I didn’t realize Perplexity could do this — 10 hidden features worth trying

I admit Perplexity is not my first choice for AI. I honestly forget about it most of the time because I rely so heavily on what I call the Big Three: ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude. Before really diving into everything Perplexity can do, I thought of it as an AI search engine with citations. You know, type a question, get a clean summary, click a source or two and move on.

That is, until I started using Perplexity more deliberately. Once I look beyond the search bar, Perplexity turned into a research assistant, comparison engine and productivity shortcut that has saved me real time in my daily workflow. If you’ve only used Perplexity at surface level, like I was doing, these are 10 features worth trying.

For starters, one detail that’s easy to miss is the row of topic shortcuts under Perplexity’s search bar — options like Parenting, Travel, Health, Web, Academic, Writing or Math changes which sources it prioritizes and how answers are structured. These context presets are similar to ChatGPT’s custom GPTs, Gemini Gems or Claude Artifacts, because they shape how answers are generated.