4 days ago
22
Follow ZDNET: Add america arsenic a preferred source connected Google.
ZDNET's cardinal takeaways
- ChatGPT tin assistance with writing, research, images, files, and apps.
- Free users tin commencement fast, but paid plans unlock higher limits.
- Projects, memory, and dependable mode marque ChatGPT much useful.
It volition beryllium 4 years this autumn since ChatGPT launched, turning AI from thing astir radical talked to for amusive connected their phones oregon location speakers into a instrumentality they could usage to debug code, make presentations, make images, shop, and program trips. In fact, the operation "chatbot" present feels a small excessively small, and possibly adjacent dated, for what ChatGPT tin bash today.
Also: I stopped utilizing ChatGPT for everything: These AI models bushed it
New usage cases are perpetually being developed for and due to the fact that of AI, and ChatGPT itself present has to support up with an exploding manufacture filled with competitors, from Anthropic's Claude to Google's Gemini. Still, if you privation to effort AI, the OG is simply a bully spot to start. You tin type, talk, upload a file, link an app, and fto it make away.
How to usage ChatGPT (for beginners)
What you'll need: ChatGPT is disposable connected the web, desktop, oregon a mobile app for iOS and Android. You don't request to make an account, but you astir apt should. Maybe commencement with a escaped account, past determine aboriginal whether upgrading to a paid program is worthy it.
You tin usage ChatGPT successful a browser astatine chatgpt.com oregon done the official mobile app for iOS and Android.
You tin effort the app without overmuch setup, but creating an relationship gives you entree to longer and much messages, arsenic good arsenic your chat history, projects, memory, record uploads, Library, GPTs, and connected apps.
Also: How to larn ChatGPT successful an hr - for free
On the web, spell to chatgpt.com and click motion up oregon log in. Use your email, Google account, Apple account, Microsoft account, oregon number, if available. On mobile, download and unfastened the app, and motion up the aforesaid way.
ChatGPT Free users get "limited access" to GPT-5.5, OpenAI's latest exemplary family. You tin inquire the AI thing via substance oregon voice, and upload files and make images. But you'll rapidly deed usage limits.
A paid program raises limits and unlocks much tools and exemplary options, specified arsenic GPT-5.5 Thinking and GPT-5.5 Pro.
Also: I enactment GPT-5.5 done a 10-round test: It scored 93/100
Free users get astir 10 messages each 5 hours, portion Plus and Go users get 160 each 3 hours. Plus users tin power to GPT-5.5 Thinking for up to 3,000 messages per week, portion Go users get 10 messages each 5 hours. Pro includes unlimited Instant and Thinking entree (subject to "abuse guardrails"), positive GPT-5.5 Pro.
In the US, ChatGPT Go costs $8 per month, Plus is $20 per month, and Pro has $100 and $200 monthly tiers.
The ChatGPT interface is simple: a sidebar and a main chat country with a composer.
On the web and desktop app, click the paper fastener successful the top-left country to unfastened the sidebar. From there, you tin commencement a caller chat, hunt past chats, unfastened your representation library, browse apps, entree sometimes-paywalled tools similar Codex, find GPTs, unfastened projects, and spot caller chats. All your worldly is successful the near sidebar.
At the bottommost of the main chat country is the composer, wherever you benignant your punctual oregon usage the + instrumentality paper to adhd files, photos, and more. On the desktop, ChatGPT besides includes the exemplary picker, a mic for dictation, and a Voice Mode button. On mobile, the exemplary picker is astatine the apical of the chat instead, adjacent the caller chat fastener and much paper options.
Also: Switching to Claude? How to instrumentality your ChatGPT memories
On desktop, the apical of the main country includes options to stock a chat, commencement a impermanent chat, oregon unfastened a much menu, wherever you tin radical a chat, determination a chat, archive it, oregon delete it. For personalization, profile, and different settings, unfastened your illustration successful the bottom-left country connected desktop oregon the top-right country of the sidebar connected mobile.
To prime a exemplary connected the web, look for the exemplary sanction successful the composer. (The sanction antecedently besides appeared astatine the apical of the main chat area.) On mobile, pat the exemplary sanction astatine the apical of the chat. Then, if available, take the exemplary you privation to use. Most radical tin permission ChatGPT connected the default exemplary and get bully results.
As of June 2026, GPT-5.5 Instant is the modular exemplary for escaped and logged-in users. Paid users tin usage the exemplary picker to take that oregon different option, GPT-5.5 Thinking, portion Pro users besides get GPT-5.5 Pro.
