Guide · ChatGPT Ads
ChatGPT Ads: how they work, what they cost and how to start
By Jamie Lund · Updated · Sourced from OpenAI's own documentation
The short answer
ChatGPT Ads are sponsored placements that appear below ChatGPT's answers for people on the Free and Go plans. OpenAI matches them to the conversation using your context hints, and you buy them in a second-price auction by impression, click or conversion goal. Any business registered in one of 63 supported countries, selling in an allowed category, can start in the self-serve Ads Manager at ads.openai.com.
What ChatGPT Ads are
ChatGPT Ads are OpenAI's advertising product inside ChatGPT. Testing started in the United States on February 9, 2026, and businesses now buy them through a self-serve Ads Manager. Ads run on separate systems from the chat model, so an ad can't change what ChatGPT says. Source: Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center).
Why does ChatGPT have ads?
OpenAI says ads help pay for the infrastructure behind the Free and Go plans, so more people can use ChatGPT, without changing how it answers.
OpenAI describes advertising as one part of its business alongside subscriptions, enterprise and the API, and has published five principles for it: mission alignment, answer independence, conversation privacy, choice and control, and long-term value, which means not optimizing for time spent in ChatGPT. Sources: Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center), Our approach to advertising (OpenAI), A milestone in expanding access to AI (OpenAI).
Does ChatGPT have ads? A timeline
Yes. OpenAI began testing ads in the US on February 9, 2026. By September 23, 2026, ChatGPT Ads were available in more than 60 countries, shown to people on the Free and Go plans.
OpenAI publishes its advertising principles and says ad testing will start in the US on the Free and Go plans. Source
Ad testing begins in the US for adult Free and Go users. Source
OpenAI announces expansion beyond the US, starting with Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Source
The self-serve Ads Manager beta starts rolling out, and cost-per-click bidding launches. Before this, ads were bought by impression only. Source
ChatGPT Ads launch in the UK, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea. Source
Self-serve Ads Manager opens across India, Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. OpenAI reports a $1 billion annualized ads revenue run rate. Source
OpenAI updates its ad policies. Source
OpenAI announces a ChatGPT Ads app for Shopify merchants, a HubSpot integration, an Ads Manager plugin for ChatGPT, and a test of Sponsored Agents. Source
Expansion to Southeast Asia and Taiwan brings ChatGPT Ads to more than 60 countries. Source
OpenAI announces a visual ad format shown during image generation, to be tested in the US later in October, plus more measurement partners. Source
Who sees ChatGPT ads (and who doesn't)
- People on the Free and Go plans may see ads.
- Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu accounts never see ads.
- Accounts identified as belonging to people under 18 don't see ads.
- Temporary Chats don't show ads, and Free users can switch to an ads-free mode with lower limits.
Source: Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center).
How to turn off ads in ChatGPT
Upgrade to Plus or Pro, or on the Free plan switch to ad-free in Settings, under Ads controls, in exchange for lower message limits. Temporary Chats never show ads.
- Free plan: Settings, then Ads controls, then change plan to go ad-free and reduce message limits. You also lose features such as image generation and deep research. You can switch back at any time.
- Go plan: the ad-free option isn't offered on Go. Switch to Free and use it, or upgrade to Plus or Pro.
- Less personal ads: turn off "Personalize ads" so ads use only the current chat, turn off "Past chats and memory", or delete your ads data. This changes which ads you see, not whether you see them.
- A single ad: open its menu to hide it, report it, or see why it was shown.
Personalized ads aren't available in the EEA or Switzerland at first. Source: Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center).
What ChatGPT ads look like
Ads sit below the end of a response, labeled as sponsored and separated from the answer. A unit can show one or more ads, from one advertiser or several. Each ad has six parts:
Sponsored
1. Advertiser name · 2. Favicon
3. Title
4. Copy, a line or two describing the offer
6. Landing page →
How ChatGPT decides which ad to show
OpenAI's ad system picks ads for expected relevance and outcomes. It weighs the context and intent of the current conversation, your landing page, title and copy, and the context hints you set on each ad group. When a user has ads personalization on, it can also use select signals from their broader ChatGPT use, such as past chats and memory.
