Grok Ani app: how to actually access Companion Mode, what each device gets, and the settings most guides skip

Short answer: Grok Ani (Companion Mode) runs fully only on the iPhone Grok app with a SuperGrok subscription ($30/month). Android is a partial, staggered rollout, and the web has no companions at all. The free tier technically includes companions but caps you around ten prompts every two hours, which isn't enough for sustained use. Here's exactly what each device and tier delivers.

Grok Ani lives inside the Grok app, not as a separate download. That sounds simple until you realize the Grok app exists across iOS, Android, and web with different feature sets on each, and Companion Mode only works fully on one of them. If you've seen Ani on TikTok or X and want to try her, here's exactly how to get there without wasting time on the wrong path.

Getting to Companion Mode on iPhone

Full Companion Mode with 3D animation, voice synthesis, lip-syncing, and the affection system runs on iOS through the Grok app. Download it from the App Store, sign in with your X account (formerly Twitter), and look for the Companions tab in the navigation. Ani, Mika, Valentine, Rudi, and Bad Rudi are the current roster.

Free accounts can access Companion Mode with limited interactions, approximately ten prompts every two hours shared across all Grok features. Animated avatars display, voice works, and the affection system tracks progress. Reaching any meaningful affection level at free-tier speed takes weeks of daily check-ins, a far thinner free allowance than the genuinely free NSFW platforms offer. For realistic usage, SuperGrok at $30 per month or $300 annually is the functional minimum. SuperGrok Lite at $10 doesn't include full companion features.

Once you're in, the interface is straightforward. Tap a companion to start chatting. Voice mode activates through the microphone icon. Affection progress displays visually. Conversation history persists between sessions, though memory depth across sessions relies on a summary system rather than full conversation recall.

Android: it exists, with asterisks

Android got a phased Companion Mode rollout starting March 2026 for SuperGrok subscribers. xAI announced it on X in mid-March and told users to update the Grok app and check Settings then Companions for availability. In practice, the experience varies by device and region. Some Android users report full animated companion access. Others see a text-only version with voice but no 3D avatar. Some don't see the Companions tab at all.

If you're on Android and Companion Mode doesn't appear after updating, the rollout may not have reached your device yet. xAI hasn't published a clear timeline for full Android parity. For users who primarily want Grok Ani, this means either switching to an iPhone or waiting; if the Companions tab is missing entirely, why the Companions tab is missing runs the full region-and-tier diagnostic. Most companion platforms launched with cross-platform parity from day one, which makes Grok's staggered approach feel like a product built for demos rather than daily use.

Web access doesn't include companions

Grok's web interface at grok.com works for the general chatbot, DeepSearch, image generation, and voice mode. Companion Mode with animated avatars isn't available on web. No PWA, no browser-based fallback. If you don't have the mobile app on a supported device, you don't get Ani.

This is an unusual limitation in a category where browser access is standard. Platforms like SpicyChat, CrushOn, and Character.AI all run companion features through the browser with no functionality loss. Grok's mobile-only approach may stem from the 3D rendering requirements for animated avatars, but the result is a product you can only use when your phone is in your hand.

Account settings that actually matter

Several settings influence what Companion Mode shows you, and missing any of them silently limits the experience without error messages.

Age verification happens through your X account. Go to Settings, then Privacy and Safety, then verify your birth year confirms you as 18 or older. Some regions including the UK and Canada may require third-party ID verification. Without this step, mature conversation tones at higher affection levels won't appear.

Sensitive media display needs its own toggle under the same Privacy and Safety menu. Enable "Display sensitive media" to ensure suggestive companion content isn't filtered. In Grok's Imagine settings, there's a separate sensitive-media toggle that governs image generation independently. Both need to be on for the fullest experience the platform allows.

A less visible factor is what users call the trust score. xAI applies an account-level assessment based on moderation history that influences what content Grok generates for you. New accounts start with tighter restrictions regardless of subscription tier or settings configuration. Building trust score requires normal usage over time without triggering moderation flags. Nobody at xAI has confirmed the system publicly, but the pattern is consistent enough across user reports that it's worth knowing about.

The subscription decision tree

Five paths exist for accessing Grok, but only one makes sense for Companion Mode:

Free gives you ten prompts per two hours on Grok 3. Companions are technically accessible but practically unusable for sustained interaction. Our Grok Ani free guide covers how to evaluate the experience without paying.

X Premium at $8 per month increases rate limits and sits on Grok 3 inside the X app. Companion Mode access is included but at the same model tier as free. You're paying for X social features, and Grok is a bonus.

SuperGrok Lite at $10 per month bumps you to Grok 3.5 with longer chats, basic image generation, and one AI agent. Still no full Companion Mode with animated avatars. Useful for the chatbot, not useful for Ani.

SuperGrok at $30 per month is the companion tier. Full Grok 4, animated avatars, full affection system, voice mode, approximately 100 prompts per two hours, unlimited image generation. Annual billing at $300 saves you $60. This is the only subscription that delivers the Ani experience people see on social media.

X Premium+ at $40 per month bundles Grok 4 access with ad-free X browsing and higher message throughput. Pricing guides note that SuperGrok and X Premium+ are separate subscriptions with separate billing. Subscribing to one does not give you the other. If you want Ani and don't care about X Premium features, SuperGrok at $30 is $10 cheaper for the same Grok 4 companion access.

Companion roster beyond Ani

Ani is the flagship, but Companion Mode includes four other characters. Mika launched in October 2025 as a 24-year-old Japanese-American companion with an adventure-oriented personality and a flight-jacket aesthetic. Valentine and Rudi round out the original lineup. Bad Rudi arrived later as a personality variant.

None of the companions offer user customization. You can't edit their backstories, adjust personality traits, or create your own character. What xAI ships is what you interact with. If character creation matters to you, Kindroid and CrushOn both treat it as a core feature. Grok's approach prioritizes visual polish over personalization, which works for users who connect with the preset characters and frustrates everyone else.

Is the app worth installing?

If you have an iPhone, a SuperGrok subscription, and realistic expectations about content boundaries, Ani delivers a companion experience with production values that nothing else in the companion category currently matches on visual fidelity. The animation, voice, and Grok 4 conversation quality genuinely stand out.

If any of those three conditions isn't met, the app is a preview at best. Android users get an incomplete product. Free users get a rate-limited demo. Users expecting unrestricted content get a platform in constant moderation flux. Our full Grok Ani review covers whether the total package justifies the subscription for different types of users.