Craqly vs LockedIn AI: Which AI Interview Tool Should You Pick?

Two Different Philosophies

LockedIn AI and Craqly both want to help you ace interviews, but they're built on fundamentally different ideas about how to do it.

LockedIn AI bets big on flexibility and social features. Their "LockedIn Duo" mode lets a friend view your interview feed and send you guidance alongside the AI suggestions. It's a clever concept — your buddy who works at Google can watch your Google interview and type "mention the DORA metrics" while the AI handles the rest. They also built an Auto Job Apply feature, LinkedIn optimizer, and headshot generator. They run on multiple AI models — OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek — and support 50+ languages.

Craqly focuses on being reliable across more scenarios. Eight products (Interview Copilot, Mock Interviews, Sales Assistant, Meeting Copilot, Auto Notes, Resume Builder with ATS scoring, Mobile Copilot, and Code Assistant for 20+ languages) covering the full career toolkit. The response time sits under 3 seconds consistently, and it works on any platform including phone calls.

I tested both for a full week. Let me walk you through what that experience was actually like.

Features Comparison Table

Feature	Craqly	LockedIn AI
Real-time AI answers	Yes (<3 sec)	Yes (claimed 116ms, lag reported)
Stealth mode	Yes (invisible overlay)	Yes
Duo/Friend mode	Not available	Yes (LockedIn Duo)
Platform support	Zoom, Meet, Teams, phone calls, any platform	Desktop + Browser extension (Chrome, Edge, Brave)
Mobile support	Browser-based Mobile Copilot (no download)	Not specified
Coding support	Code Assistant (20+ languages)	Coding Copilot
Resume builder	Yes (with ATS scoring)	Yes
Mock interviews	Yes	Yes
Auto job apply	Not available	Yes
LinkedIn optimizer	Not available	Yes
AI headshot generator	Not available	Yes
Sales/Meeting tools	Sales Assistant + Meeting Copilot + Auto Notes	Not available
AI models	Proprietary	OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek
Language support	Multiple	50+ languages
Desktop apps	Windows + Mac	Windows + Mac
Browser extension	Not needed (works on any platform)	Chrome, Edge, Brave
Free tier	Yes (15 minutes)	Limited
Pricing	Affordable tiered plans	~$30-55/month
User base	Growing	1M+ users, 4.8/5 rating

The Duo Mode: Cool Idea, Niche Application

Let's talk about LockedIn Duo because it's genuinely unique. Having a friend watch your interview alongside the AI and send you targeted advice sounds amazing. And in specific situations, it is — if your friend is an expert in exactly what you're interviewing for, their contextual hints can be better than any AI.

But here's the practical reality. You need a friend who's available during your exact interview time, knows enough about the role to add value beyond what the AI provides, and is willing to sit through your entire interview watching and typing. That's a big ask. Most people I know would do it once as a favor. For your fifth interview that week? They've got their own job to do.

It's a feature that sounds great in marketing but has limited real-world utility for most candidates. Still, credit where it's due — it's creative.

Reliability: This Is Where It Falls Apart

LockedIn AI's biggest problem isn't its feature list — it's whether those features work consistently.

User reports paint a concerning picture. The platform is frequently described as buggy, with lag in responses that undermines the "116ms response time" claim. But the reliability issues go deeper than slow responses. Users report accounts being disabled without explanation, shallow and repetitive AI responses, and — this is the one that really bothers me — extreme difficulty canceling subscriptions.

When I tested LockedIn AI, I experienced the lag firsthand. During a mock technical interview, the AI took noticeably longer to respond to follow-up questions than to initial ones, as if the context window was bogging it down. One answer for a React state management question was nearly word-for-word identical to a previous answer about a different topic. The AI was recycling responses.

Craqly's performance was more consistent. The sub-3-second response time held up across a full 40-minute mock interview without degradation. The answers adapted to the conversation flow — when the mock interviewer (a friend helping me test) pushed back on my response, Craqly's suggestion adjusted to address the pushback rather than repeating itself.