Context hints describe the conversations, topics or keywords where you're relevant. They're not exact-match keywords and don't guarantee delivery. When several ads qualify, relevance and bids together decide which shows first. Ads never appear near sensitive topics such as personal health, mental health or politics. To find the conversations your customers have, the free ChatGPT Question Finder lists the questions they ask ChatGPT. Sources: Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics (OpenAI Help Center), Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center).
What ChatGPT Ads cost
| Buy | You pay for | Use it to |
|---|---|---|
| Views | Impressions (maximum CPM bid) | Reach people in relevant conversations |
| Clicks | Valid clicks (maximum CPC bid) | Drive traffic |
| Conversions | Valid clicks (oCPC) or impressions (oCPM), with delivery optimized for one conversion event. Never per conversion. | Get sales or leads, once tracking works |
ChatGPT Ads use a relevance-weighted, second-price auction, so the price you pay can be lower than your maximum bid. For cost-per-click campaigns, OpenAI suggests starting with a maximum bid of $3 to $5. Each campaign needs a daily budget of at least $25 in US dollars, and billing is postpay to a card. OpenAI says it has no performance benchmarks yet, so treat any "average cost" you read elsewhere as one advertiser's experience. Sources: Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics (OpenAI Help Center), Daily Budgets (OpenAI Help Center), Billing & Payment (OpenAI Help Center).
Wondering whether the minimum is enough? How much ChatGPT ads cost works through budgets and billing, with a free planner that shows what a sale costs at your numbers.
How to advertise on ChatGPT, step by step
- 1
Check that you're eligible
The legal entity that advertises and pays must be based in a country with self-serve access (63 countries as of October 14, 2026), and what you sell must be in a category OpenAI currently allows.
- 2
Create an account at ads.openai.com
Sign in with your OpenAI account, enter your website and business name, add a card and complete business verification, which can take up to 7 business days. Country, currency and time zone can't be changed later.
- 3
Set up measurement before you spend
Install OpenAI's measurement pixel to send standard or custom conversion events, and send the same events from your server through the Conversions API, with a shared event ID so each conversion counts once. Add UTM parameters to your landing page URLs so GA4 sees the traffic too.
- 4
Choose how you'll buy
Pick Views to buy impressions, Clicks to buy traffic, or Conversions to optimize toward a standard conversion event.
- 5
Build ad groups with context hints and a maximum bid
Describe the conversations, topics or keywords where you're relevant, then set a maximum CPM or CPC bid or keep the default Maximize results strategy. OpenAI suggests starting CPC bids at a $3 to $5 maximum. Each campaign needs a daily budget of at least $25 in US dollars.
- 6
Write the ad
Each ad has your advertiser name, favicon, a title, copy, an image and a landing page. All of it, landing page included, has to fit OpenAI's ad policies.
- 7
Launch, then watch
Impressions, clicks and CTR refresh about every 15 minutes. Spend can lag 7 to 8 hours, so a spend of zero early on doesn't mean nothing has been charged.
Not sure you qualify? The eligibility check answers it in two questions, and the Ads Manager guide walks through setup step by step. Sources: Ads Manager Availability (OpenAI Help Center), Ads Manager Account Setup (OpenAI Help Center), Troubleshooting Common Onboarding and Policy Issues (OpenAI Help Center), Maximize Results Bid Strategy (OpenAI Help Center), Daily Budgets (OpenAI Help Center), Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics (OpenAI Help Center), Measure Results (OpenAI Help Center), Ads (OpenAI Developers).
What you can and can't advertise
Open during the test
- Lifestyle and household goods
- Local services
- Travel and experiences
- Digital products and education
Case by case
- Financial services
- Healthcare and medicine
- Legal services
Not allowed
- Dating and sexual content
- Health claims
- Alcohol and drugs
- Tobacco and vaping
- Gambling
- Political content
- Counterfeit goods
Every ad, whatever the category, must be truthful, use professional language, avoid discrimination, and not imitate ChatGPT's interface. Ads must also be consistent end to end: an approved ad can't link to a page with disallowed content. Financial advertisers may need to show proof of licensure. Source: Ad policies (OpenAI) (updated September 10, 2026).
