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ZDNET’s key takeaways
Each ChatGPT plan offers different benefits for different users.
Paid tiers get early access and fewer usage limits.
You may not need to pay, depending on how often you use ChatGPT.
It’s been a few years since ChatGPT burst onto the scene, and over that time, the AI chatbot has continuously updated with new models, features, products, and limitations. While there’s a lot you can do with the free tier, which does provide access to the latest and most powerful GPT-5 model, some features and perks are reserved for paid plans like ChatGPT Plus.
OpenAI introduced Plus to manage demand and guarantee access during busy periods (no more “at capacity” errors!). Plus also unlocks early access to new features and models, making the $20 plan a no-brainer for power users. However, as ChatGPT has evolved, the free tier has received many upgrades. It’s, therefore, worth re-evaluating whether Plus is worth it in 2025.
Also: How to use ChatGPT: A beginner’s guide to the most popular AI chatbot
Some of you may even be new to generative AI and wondering which ChatGPT tier to try first. Let’s break it down, and I’ll help you finally decide whether the free plan, ChatGPT Plus, or even the $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro subscription is right for you.
(Disclosure: Ziff Davis, ZDNET’s parent company, filed an April 2025 lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.)
You should use ChatGPT Plus if…
Since Plus costs $20 per month, you’ve probably asked yourself: Why pay when you can use ChatGPT for free? I’ve pored over the details and used the AI chatbot, and from what I can tell, there are nine main advantages. The TL;DR is that the free tier has heavy usage limits, while Plus gets you the latest features and models first, with priority access even during peak times.
Also: Want better ChatGPT responses? Try this surprising trick, researchers say
If you only use ChatGPT occasionally for fun, it’s not worth subscribing. But if you use it for work, writing, coding, or creating images — or you find yourself opening the app every day, all day — then subscribing is a good idea. With Plus, you can always access the chatbot, even when demand is high, and it removes many of the caps that free users face.
Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
1. You want to use the legacy models still
When OpenAI launched GPT-5, it initially replaced all its legacy models in ChatGPT with it. This unified model was meant to simplify things and combine the best of OpenAI’s offerings, using a fast “smart” model for most queries and a deeper reasoning model for harder ones. However, some paying subscribers preferred the older models or depended on them for workflows.
CEO Sam Altman acknowledged that “suddenly deprecating old models that users depended on in their workflows was a mistake.” As a result, OpenAI brought back the option for ChatGPT Plus users to access legacy models. Subscribers can enable the older versions in settings, including GPT-4o, GPT-4.1, o3, and o4-mini, and then they’ll see them in the model picker.
Also: Don’t like GPT-5? You can still use GPT-4 and other legacy models in ChatGPT – here’s how
So, if you have a preferred model or workflow that worked with GPT-4-era models, the Plus tier lets you stick with what you know.
2. You want access to every new GPT-5 model
While GPT-5 combines the best of a deep reasoning model (GPT-5 Thinking) and a standard smart model for a balance of speed and quality, users with a Plus subscription can manually toggle between all the GPT-5 models: GPT-5 Auto, GPT-5 Instant, GPT-5 Thinking, and GPT-5 Thinking Mini. The default Auto model decides when to “think harder” or when to respond quickly.
The benefit: Plus users can choose which model to use and when, instead of having ChatGPT automatically guess based on the conversation and prompt complexity. If you often work on harder problems that require a model to think more to output the best possible answer, then having the option to toggle on GPT-5 Thinking, for instance, is a compelling reason to subscribe.
Also: What is OpenAI’s GPT-5? Here’s everything you need to know about the company’s latest model
It basically gives you more control over GPT-5’s behavior to suit your needs.
3. You want to try Sora 2 video generation
OpenAI’s Sora 2 video-generating model allows users to create stunning, realistic videos from prompts or images. With ChatGPT Plus, you can get unlimited generations, 10-second videos in 720p, and up to two creations running at once. ChatGPT Pro expands on that provision, with faster generations, 20-second videos in 1080p, up to five concurrent generations, and downloads without watermarks.
Also: I tried the new Sora 2 to generate AI videos – and the results were pure sorcery
Sora 2 is only available to paid plans. Free users don’t have access yet.
4. You need to generate a lot of images
To create images, ChatGPT uses the GPT-4o image generator, OpenAI’s most capable image generator to date.
With this tool, you can ask “create an image of…,” describe a scene, and receive an AI-generated picture that can include realistic human figures and even legible text. You can also upload an existing image and describe edits for GPT-4o to apply — like adding text, refining details, or changing backgrounds. Just be aware that complex requests may take a couple of minutes.
Usage is capped for free users, but Plus and Pro subscribers can enjoy much higher daily quotas. OpenAI said free-tier users can use GPT-4o only a limited number of times within a few hours. It will notify you once you’ve reached the limit and invite you to upgrade.
Also: ChatGPT’s new image generator shattered my expectations – and now it’s free to try
For example, if you’re on the Free tier and rely heavily on image creation, you might see a message like, “You’ve reached your image creation limit. Upgrade to ChatGPT Plus or try again tomorrow…” By contrast, Plus users can generate many more images per day, while Pro users are essentially unlimited. So, if you often use the AI for images, Plus is an easy choice.