Also: AI Model Release Tracker: Microsoft AI's archetypal reasoning exemplary arrives
I'd usage GPT-5.5 Instant for accelerated writing, summaries, brainstorming, and basal questions, and GPT-5.5 Thinking for deeper reasoning tasks similar probe synthesis, coding help, and spreadsheet analysis. GPT-5.5 Pro is the heavy-duty version, meant for particularly analyzable tasks that payment from much reasoning time.
When you're acceptable to commencement your archetypal chat, click oregon pat New chat, benignant your punctual successful the composer, and property Enter oregon pat Send. Use Shift + Enter oregon Shift + Return to adhd enactment breaks. On the web and mobile, you tin besides dictate your punctual utilizing the mic fastener oregon commencement a Voice Mode speech by tapping the waveform button.
ZDNET has published many articles astir the creation of punctual writing. It's often not capable to springiness ChatGPT instructions. The instrumentality is to springiness it capable discourse to bash the occupation well. You whitethorn request to picture the task, possibly adjacent the audience, springiness it root material, supply constraints specified arsenic format, and more.
Also: Want amended ChatGPT responses? Try this astonishing trick, researchers say
Instead of "give maine a LinkedIn photo," try: "Use the attached photograph of myself to make a LinkedIn-style nonrecreational headshot I tin usage connected my resume and astatine work. Do not alteration my face, body, oregon likeness." My different proposal is to punctual away. Keep revising and pursuing up until you're happy. You tin commencement a caller chat if needed.
Tip: Don't hide to usage the tools paper successful the composer. To much rapidly entree them, benignant /Image, /Search, /DeepResearch, oregon "/" followed by immoderate different instrumentality you want. Tools assistance ChatGPT to bash much tasks for you.
Here are immoderate guides to work for other help:
What tin I bash with ChatGPT?
Once you've gone done the above, you tin commencement utilizing ChatGPT for much than basal questions. The usage cases are astir endless, but determination are a fewer built-in ChatGPT features that are particularly utile for getting much enactment done, whether that's heavy probe reports, connected apps similar Canva oregon Malwarebytes, oregon customized GPTs and projects. Here are immoderate things you tin do.
1. Search the web
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
ChatGPT tin search the web erstwhile you request existent oregon up-to-date information. Use it for news, prices, laws, merchandise specs, bundle updates, sports, weather, oregon thing other that whitethorn person changed recently.
All users, paid and free, tin usage ChatGPT to hunt the web, though they are constrained by their plan's messaging limits.
Also: ChatGPT is reportedly scraping Google Search information to reply your questions - here's how
On the web, take Web Search from the tools menu. On mobile, take Plugins from the tools menu, past Search. Or conscionable benignant /Search connected desktop and mobile. Whichever mode you choose, effort asking: "What did Google denote astatine I/O 2026?" You should spot ChatGPT rapidly hunt antithetic web pages, and successful the end, you'll get a summary with clickable links to superior sources.
As always, beryllium definite to fact-check the answers.
2. Use Deep Research
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
Deep Research is for bigger questions. It tin hunt crossed sources, comparison information, and instrumentality a much structured study with citations. Think of Web Search arsenic being handed a portion of insubstantial and your speechmaking glasses. Deep Research is simply a folder.
On the web oregon mobile app, unfastened the tools paper and take Deep Research. You tin besides benignant /Deep Research. When ready, effort asking ChatGPT a complex, multi-part, hyper-specific question that requires discourse and reasoning. An example:
"My gramps was calved successful Quebec successful 1945, moved to New York, and died there. I'm 38, calved successful New York, and my parent is his New York-born daughter. As of 2026, americium I a Canadian national by descent? How bash I verify my presumption and get ineligible proof?"
Also: I tested ChatGPT's Deep Research against Gemini, Perplexity, and Grok AI to spot which is best
ChatGPT has changed Deep Research's usage limits respective times implicit the past mates of years. Last I heard, escaped users had entree to a constricted lightweight version, Plus users got 25 afloat reports a month, and Pro users got 250. I've contacted OpenAI for a comment.
3. Upload files and analyse them
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
ChatGPT tin enactment with PDFs, documents, spreadsheets, CSVs, images, and different supported files. This capableness is 1 of the AI's astir utile tools due to the fact that it lets you inquire questions astir your ain worldly alternatively of pasting immense blocks of substance into the chat.
Also: I compared however Gemini, ChatGPT, and Claude tin analyse videos - this exemplary wins
On the web oregon mobile app, click the + button, past take the file, attachment, oregon photograph option. Then participate your prompt: "Summarize this PDF successful 3 bullets," "Find spelling errors successful this draft," "Turn this spreadsheet into a chart," oregon "Tell maine however to amended my resume." For data, ChatGPT tin cleanable columns, cipher totals, spot patterns, and explicate what the numbers mean.
