There's a new AI tool launching seemingly every day, each promising to transform how you work. Subscriptions add up quickly, so before you hand over your card, put the tool through a proper test. This simple one-week plan shows you whether a tool earns its place in your business.

Before you start: define the job

Write down one specific task you want the tool to help with, and how long it takes you today. For example: "Writing our weekly newsletter takes three hours." Without a clear job and a starting point, you can't judge whether the tool is worth paying for.

The one-week trial plan

Day 1: Set up properly. Create your account, connect any integrations, and give the tool context about your business, your audience and your tone of voice. Most disappointing trials fail at this step.

Day 2: Use it on real work. Not a demo, not a test prompt. Do an actual task you'd normally do yourself, using the tool.

Day 3: Push its limits. Try harder tasks, edge cases and longer pieces. Where does quality drop off?

Day 4: Check the output carefully. Fact-check, proofread and compare against what you'd produce yourself. How much editing did it need?

Day 5: Bring in a colleague. If others will use it, let them try. Is it intuitive without your guidance?

Days 6 and 7: Measure and decide. Compare time spent and quality against your starting point.

What to measure

• Time saved: including the time spent editing and correcting

• Quality: would you publish or send the result with light edits?

• Consistency: does it perform well every time, or only sometimes?

• Ease of use: will you actually reach for it on a busy day?

• Data and privacy: how is your data stored and used? Can you opt out of your content being used for training?

A simple rule: if a tool doesn't save you at least an hour a week on real work, it probably isn't worth a monthly subscription.

Watch out for these traps

• Trials that ask for a card and auto-renew onto an annual plan. Set a reminder to cancel.

• Credit-based pricing where heavy users burn through allowances fast

• Paying for a specialist tool that a general AI assistant you already have can do just as well

The short version

Define one job, measure your starting point, test the tool on real work for a week and judge it on time saved and quality. Keep what works and cancel what doesn't. Browse our AI tool reviews for honest verdicts before you start your trial.