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Manus is an AI agent for getting multi-step work done, not just answering questions. Use Chat Mode for quick explanations, brainstorming, and file summaries; switch to Agent Mode when you need a deliverable such as a researched report, website, presentation, or organized dataset. For a complex or costly job, review a plan before letting the agent execute. Start small, check the evidence and files it produces, and approve actions that affect other people or systems.
Last updated: September 23, 2026. Manus changes its interface, models, plan names, and availability; confirm current labels and limits in your account and on its pricing page.
What is Manus AI?
Manus is a platform built around an AI agent: you describe an outcome, and it can plan and carry out a sequence of steps toward that result using available tools, files, and connected services. That differs from a conventional chatbot exchange. A chatbot might explain how to compare vendors; an agent may research them, assemble a table, and create a report.
Manus describes Agent Mode as capable of tasks such as research, website and app creation, slides, video, and file work. Those are product capabilities, not a guarantee that every result will be complete or correct. The user still needs to supply a clear goal, provide appropriate context, check sources and outputs, and control permissions before consequential actions. Manus’s Chat Mode and Agent Mode guide explains the product distinction.
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Manus is most useful when you need a concrete artifact or workflow: a comparison spreadsheet, a client report, a prototype site, a batch of research records, or a repeatable weekly process. If you only need a quick answer, a normal chat is usually simpler.
Manus modes and features, explained
Chat Mode: ask, discuss, summarize
Choose Chat Mode for questions, explanations, brainstorming, drafting, lightweight searches, or summarizing supported files such as images, PDFs, and text files. Manus says Chat Mode does not consume credits. It is the sensible first stop when the task can be handled in a response without the agent taking a long series of actions.
Example: “Summarize this meeting transcript in 150 words, then list decisions, owners, and open questions. Do not invent an owner where none is named.”
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Agent Mode: delegate a multi-step task
Agent Mode is for work that requires Manus to break a goal into steps, search or inspect material, make intermediate decisions, and produce an output. Examples include researching vendors and building a sourced comparison, creating an initial website, or turning a folder of documents into an organized report. Agent tasks use credits, so avoid using this mode for a task Chat Mode can handle.
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- 【Heat Dissipation】 ：The top of the laptop stand is designed with multiple ventilation holes. The open design offers greater ventilation and more airflow to cool your laptop during operation other than it just lays flat on the table.
- 【Portable & Foldable】：The foldable design allows you to easily slip it in your backpack. Ideal for people who travel for business a lot.
- 【Broad Compatibility】：Our desktop book stand is compatible with all laptops from 10-15.6 inches, such as MacBook Air/ Pro, Google Pixelbook, Dell XPS, HP, ASUS, Lenovo ThinkPad, Acer, Chromebook and Microsoft Surface, etc.Be your ideal companion in Home, Office & Outdoor.
Free users’ access and paid users’ model choices can change. The Help Center’s mode guide describes Manus 1.6 Lite for free Agent Mode access and additional model choices for paid members; check the current options shown in your account rather than assuming those model names or entitlements remain unchanged.
Plan Mode: inspect the approach before execution
Plan Mode inserts a review checkpoint: Manus prepares a Markdown plan with goals, steps, and constraints, which you can edit or ask it to revise before confirming execution. The official announcement describes activating it on the web by typing / and selecting Plan, or on mobile by tapping + and choosing Plan Mode. Labels may vary as the interface changes. See Manus’s Plan Mode instructions.
Use this for a website or app build, a complicated automation, an unclear request, or work involving integrations, payment flows, or multiple user roles. Check that the plan names the audience, deliverables, data sources, integrations, acceptance criteria, and what it must not change. Confirm only when the scope is right. Manus says Plan Mode can also be enabled during a task to plan a later phase.
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Wide Research: compare many independent items
Wide Research is designed to split a batch of similar, independent research items into subtasks and synthesize the results. That makes it a better fit for comparing dozens of products, profiling competitors, reviewing many papers, or collecting fields from a list of sites than for one sequential deep-dive question. Manus’s Wide Research documentation recommends defining the scale, fields, output structure, and evaluation criteria in advance.
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- 【Adjustable & Ergonomic】：This laptop stand can be adjusted to a comfortable height and angle according to your actual needs, letting you fix posture and reduce your neck fatigue, back pain and eye strain. Very comfortable for working in home, office and outdoor.
- 【Sturdy & Protective】 ：Made of sturdy metal, it can support up to 17.6 lbs (8kg) weight on top; With 2 rubber mats on the hook and anti-skid silicone pads on top & bottom, it can secure your laptop in place and maximum protect your device from scratches and sliding. Moreover, smooth edges will never hurt your hands.
- 【Heat Dissipation】 ：The top of the laptop stand is designed with multiple ventilation holes. The open design offers greater ventilation and more airflow to cool your laptop during operation other than it just lays flat on the table.
- 【Portable & Foldable】：The foldable design allows you to easily slip it in your backpack. Ideal for people who travel for business a lot.
