🧠All Things AI
🧠 All Things AI
Beginner

ChatGPT Overview & Plans

ChatGPT is OpenAI's flagship AI assistant, accessible on the web at chatgpt.com, via mobile apps for iOS and Android, and through native desktop apps for Mac and Windows. It is built on the GPT-5 model family and has grown from a simple chat interface into a full productivity platform with memory, autonomous research, persistent project workspaces, voice conversations, and image generation. Choosing the right plan means understanding which capabilities are gated behind each subscription tier.

What ChatGPT Is

At its core, ChatGPT is a conversational interface on top of OpenAI's most capable models. You type (or speak) a message, the model processes your input along with conversation context, and returns a response. Unlike the raw API, ChatGPT handles conversation history, file uploads, image generation, web browsing, memory, and code execution through a managed interface — no programming required.

The product targets a broad audience: casual users asking general questions, knowledge workers drafting documents and analysing data, developers using it alongside tools like Codex, and enterprises deploying it organisation-wide.

Plans and Pricing

OpenAI offers six plan tiers as of 2025–2026, each unlocking progressively more powerful models and higher usage limits.

Free

Access to GPT-5 Instant (fast, lower-compute variant), approximately 10 messages every 5 hours on the standard model, limited image generation via GPT-4o native image, basic memory (saved facts), and no Advanced Voice Mode. Sufficient for casual use and experimentation, but usage limits are felt quickly in daily work.

Go — $8/month

Expanded message limits, more file uploads, and more image generation credits than Free. Does not include Thinking mode (extended reasoning), Advanced Voice Mode, or Deep Research full queries. A good entry point for daily users who hit Free limits but do not need the most powerful capabilities.

Plus — $20/month

The most popular paid tier. Unlocks GPT-5 Thinking mode (extended chain-of-thought reasoning), 5× the usage of Free, Advanced Voice Mode, DALL-E and GPT-4o native image generation, Deep Research (10 full + 15 lightweight queries per 30 days), Projects with 25 files per project, and access to Codex. This tier covers the majority of professional use cases.

Pro — $200/month

Designed for power users and researchers. Provides unlimited GPT-5 Pro (highest compute variant) and Sora 2 video generation access, 125 full + 125 lightweight Deep Research queries per 30 days, the largest available context window, and 10× Sora generation credits. The cost reflects the high compute demands of running the most powerful model configurations at scale.

Team — $25/user/month (billed annually)

Shared workspaces for teams, admin management tools, and a guarantee that data is not used for OpenAI model training. Suited for small businesses and product teams that need Plus-level capability with organisational controls.

Enterprise — Custom pricing

Adds SOC 2 compliance, SSO (SAML), advanced usage analytics, no data used for training, unlimited GPT-5 access, and dedicated support. Targets large organisations with compliance, security, and audit requirements.

Key Features

Regardless of plan, ChatGPT's core feature set defines what makes it more than a simple chatbot:

  • Memory: ChatGPT can remember facts about you — your name, preferences, ongoing goals — and reference past conversations to provide continuity across sessions.
  • Projects: Group related conversations, files, and custom instructions under a named workspace. Files and context persist across all conversations in a project.
  • Deep Research: An autonomous research mode that browses the web, reads documents, and synthesises findings into a structured report over 5–30 minutes.
  • Image Generation: Native image creation using GPT-4o's integrated image model, with accurate text rendering and iterative refinement through conversation.
  • Advanced Voice Mode: Real-time speech-to-speech conversation with natural interruption handling. Available on Plus+ (iOS, Android, Windows, Web).
  • Canvas: A side-by-side editing interface for collaborative writing and coding, allowing inline revisions rather than replacing entire responses.
  • File Uploads: Attach PDFs, spreadsheets, images, and code files. ChatGPT reads and analyses them within the conversation context.

Checklist

  • What is the difference between the Free and Plus plans in terms of model access?
  • Which plans include Advanced Voice Mode, and on which platforms is it available?
  • What does GPT-5 Thinking mode add compared to GPT-5 Instant?
  • How many Deep Research queries does the Pro plan allow per 30 days?
  • What compliance features does the Enterprise plan add that Team does not include?