Category: Blogposts

Creating and Managing Preferences in Perplexity

AI assistants become more useful when they understand how you prefer to work. Whether you use Perplexity for research, writing, technical support, product comparisons or everyday questions, a few well-chosen preferences can make responses more relevant, consistent and easier to use.

Perplexity works slightly differently from services that use a standalone preferences file. Rather than uploading a permanent document, you normally add your preferences through its AI Profile or custom-instructions settings.

The AI Profile: Your Default Preferences

Think of the AI Profile as a set of standing instructions. It tells Perplexity how you generally want it to respond and what background information is useful to keep in mind.

Your profile might include:

• Your preferred writing style and level of detail
• Whether you prefer headings, lists, tables or brief answers
• Your language and location
• Your interests or areas of expertise
• Devices, software or platforms you commonly use
• Special instructions, such as using UK spelling or avoiding jargon

A useful profile does not need to be long. A concise set of clear instructions is often more effective than a detailed personal biography.

Write in clear, natural English. Start with a direct answer and keep responses concise but complete.

Use headings, bullets and numbered steps when they improve readability. Use tables for comparisons.

For recommendations, explain the main trade-offs. For information that may have changed, verify it with current sources.

Avoid unnecessary jargon, hype and generic AI phrasing.

This gives Perplexity a reliable baseline without making every answer sound rigid or over-formatted.

Treat It as a Living Document

Your profile does not have to be final. It is worth reviewing it occasionally as your needs, interests and working habits change.

You might add an instruction after noticing a recurring irritation, for example:

• Use UK spelling
• Do not assume I use Windows
• Put commands and code in code blocks
• Explain the safest option first
• When editing my writing, preserve my intended meaning

It is equally sensible to remove instructions that do not make a noticeable difference. A short profile that you maintain is usually more valuable than a long one full of outdated details.

Different Modes for Different Tasks

Many people use an AI assistant for several unrelated jobs. The style that works well for technical troubleshooting may not be ideal for drafting an email, planning a trip or editing a blog post.

A practical approach is to keep a few profile blocks in a note-taking app, then paste in the one that best suits the task. Three useful examples are technical, casual, and writing or editing modes.

Technical Mode

Technical mode is useful for software problems, hardware decisions, research, troubleshooting and step-by-step tasks.

Be direct, accurate and practical. Diagnose the likely cause before suggesting a fix.

Give the safest and least disruptive option first. Where relevant, include the likely cause, how to verify it, step-by-step actions and a fallback option.

State assumptions clearly. Highlight compatibility issues, risks and trade-offs. Use headings, bullets, numbered steps and code blocks where useful.

This mode encourages answers that are structured, practical and easier to apply independently.

Casual Mode

Casual mode suits everyday questions, light recommendations, hobbies, travel ideas and quick explanations.

Write in a clear, friendly and practical tone. Start with the answer and keep the response easy to scan.

Avoid unnecessary jargon and over-structuring. For recommendations, suggest the best option first, then offer a few alternatives with brief trade-offs.

This keeps answers useful without turning a simple question into a detailed report.

Writing and Editing Mode

Writing mode is useful for website copy, emails, blog posts, captions, documentation and rewriting.

Write in clear, natural language that sounds human and specific.

Avoid hype, clichés, corporate filler and generic AI phrasing. Preserve my intended meaning unless I ask for a rewrite.

For editing, provide usable copy directly. If helpful, offer both a light edit and a stronger rewrite. Prefer clarity over cleverness.

This can be particularly helpful when you want to avoid the overly polished, repetitive or generic language often associated with AI-generated text.

Use Short Instructions in Individual Chats

You do not always need to replace your main profile. A short instruction at the start of a new conversation is often enough to set the style for a one-off task.

Examples include:

• Answer this in technical mode
• Keep this brief and conversational
• Rewrite this in natural UK English
• Give me a practical answer with no jargon
• Compare these in a table and recommend one

This is often the quickest way to change tone or format while keeping your normal profile in place.

Profiles, Memory and Chat History

It is useful to distinguish between three related but different things.

Profile instructions are the preferences you enter deliberately in settings. They tell Perplexity how you generally want it to respond.

Memory is information that may be retained from conversations to personalise future answers. This may include interests, recurring projects, preferences or details you have shared.

Chat history is the record of previous searches and conversations in your account.

An AI assistant may appear to know more about you over time because it is using remembered information or past conversations. That is not necessarily the same as changing the visible text in your profile.

Does Perplexity Alter Your Profile Automatically?

Your visible profile and custom instructions should remain something you control. There is no reason to assume that the text you have entered in settings is silently rewritten without your involvement.

However, Perplexity may use remembered information and previous activity to personalise responses. This means its understanding of your interests or preferences may extend beyond the wording in your profile.

If you value close control, review the relevant settings periodically. Look for options to:

• View or clear remembered information
• Manage chat history
• Adjust personalisation features
• Review data-retention or model-improvement settings
• Update or remove profile instructions

It is also sensible to avoid adding highly sensitive personal, financial or business information unless you are comfortable with it being retained under the service’s policies.

A Simple, Sustainable Setup

For most people, an effective arrangement is straightforward:

1. Create one short, general profile with your core preferences.
2. Keep two or three specialised versions in a notes app or plain text file.
3. Use brief per-chat instructions for occasional changes of tone or format.
4. Review your profile and memory settings every few months.
5. Remove details that are no longer useful or that you would rather not retain.

The aim is not to make the assistant know everything about you. It is to provide enough context to save time, reduce repetition and produce answers in a form that suits the task at hand.