4. Connect to apps similar Canva
- Who tin access? Paid and free
Anyone tin connect apps to ChatGPT to unlock caller abilities oregon get much enactment done. These apps were often called connectors, but the basal thought is the same: You assistance ChatGPT entree to a third-party work you usage truthful it tin hunt oregon usage your connected data.
For example, you tin link Google Drive to enactment with your stored files. Or you tin adhd Canva and past punctual ChatGPT to make a presentation. Malwarebytes adjacent has an app that lets you inquire ChatGPT whether an email, letter, oregon substance you received is simply a scam. In chat, usage @ mentions, the tools menu, oregon a earthy petition like, "Search my Google Drive for the latest fund spreadsheet."
But you archetypal request to link the app. On the web oregon mobile app, click your illustration icon, unfastened Settings, past Apps, and browse the app directory. Choose an app, click Connect, and implicit the permissions process.
5. Create images and find them successful Library
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
ChatGPT tin make images and edit images you upload. In my experience, it helps to picture the subject, style, layout, colors, facet ratio, and immoderate substance that you privation to look successful circumstantial detail. A anemic punctual is "make an representation of a cat." A amended 1 is: "Create a 16:9 editorial-style representation of a Russian bluish feline connected a pinkish inheritance with glossy lighting, HD resolution, and nary text."
Also: I got an aboriginal look astatine ChatGPT Images 2.0, and it's awesome - with 1 exception
On the web, conscionable inquire ChatGPT to make an image, oregon prime Images from the tools menu, if you spot it. On mobile, you tin benignant the punctual oregon usage the tools button. After your representation appears, inquire for changes successful the aforesaid chat, specified arsenic "make it brighter" oregon "keep the glossy lighting but alteration the pinkish inheritance to purple." To find immoderate representation later, unfastened your Library successful the near sidebar.
Like Deep Research, ChatGPT often changes the usage limits for representation generation. The past numbers I recovered suggest escaped users get a mates of images a day, Go users get 20 to 30 images a day, Plus users get astir 50 images each 3 hours, and Pro is unlimited.
Anyone with a ChatGPT relationship tin make images, but you request an relationship to store them successful a library, obviously.
6. Find and usage GPTs
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
GPTs are customized versions of ChatGPT built for circumstantial tasks. You'd fundamentally usage a GPT erstwhile you privation a customized workflow.
Some GPTs assistance with writing, coding, studying, design, research, oregon productivity. Some are made by OpenAI, and users oregon organizations marque others. While you tin entree your GPTs connected mobile, I couldn't find the enactment to research them.
On the web, you tin unfastened Explore GPTs from the sidebar. Search by topic, prime one, and commencement chatting. On mobile, you'll conscionable spot your ain GPTs successful the sidebar supra caller chats. Free users tin usage GPTs with limits, portion creating GPTs requires a paid plan.
7. Create Projects
- Who tin access? Paid and free
Projects are similar dedicated workspaces for ongoing work. They support related chats, files, and instructions together, truthful ChatGPT tin usage circumstantial discourse without making you re-explain everything each clip you resume. Think of Projects arsenic folders that remember.
Also: These 7 utile ChatGPT settings are turned disconnected by default (and I tin vouch for them)
On the web oregon mobile, take Projects successful the sidebar, prime New project, sanction it, adhd instructions, and upload files. You tin usage a task for a book, coding work, a probe topic, a abrogation plan, oregon thing other you privation to support organized. Your instructions tin archer ChatGPT what tone, audience, formatting rules, and sources to use. Anyone with a ChatGPT relationship tin prevention a project.
8. Use Voice Mode
- Who tin access? Paid and free, with usage limits
Voice Mode lets you speech with ChatGPT alternatively of typing. This mode tin beryllium utile for practicing a presentation, doing a mock interview, brainstorming, oregon dumping messy thoughts retired loud. On the web oregon mobile app, unfastened a caller chat and pat the waveform icon. Then commencement talking, interrupt ChatGPT, oregon inquire follow-up questions the mode you would successful a existent one-on-one conversation.
Also: 7 amazingly utile ways to usage ChatGPT's dependable mode, from a erstwhile skeptic
As usual, escaped users get constricted access, portion paid plans get more.
9. Save memories and personalize
- Who tin access? Paid and free
Last but not least, let's speech astir what ChatGPT tin retrieve astir you. It has a Memory diagnostic that tin retrieve utile details crossed chats -- up to 130, arsenic I recovered retired precocious arsenic a Plus user, earlier being prompted to wide some. For example, the AI tin retrieve my weight, height, name, family, and different accusation I've told it, truthful I don't person to repetition myself erstwhile asking idiosyncratic questions.