The cancellation problem

I want to flag the subscription cancellation issue specifically because it affects your money. Multiple LockedIn AI users report that canceling their subscription is unnecessarily difficult. Some describe multi-step processes, others say they were charged after they thought they'd canceled. When you're evaluating a tool, knowing you can leave easily is important. If canceling feels like a trap, that's a red flag about how the company treats customers.

Coding Interview Support

Both tools offer coding assistance, but they approach it differently.

LockedIn AI has a Coding Copilot that works alongside their interview tool. Since they use multiple AI models (including Claude and GPT), they can theoretically leverage whichever model performs best for coding tasks. In practice, the coding support I experienced was adequate for standard algorithm problems but struggled with system design questions that required broader context.

Craqly's Code Assistant supports 20+ programming languages and is built as a standalone product within the ecosystem. During testing, it handled a Python data structures problem and a JavaScript async/await question well. The explanation of the approach — not just the code — was particularly useful for interviews where you need to articulate your thinking.

For pure coding interview preparation, both tools get the job done for medium-difficulty problems. For harder problems or system design discussions, Craqly's explanations were clearer.

Career Tools Beyond Interviews

LockedIn AI offers some career tools that Craqly doesn't: Auto Job Apply (which automatically applies to jobs matching your criteria), a LinkedIn profile optimizer, and an AI headshot generator. These are useful pre-interview tools. If you're in the "applying to hundreds of jobs" phase, automated applications save enormous time.

Craqly's career tools focus on different areas: a Resume Builder with ATS scoring, Sales Assistant for people in sales roles, Meeting Copilot and Auto Notes for day-to-day work after you've landed the job. The ATS scoring feature alone is valuable — you can check if your resume will actually get past automated screening before you submit it.

Neither tool covers everything. LockedIn AI helps more with job discovery and applications. Craqly helps more with preparation, performance, and post-hire productivity.

Mobile and Platform Support

Craqly's Mobile Copilot is a standout. It runs entirely in your phone's browser — no app download required. For phone interviews, recruiter calls, or any interview where you can't have a laptop open, this is incredibly practical. You just open a browser tab and you've got AI assistance.

LockedIn AI offers desktop apps and browser extensions for Chrome, Edge, and Brave. The browser extension approach is convenient for web-based coding platforms but doesn't help with phone interviews or situations where you're away from a computer.

Craqly also works on any meeting platform, including phone calls. LockedIn AI is focused on desktop and browser environments.

Pricing Reality

LockedIn AI's pricing ranges from roughly $30 to $55 per month, depending on the plan. They offer a money-back guarantee, which is a nice safety net — assuming the cancellation process actually works smoothly (see above).

Craqly offers a free tier with 15 minutes of real usage, then paid plans that are competitively priced. The free tier is generous enough to actually test the tool in a real scenario rather than just clicking around a demo.

Who Should Pick LockedIn AI?

If the Duo mode is a genuine game-changer for your situation (you have a domain expert friend willing to co-pilot your interviews), that's a unique feature worth considering. The Auto Job Apply and LinkedIn optimizer are also genuinely useful if you're in the mass-application phase. And the multi-model approach means you're getting answers generated by the latest AI models.

Just go in prepared for potential bugs and have a plan for cancellation if it doesn't work out.

Who Should Pick Craqly?

If you want something that works reliably, covers more ground (interviews, meetings, sales, notes, coding), and doesn't make you fight to cancel, Craqly's the safer bet. The mobile copilot, phone call support, and consistent response times give you coverage in scenarios LockedIn AI simply doesn't address.

The eight-product ecosystem also means you won't need to cobble together multiple tools. One subscription covers everything from resume building to your first team meeting at the new job.

The Verdict

LockedIn AI has creative features and an impressive claimed user base. But the reliability issues, cancellation difficulties, and repetitive AI responses undermine the experience. Cool features don't matter if they don't work consistently.

Craqly trades some of LockedIn AI's flashier features (Duo mode, auto-apply) for better reliability, broader platform support, and a more complete career toolkit. For most job seekers, that trade-off makes sense.

Try it yourself — download Craqly and get 15 minutes free to see how it handles your interview prep.