Measuring ChatGPT ads
OpenAI offers three ways to measure results: a JavaScript measurement pixel for standard or custom conversion events, a server-side Conversions API that sends the same events from your server (with a shared event ID, so each conversion counts once), and UTM parameters that carry through to your own analytics. Ads Manager reports impressions, clicks, spend, CTR, average CPC and CPM, and conversions. Advertisers only get aggregated data, never anyone's chats or personal details. Sources: Ads (OpenAI Developers), Conversion Measurement (OpenAI Help Center), Measure Results (OpenAI Help Center), Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center).
ChatGPT Ads vs Google Ads
| ChatGPT Ads | Google Search ads | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Below a ChatGPT answer | On search results pages |
| Matching | The conversation, plus your context hints (no exact match) | Keywords with match types, including exact match |
| Audience | Free and Go users, excluding accounts identified as under 18 | People searching on Google |
| Buying | Views, Clicks or Conversions; second-price auction | Many bid strategies, from manual CPC to target CPA and ROAS |
| Maturity | A test since February 2026, changing monthly | Over two decades of history and benchmarks |
Is it worth testing ChatGPT Ads now?
It's worth a measured test if you sell in an allowed category and people research your kind of product before they buy: gifts, home goods, local services, travel, courses and digital products. Wait if you're in a disallowed category, or if you can't track conversions yet, because an unmeasured test teaches you nothing. Start small, set a stop rule before you spend, and judge it on conversions, not clicks.
ChatGPT Ads vs being named in the answer
Ads buy a placement below the answer. They can't buy a mention inside it. Whether ChatGPT names your business in its answers depends on answer engine optimization: whether AI can crawl your site, understand it and trust it. The free AI Visibility Checker scores that, and for Shopify stores the Agentic Commerce Checker tests whether AI shopping agents can buy from you.
ChatGPT Ads at a glance
- Where ads show
- Below the end of a ChatGPT response, labeled as sponsored and visually separated from the answer.
- Source
- Who sees them
- Users on the Free and Go plans. Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu accounts don't see ads, and neither do accounts identified as under 18.
- Source
- How ads are matched
- The context and intent of the current conversation, the ad's landing page, title and copy, and advertiser context hints. With ads personalization on, select signals from the user's broader ChatGPT use.
- Source
- Context hints
- Set per ad group to describe the conversations, topics or keywords where you're relevant. They guide matching but aren't exact-match keywords and don't guarantee delivery. Qualifying advertisers can also add negative phrases.
- Source
- Buying options
- Views (impression billing), Clicks (cost per click) or Conversions (optimizes toward a standard conversion event; billed per valid click or per thousand impressions, never per conversion).
- Source
- Auction
- A relevance-weighted, second-price auction. You set a maximum CPM or CPC bid per ad group. OpenAI suggests starting CPC bids at a $3 to $5 maximum.
- Source
- Minimum budget
- $25 a day per campaign in US dollars (£15 or €15 in pounds or euros). Daily budgets average out over the week, so a single day can spend up to twice the budget.
- Source
- Billing
- Postpay. Self-serve accounts are charged to a card each time spend reaches a payment threshold, and at month end. Taxes are extra. You're never billed per conversion.
- Source
- Measurement
- A measurement pixel, a server-side Conversions API and UTM parameters. Reporting covers impressions, clicks, spend, CTR, average CPC and CPM, and conversions.
- Source
- Automation
- An Advertiser API for creating and managing ads programmatically and pulling performance data.
- Source
- Privacy
- Advertisers get aggregated performance data only. They never receive chats, chat history, memories, names, emails, precise location or IP addresses.
- Source
- Answer independence
- Ads run on separate systems from the chat model and can't shape, rank or alter ChatGPT's answers.
- Source
- Brand safety
- No ads near sensitive topics, including personal health, mental health and politics, and none in Temporary Chats.
- Source
Checked against OpenAI's Help Center, ad policies and developer docs on . The platform is in a test phase and changes often.