But ChatGPT has different features that impact its memory. Custom instructions fto you archer ChatGPT however you privation it to respond. For example, you could archer it to ne'er usage em dashes successful its responses. On the web oregon mobile, click your illustration icon, unfastened Settings, past Personalization. From there, you volition spot options to negociate your representation and adhd customized instructions.
You'll adjacent spot options to alteration the AI's tone, marque it little lukewarm oregon enthusiastic, and determine if it uses headers, lists, and emoji.
Also: How to audit what ChatGPT knows astir you - and reclaim your information privacy
Finally, there's Temporary Chat. It's a small chat bubble fastener astatine the apical of the main chat country connected desktop. Use this diagnostic erstwhile you bash not privation ChatGPT to retrieve a conversation. It's similar Chrome's Incognito mode, but for ChatGPT. You tin adjacent archive oregon delete past chats for added privacy. Just unfastened the near sidebar, find the caller chat, click its menu, and take Archive oregon Delete.
Of course, you request to beryllium logged successful for ChatGPT to retrieve things astir you oregon to beryllium much personalized.
And there's more...
ChatGPT has respective different buried features due to the fact that it's ever continually updating with more. Here are a fewer you mightiness privation to try:
- Codex (for Paid users): Available via the sidebar, Codex is ChatGPT's coding adjunct that helps you write, review, and debug code. It tin analyse repositories, refactor scripts, and trial code.
- Agent Mode (for Paid users): Available via tools, Agent Mode lets ChatGPT execute multi-step tasks, specified arsenic opening sites, filling retired forms, and generating files. I suggest you usage it erstwhile you privation ChatGPT to enactment autonomously.
- Canvas (for Free and Paid users): This diagnostic provides a divided abstraction wherever you and ChatGPT tin co-edit text, code, oregon a draught together.
- Scheduling Tasks (for Paid users): Available via tools, Tasks lets you docket one-time oregon recurring actions, specified arsenic regular summaries oregon play reminders. ChatGPT volition tally the task connected docket and notify you erstwhile it's done via email and notifications.
- Shopping (for Free and Paid users successful the US): You tin inquire ChatGPT for a merchandise to spot results with images, details, and sometimes a "Buy" button. Introduced successful September 2025, it lets US users cheque retired successful chat from supported merchants similar Etsy.
- Study and Learn (for Paid and Edu users): Available via tools, this mode guides you done lessons, quizzes, and reasoning exercises, alternatively than giving nonstop answers, which is large for learning caller topics interactively.
The constituent is to play with the AI, trial things, fig retired the tools that involvement you oregon what you usage AI for the most, and person amusive trying ChatGPT.
Where is ChatGPT available?
ChatGPT is disposable connected the web, mobile apps for iOS and Android, and desktop apps for macOS and Windows.
Is ChatGPT free?
Yes. But it's heavy limited, meaning you won't beryllium capable to connection often successful a abbreviated play of clip oregon make galore images.
Do I request a ChatGPT relationship oregon login?
No. But for the afloat experience, specified arsenic memories, personalization, chat history, representation library, and projects, you'll privation an account.
Which ChatGPT program should I choose?
Here is simply a speedy determination histrion for you:
- If you seldom usage AI and privation to trial it now, instrumentality with ChatGPT Free.
- If you've tried AI, similar it, but bash not expect to usage it each day, get ChatGPT Go.
- If you usage AI each time for writing, planning, research, oregon problem-solving, get Plus.
- If you request AI for dense research, coding, and precocious work, Pro is your champion bet.
How overmuch does ChatGPT cost?
As of June 2026 successful the US, ChatGPT Go costs $8 per month, Plus is $20 per month, and Pro has $100 and $200 monthly tiers.
Can ChatGPT beryllium wrong?
Yes. Any answers should beryllium fact-checked, particularly medical, legal, financial, and breaking quality information.
How bash I halt ChatGPT from remembering?
You tin crook representation disconnected by going to Profile > Settings > Personalization > Reference saved memories, oregon negociate your saved memories from the aforesaid settings area. You tin besides usage a Temporary Chat erstwhile you bash not privation ChatGPT to retrieve a chat.
What is Atlas?
Atlas is OpenAI's ChatGPT browser disposable to paid subscribers. It's a Mac browser built connected Chromium. It has ChatGPT built in, truthful it tin reply questions, summarize pages, assistance with web searches, assistance connected webpages, negociate tabs, and autofill forms.
English (US) ·