- 【Broad Compatibility】：Our printer stand is compatible with all laptops from 10-15.6 inches, such as MacBook Air/ Pro, Google Pixelbook, Dell XPS, HP, ASUS, Lenovo ThinkPad, Acer, Chromebook and Microsoft Surface, etc.Be your ideal companion in Home, Office & Outdoor.
The Help Center describes Wide Research as paid-only, automatically triggered, and capped at 50 credits per subtask; it also says the system can run 20 subtasks simultaneously. The broader documentation describes a wider agent architecture and testing up to 250 items. These refer to different layers and should not be read as a promise that every job runs hundreds of agents at once. Availability and limits may change. Sources: Help Center: Wide Research and product documentation.
For each item, require the same named fields, source URLs, and a clear value such as “Not found” instead of guesses. Audit a sample: parallel processing does not make inconsistent sources or unsupported claims disappear. Avoid Wide Research for a small list, an interactive investigation, or work where every step depends on the one before it.
Projects, Skills, My Browser, and My Computer
These are better understood as persistent workspaces or execution environments than as chat modes:
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- Projects keep shared instructions and files in a persistent workspace, so new tasks can inherit context. The documented creation path is Create Project or the
+beside Projects in the workspace sidebar; name it, add a master instruction, upload relevant files, then create tasks inside it. Projects suit recurring work such as client reporting, competitor monitoring, or support analysis. Project documentation. - Project Skills can constrain a Project to a dedicated set of skills and help standardize a workflow; they are not a substitute for reviewing its outputs. Manus’s overview of Project Skills.
- My Browser / Browser Operator can let Manus operate within an authorized local browser session, including logged-in services. Manus’s documented flow is to activate the My Browser connector, assign a task, authorize when prompted, and monitor it in its task tab. Treat the session as sensitive: the agent may be able to see or change account information, and sites may restrict automation. Browser Operator instructions.
- My Computer in the desktop app can work with local files, applications, and command-line tools. That can help with file conversion or project work, but a mistaken bulk operation can damage or expose files. Ask for a dry run, restrict the folder and file types, keep a backup, and approve the proposed changes before execution. My Computer overview.
How to use Manus for the first time
- Choose a small, concrete outcome. Instead of “tell me about online marketing,” ask for a defined comparison or a summary with named sections.
- Start in the least powerful mode that fits. Use Chat Mode for an explanation or document summary; use Agent Mode when the task needs multiple actions and a deliverable; use Wide Research for a batch of comparable independent items.
- Give it the context it needs. State the audience, location, source material, time range, and relevant constraints. Upload only files needed for the task.
- Specify the deliverable. Name the format and fields: for example, a sortable table with price, limitations, official URL, and confidence—not just “do research.”
- Use Plan Mode for a complex build or consequential workflow. Read the plan, correct assumptions, and check permissions before confirming.
- Inspect intermediate work. Check the research plan, source list, first few records, proposed site structure, and requested integrations before relying on a polished final file.
- Verify and preserve the result. Ask for a factual audit, check important claims against cited sources, and request a revised copy rather than overwriting an original.
Write prompts that produce reviewable work
A useful prompt defines the outcome, context, steps, constraints, and acceptance criteria. For example:
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- Heat Dissipation: The multiple ventilation holes offers better ventilation and more airflow to cool your laptop and prevent from overheating and crashes. Anti-skid silicone and smooth edge can protects your laptop from sliding and scratches.
Goal: Compare 15 email marketing platforms for a five-person US ecommerce business.
Context: We need basic automation and integrations; prioritize clarity over a long sales pitch.
For each platform, collect: official URL, current listed price and date checked,
automation features, integrations, free-plan limits, and notable limitations.
Use official sources where possible. Cite each factual claim with a URL.
Mark missing details “Not found”; do not infer them.
Deliver: a sortable table, the three strongest fits for this business, and trade-offs.
Before finalizing, flag claims that need a human to verify.For tasks with external effects, add an explicit stop condition: “Do not send, publish, purchase, delete, or change external records; stop and ask for confirmation first.” For local file work, ask for a list of proposed changes before anything is modified.
For a large research batch, write the schema before launch: “Analyze each item independently. Return company, product, price, target customer, integrations, limitations, source URL, and confidence. Mark unavailable details ‘Not found’; flag duplicates.” For a website, use Plan Mode and ask it to cover pages, user journeys, forms, data handling, responsive behavior, testing, and acceptance criteria before it builds anything.
Where Manus can be useful
- Research and competitive intelligence: comparing vendors, extracting details from multiple pages, or building a sourced dataset. Require evidence for important fields and manually audit records; prices and availability change.
- Website and app prototypes: landing pages, simple internal tools, dashboards, and early product concepts. Plan first. A working demo is not automatically production-ready: authentication, permissions, data persistence, accessibility, security, and deployment need testing and review.