5. You want to code with Codex’s help
OpenAI recently integrated its powerful Codex AI coding agent into ChatGPT Plus, so now anyone with the $20-a-month Plus plan can get AI-powered coding suggestions without shelling out $200.
Codex is an AI agent that helps write and review code. You can point it at your GitHub repo, and it’ll whip up code changes, run checks to make sure nothing’s broken, and even handle installing dependencies if you let it. (This was a Pro-only capability.) Keep in mind the agent doesn’t “remember” anything between sessions, so you have to give it clear instructions every time.
Also: 10 ChatGPT Codex secrets I only learned after 60 hours of pair programming with it
Codex works across your IDE, terminal, and even the ChatGPT interface, and it’s included at no extra cost for Plus users. Since the coding agent is new to ChatGPT, you might encounter some speed bumps if many people are using it at once. But having an AI “pair programmer” on demand is incredibly useful if you code regularly, and now you don’t need the $200 Pro plan to use it.
6. You want Agent to handle tasks for you
The new Agent feature in ChatGPT is incredibly fun to play with and try. Instead of just answering questions, it can actually get things done. For instance, you can tell it to do your grocery shopping. I tried it recently and had it add everything to my Walmart cart, but I still needed to check out myself. It can browse the web, fill out forms, and handle multi-step tasks.
Also: My 8 ChatGPT Agent tests produced only 1 near-perfect result – and a lot of alternative facts
From my experience, you may hit walls with tasks that require sensitive logins or payments, since the agent pauses and hands things off to you for security reasons. It’s not flawless; sometimes it gets stuck or confused by website layouts. Still, it’s a huge step toward an AI that can think, plan, and act on your behalf, and it feels pretty wild seeing ChatGPT handle real-world tasks for me.
Just think of it as ChatGPT with hands.
Agent is only available to paid ChatGPT users, so if you’re on the Free plan, you can’t use it yet. Plus users reportedly get around 40 agent runs a month, while Pro and Team users can use up to about 400 and get faster execution.
7. You do a lot of deep research
You’re probably noticing a theme here: Many of ChatGPT’s most advanced features launch first for paying subscribers, and while they eventually reach free users, they come with usage limits.
A great example of this is Deep Research. It’s basically ChatGPT’s “research analyst mode.” You ask it a complex question, and it goes off to browse the web, dig through PDFs, images, and articles, then synthesizes everything into a structured report with citations and a summary of its steps. Free users can try Deep Research, but under very tight quotas.
Also: I tested ChatGPT’s Deep Research against Gemini, Perplexity, and Grok AI to see which is best
Currently, Free users get about five tasks per month using a “lightweight” version of the tool. Paid tiers (Plus, Team, and Pro) get higher limits. For example, Plus users get around 25 tasks per month (a mix of full and lightweight), while Pro users get up to 250. The “lightweight” version kicks in once you hit the limit of the full research model.
9. You want the best features with higher limits
Subscribing to ChatGPT Plus gives you early access to OpenAI’s newest models and tools, such as Sora 2, Codex, and Agent, well before they reach free users. And even when advanced features like Deep Research or GPT-4o image generation do become available on the Free plan, they’re usually limited or capped. You can use them much more often and with fewer restrictions on Plus.
With a Plus account, you get higher limits across several features, including:
Messaging
File uploads
Data analysis
Deep Research
Image generation
Memory and context retention
Advanced Voice Mode conversations
That last one might be especially interesting to Plus users. While Free ChatGPT users can try Advanced Voice Mode, they get shorter daily sessions — usually about 15 minutes of voice chat per day — and it runs on a lighter GPT-4o Mini model instead of the full one available to paying users. Plus subscribers, on the other hand, get longer, nearly unrestricted use.
OpenAI is slowly phasing out the older standard voice mode, but for now, both versions are still available.
You should use ChatGPT Pro if…
OK, so now that we’ve discussed why Plus is worth it for many, let’s look at the more expensive Pro plan that costs $200 a month. Most people would never pay a car payment’s worth of money to use AI, but there are special instances where it could be worth it. Let’s be clear, though: Pro is for the most hardcore users who need the maximum ChatGPT experience.
Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
1. You want ChatGPT Plus on an even greater scale
All the perks and features included in ChatGPT Plus carry over to ChatGPT Pro, but with far fewer limits. Pro also adds several exclusive capabilities, such as Pulse. Here’s a breakdown of the biggest benefits if you’re seriously considering the upgrade:
Unlimited and faster image generation: Pro users can generate GPT-4o images with virtually no daily cap and get priority in generation queues, so image creation feels instant compared to other tiers.
Maximum Deep Research, Agent, Memory, and Context: Pro significantly expands ChatGPT’s “thinking” capacity. You can run more Deep Research tasks and use Agent without the tight restrictions found in the Free or Plus plans. The context window is larger too, allowing ChatGPT to remember and process far more information in a single session.
