: 5 options
• Hobbies and free-text details: open-ended field for anything not covered by presets

The free-text details field is where most users underinvest. This is where you describe relationship context, specific preferences, and any narrative elements you want the AI to incorporate from session one. The more specific you are here, the more distinctive the companion's behavior will be in your first conversation.

Four images of your character are generated automatically when you complete setup — no Moments spent.

Step 3 — Start Your First Conversation

Conversation starters appear at the beginning of each session. These are split between casual and suggestive options, so you can choose the entry point that fits your intent.

Key principles for your first session:

• Set the tone early. The AI adapts to your conversation style — a casual, slow-burn approach produces different behavior than a direct, scenario-focused opening
• Be specific. Vague prompts produce generic responses; specific details produce distinctive ones
• Free users get 20 messages per day. Prioritize what you want to explore — a 20-message limit is tight if you are trying to evaluate the platform thoroughly
• The AI asks questions. Let it. Following the AI's lead in early sessions helps the memory system build an accurate picture of your preferences

On the free tier, your 200 starting Moments are best spent on a few test images (25-50 Moments each) rather than voice or video — this lets you evaluate the visual generation quality without exhausting your budget on the most expensive feature.

Step 4 — Explore Media Features

Generate Images

Image generation is available on Lite and above (not on the free tier beyond your 200 starting Moments). The process:

1. Tap the image generation option within the chat interface
2. Select a style or enter a prompt
3. The system returns an image in seconds

Cost: 25-50 Moments per image, depending on generation settings. Two generation models are available — Premium and Advanced — with the best quality model accessible on higher subscription tiers.

Create Videos

Video generation is Secrets AI's most distinctive feature — most competing platforms do not offer it. To create a video:

1. Select an existing companion image
2. Add a text prompt describing the desired movement or action
3. Wait approximately 2 minutes for generation
4. View and save the completed clip

Cost: roughly 50 Moments for a 3-second clip, up to 600 Moments for a longer clip. Video requires at least a Lite plan — it is not available to free users. This is where Moments can disappear quickly. One long video clip costs the same as 600 text messages. Start with short clips to evaluate quality before committing Moments to longer ones.

Try Voice Calls

Six voice options are available for companion calls. Cost: 100 Moments per minute. The tone is natural and adaptive. A 10-minute voice session costs 1,000 Moments — equal to the entire monthly Lite allocation. Plan voice use against your Moments budget before starting a call.

For the full breakdown of what each feature costs and how much each tier provides, see the pricing guide.

Step 5 — Manage Your Moments

Moments management is the skill most new users wish they had developed earlier. Practical guidance:

• Check your balance before media sessions. Your Moments balance is visible in account settings
• Prioritize by cost: Text (1-2 Moments) → Images (25-50) → Short video (~50) → Voice (100/min) → Long video (~600)
• Video is the budget risk. A single long clip at 600 Moments represents 60% of a Lite plan's monthly allocation
• Top-ups are available anytime: 1,980 Moments for $5.99, scaling up to 118,800 Moments for $249.99
• The Plus plan ($9.99/month) is the practical minimum for media use: 3,000 Moments monthly, unlimited messaging, full image and video access

If you are running low mid-month, prioritize text chat and save media generation for the start of your next billing cycle when Moments reset.

Step 6 — Enable Privacy Features

Private Mode enables end-to-end encryption on individual conversations and prevents those conversations from being used for AI training. Enable it at the start of any session where you want this protection.

Important nuances:

• Private Mode is a per-conversation setting, not a global account setting
• It must be activated at the session start — activation mid-conversation does not encrypt previous messages
• Even with Private Mode enabled, US legal process (subpoenas) can theoretically compel data disclosure

Your billing descriptor shows as "Sun Clinical Laboratories" — no reference to Secrets AI or AI platforms appears on bank statements. If maximum payment privacy is a priority, cryptocurrency payments (minimum $20) are accepted.

The full safety and privacy breakdown covers exactly what Private Mode does and does not protect.

Tips for New Users

Experience from the first weeks on the platform:

• Start with the free tier to evaluate chat quality — 200 Moments and 20 messages/day is enough for two or three genuine test sessions
• Do not spend all 200 starting Moments on video. Generate 4-6 images first to evaluate visual quality before committing to video costs
• Detailed character profiles produce noticeably better conversations — invest 5-10 minutes in the free-text fields during setup
• Free memory is extremely limited (2-3 exchanges) — if the AI seems forgetful, this is why, not a platform malfunction
• The Plus plan at $9.99/month is the sweet spot for most users: unlimited messaging, 3,000 Moments, 30-day memory recall
• Add secrets.ai to your home screen using the browser's "Add to Home Screen" function for an app-like experience on mobile

Common Issues and Solutions

Messages not sending

Check your daily message limit. Free users hit a 20-message cap per 24 hours. Once reached, no new messages will send until the limit resets. Upgrade to Plus or higher for unlimited messaging.

AI seems forgetful

On the free tier, memory resets after 2-3 exchanges — the AI genuinely cannot recall previous sessions. On Lite, recall extends to approximately 14 days. Upgrading from free to Plus immediately extends recall to 30 days and significantly improves companion relationship continuity. See the free vs premium comparison for the full memory breakdown by tier.

Slow responses

Response slowdowns occur during peak server load periods. This is a platform capacity issue, not a device or connection problem. Try during off-peak hours (late night or early morning US time) if you encounter consistent delays.

Can't generate video

Video generation requires at least a Lite plan ($5.99/month) and available Moments. Free tier users cannot generate videos. If you are on Lite or above but still cannot access video, check your Moments balance — a zero balance blocks all media generation regardless of subscription tier.

Forgot password

Use the password reset option on the login page. A reset link is sent to your registered email address. This is the only account recovery method — no phone number or backup authentication option exists, which is why using a reliable email address at signup matters.

FAQ