- Reports and presentations: turning notes or research into an initial report, executive summary, or slide deck. Check figures, citations, and whether the visual polish makes uncertain claims look more certain than they are.
- Routine file work: tasks such as renaming invoices, sorting images, or converting documents. Limit the scope and request a dry run and change log before bulk edits.
- Authenticated browser workflows: work in a CRM or another logged-in service where you have authorized access. Set narrow read/write limits and require confirmation before sending messages or changing records.
- Repeatable work: Projects can preserve shared instructions and files for recurring reports, content briefs, onboarding, or research. Keep instructions current and approve proposed changes to shared materials.
When another approach is better
Use a normal chatbot when you want a quick explanation, brainstorm, or short draft and no external action. Use a specialist spreadsheet, CRM, accounting, project-management, or design tool when that application’s controls and reliability matter more than an agent’s flexibility. A coding environment is a better home for maintained software that needs version control, tests, deployment pipelines, and formal security review.
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Best Value
- ✔️[Foldabe & Protable] - Foldable laptop stand for desk & Protable computer stand, It combines the advantages of market brackets, convenient travel laptop stand. Easy to use. Suitable for working at home, office and outdoor, improve comfort.
- ✔️[360°Rotation] - The computer stand with 360° rotating base, 360° rotation connected with the base is more flexible, the computer stand allows you to rotate the laptop to any angle.
- ✔️[Stable & Durable] - The Computer stand is made of one-piece fiber metal material, which is more durable and stable than ordinary aluminum alloy computer stands. The upgraded rotating base makes the stand performance more stable, and the non-slip silicone protects the laptop from sliding.Only supports laptops up to 16 inches.
- ✔️[Ergonmic Desing] - You can freely adjust the height and angle of the laptop stand to keep it at eye level, which helps to reduce the pressure on your body while working. Whether sitting or standing, there is a comfortable angle.
- ✔️[Wide Compatibility] - Our laptop stand is compatible with all laptops from 10-16 inches, such as MacBook Air/Pro, Google PixelBook, Dell XPS, HP, ASUS, Lenovo ThinkPad, Acer, Chromebook and Microsoft Surface, etc. It is an ideal companion for computer workers.
Credits and pricing: what beginners should know
Manus offers a free tier, but that does not mean all modes or workloads are free. Chat Mode is described as credit-free; Agent Mode uses credits, and the Help Center describes Wide Research as paid-only. Large scopes, repeated revisions, and parallel batches can consume credits quickly. Check the estimate, remaining balance, and plan limits shown in your account before launching substantial work.
In a Help Center update dated March 16, 2026, Manus listed Free at $0 per month with 300 daily refresh credits, one concurrent task, and two scheduled tasks; Pro starting at $20 per month with 4,000 monthly credits; a higher Pro tier starting at $40 per month with 8,000 monthly credits and a seven-day trial; and Team starting at $20 per seat per month. The page described annual billing as 17% cheaper. These are dated Help Center figures, not guaranteed current prices or plan terms. Existing members may have different renewals, and plan names can change. Check the Help Center pricing article and live pricing page before deciding.
To control costs, brainstorm in Chat Mode, narrow the task before execution, test a small sample, use Plan Mode to catch scope mistakes, and ask for a cost-conscious phased approach. A free tier is a reasonable way to explore; upgrade only if your own usage shows that Agent Mode, higher limits, or recurring workflows save enough time to justify the cost.
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Common problems and how to recover
- It heads in the wrong direction: stop if possible, restate the audience, output, and limits, ask it to list assumptions, and review a Plan Mode version before restarting. Do not compound a bad scope with many small edits.
- The result looks polished but weakly sourced: ask for a claim-by-claim audit with source URLs, dates where available, and confidence; separate verified facts from inference and unresolved claims.
- Research rows are inconsistent: define the fields and missing-value rule, require a consistent source hierarchy, and have it check duplicates. Re-check questionable records rather than automatically rerunning the whole batch.
- Credits are disappearing: narrow the scope, reduce repeated revisions, run a pilot, and reserve parallel research for genuinely independent items.
- A prototype fails outside its demo: test invalid, empty, duplicate, and unauthorized inputs; review permissions and credentials; add acceptance tests and a rollback plan; get a qualified developer to review production deployment.
- Files or browser accounts are at risk: stop the task, restore from a backup or review account activity as appropriate, revoke access if needed, and use tighter permissions next time. Do not give broad instructions such as “clean up everything.”
A simple mode-selection rule
| Your task | Start here |
|---|---|
| Explain a concept, brainstorm, or summarize a PDF | Chat Mode |
| Build a site, prepare a report, or complete a multi-step workflow | Agent Mode; use Plan Mode first if scope is complex |
| Compare many similar products, companies, or papers | Wide Research, with a fixed schema and sample audit |
| Repeat work with shared files and instructions | Project |
| Organize local files or use desktop apps | My Computer, with a dry run and backup |
| Work in a logged-in website | My Browser, with narrow authorization and action checks |
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