Frequently asked questions
Are there ads on ChatGPT?+
Yes. OpenAI started testing ads in the US on February 9, 2026, and ChatGPT Ads now run in more than 60 countries. They show to people on the Free and Go plans, not on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise or Edu.
Why does ChatGPT have ads?+
OpenAI says ads help pay for the infrastructure behind the Free and Go plans, so more people can use ChatGPT, without changing its answers. Ads run on separate systems from the chat model.
How do ChatGPT ads work?+
Advertisers set a budget, a bid and context hints in Ads Manager. When a conversation is relevant, ChatGPT can show a sponsored unit below its answer. A second-price auction sets the price, paid per thousand views or per valid click.
What do ChatGPT ads look like?+
A sponsored unit below the end of a ChatGPT answer, visually separated from it. Each ad shows the advertiser's name and favicon, a title, copy, an image and a landing page link. One unit can hold several ads.
How much do ChatGPT ads cost?+
You set a maximum CPM or CPC bid; OpenAI suggests starting CPC bids at $3 to $5. Each campaign needs a daily budget of at least $25 in US dollars. OpenAI says it has no performance benchmarks yet.
Is there a minimum spend for ChatGPT Ads?+
Yes, per campaign: the minimum daily budget is $25 in US dollars (£15 or €15). OpenAI doesn't document a minimum account spend or monthly commitment for self-serve Ads Manager.
Are ChatGPT ads worth it?+
They're worth a measured test if you sell in an allowed category, can track conversions and earn enough per sale to pay $3 to $5 a click. Set a stop rule first and judge on sales, not clicks.
What is ChatGPT Ads Manager?+
OpenAI's self-serve platform at ads.openai.com for creating, launching and measuring ChatGPT Ads. It's in beta. You sign in with an OpenAI account, add billing, verify your business, then build campaigns, ad groups and ads.
How do I sign up for ChatGPT Ads?+
Go to ads.openai.com, choose Sign up and sign in with your OpenAI account, ideally on a work email. Enter your website and business name, add a card and billing profile, then complete business verification.
How do I run ads on ChatGPT?+
Create an Ads Manager account, set up the pixel or Conversions API, then build a campaign (objective and budget), an ad group (bid and context hints) and ads (title, copy, image, landing page). Ads run once they pass review.
Which countries can advertise on ChatGPT?+
Businesses registered in 63 countries can use self-serve Ads Manager as of October 14, 2026, including the US, Canada, the UK, most of Europe, Australia, Japan, India and Brazil.
How do I stop ads on ChatGPT?+
Upgrade to Plus or Pro, or on the Free plan switch to ad-free in Settings, Ads controls, in exchange for lower message limits. Temporary Chats never show ads, and you can hide or report any single ad.
Can I pay ChatGPT to promote my business in its answers?+
No. Ads appear below answers, and OpenAI says advertisers can't shape, rank or alter ChatGPT's responses. Getting named inside answers is answer engine optimization (AEO), which is organic.
Do ChatGPT ads show in the Atlas browser?+
Not during the current test, according to OpenAI's Help Center.
Want it done for you?
We set up, run and measure ChatGPT Ads in your own account.
See the ChatGPT Ads serviceMore on ChatGPT Ads
Sources
- Ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI Help Center)
- Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics (OpenAI Help Center)
- Ads Manager Availability (OpenAI Help Center)
- Ad policies (OpenAI)
- Ads (OpenAI Developers)
- Our approach to advertising (OpenAI)
- A milestone in expanding access to AI (OpenAI)
- OpenAI Ads Manager
- Testing ads in ChatGPT (OpenAI)
- Ads Manager Account Setup (OpenAI Help Center)
- Troubleshooting Common Onboarding and Policy Issues (OpenAI Help Center)
- Maximize Results Bid Strategy (OpenAI Help Center)
- Daily Budgets (OpenAI Help Center)
- Billing & Payment (OpenAI Help Center)
- Conversion Measurement (OpenAI Help Center)
- Measure Results (OpenAI Help Center)
All checked on October 14, 2026. We update this page when OpenAI changes the platform.