Higher access to Codex, projects, tasks, and custom GPTs: The Codex coding agent in Pro can handle larger, multi-step projects with more tasks. You can also create and deploy more custom GPTs (your own tailored chatbots) in your workspace. Essentially, Pro treats ChatGPT as a full development platform, and it’s very difficult to hit its ceiling.
Priority access to Sora 2 video generation: Pro users get VIP treatment with Sora 2, including video rendering at up to 1080p resolution and 20-second length, the ability to generate five videos at once, and watermark-free downloads. If you plan to experiment with AI video, Pro eliminates nearly all friction.
In short, Pro offers higher limits, faster speeds, and access to everything OpenAI has to offer. If you want the most powerful, no-compromise version of ChatGPT, Pro is the plan for you. That’s assuming you’re fine with the higher price tag, of course.
2. You want GPT-5 Pro and the most powerful models
With Pro, you get the full lineup of models and modes, including GPT-5 Pro with its “research-grade” reasoning. Think of it as the high-performance version of OpenAI’s latest model for those who need serious reasoning power and extended context processing. It runs on the same base as GPT-5 but adds extra compute, deeper reasoning, and a larger context window.
Also: What is ChatGPT Pro? Here’s what $200 per month gets you
GPT-5 Pro can reportedly handle hundreds of thousands of tokens, producing longer and more detailed outputs. It’s best suited for ultra-heavy workloads, such as research, coding, and data analysis — tasks where depth and accuracy matter most. GPT-5 Pro is currently exclusive to ChatGPT Pro subscribers, who also get access to other GPT-5 variants and legacy models.
Nothing is off-limits. You can switch between older and newer models as needed without worrying about hitting a quota.
3. You’d like early access to the newest features
Pro users are often the first to test major upgrades. For example, when OpenAI released the GPT-4.5 model, it went to Pro subscribers first, and they got early access to the Codex agent for months. Both of these are now available to Plus subscribers, but OpenAI has confirmed that ChatGPT’s most compute-intensive tools will launch on the Pro tier before other plans.
Also: The best free AI for coding in 2025 now – only 3 make the cut (and 5 fall flat)
For example, ChatGPT Pulse is a new feature that lets ChatGPT work proactively on your behalf. Each night, it can research and summarize information from your chat history, interests, and instructions, then generate a personalized morning briefing with five to ten “cards.” It’s like waking up to your own TL;DR feed. But, for now, Pulse is only available to Pro users.
OpenAI does plan to bring Pulse to Plus users in the future, following the same rollout pattern it uses for most of its newest features.
You should use free ChatGPT if…
Finally, let’s talk about the free version of ChatGPT. I’ve already covered most of its features, so here’s the short version: it all depends on how often you use ChatGPT and whether early access to new tools matters to you. If you only use it occasionally and don’t care about testing the latest features first, the Free plan is absolutely the way to go.
Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
1. You don’t want to pay a monthly fee
If you only need occasional AI assistance and don’t mind usage caps, the free tier should serve you well. It’s surprisingly robust and now includes some features that were once behind a paywall, such as Deep Research. You really do get a lot of functionality for $0.
Free ChatGPT users can access:
GPT-5 (the unified flagship model; available to Free users but with limits)
Web search (built-in browsing for up-to-date info with source citations)
Image generation via GPT-4o (with limits – around two to three images at a time)
Deep Research (up to five “lightweight” tasks per month)
Advanced Voice Mode (with limits – up to 15 minutes per day)
File and photo uploads (with limits – three file and two image uploads per day)
Memory for referencing recent conversations (lightweight version)
Third-party apps (like Canva and other integrations; also available to Plus and Pro users)
2. You’re a casual ChatGPT user
If you rarely hit the daily usage limits for text, voice, or image generation, upgrading to Plus or Pro might not be necessary.
The free version offers plenty of room for light use — asking a few questions per day, generating a handful of images, trying out advanced data analysis, uploading files or photos, and more. However, if you often see messages about hitting your limits for text, voice, or images, it might be time to consider a paid plan such as Plus or even Pro.
For power users who need top-tier capacity and extended access to advanced features, there’s Pro, while Plus offers a more affordable middle ground.
Also: How to get ChatGPT Go free for a year in India (and what it unlocks)
Ultimately, if your needs are minimal and the limitations don’t bother you, sticking with the free tier is perfectly fine. You won’t get new features right away, and you’ll need to pace yourself with usage, but you’ll save.
How much do ChatGPT Free, Plus, and Pro cost?
As of November 2025, ChatGPT Free is absolutely free to use. Plus is $20 a month, and Pro is $200 a month.
Do ChatGPT Pro users experience downtimes?
Pro subscribers have the highest priority for uptime, making downtime extremely rare. In practice, Pro users almost never see the “ChatGPT is at capacity” message that free users sometimes do. However, no tier can guarantee 100% uptime if OpenAI undergoes major outages or maintenance. If the whole service is down, even Pro users will be affected.
If you upgrade to Plus, can you later switch to Pro?
Absolutely. You can upgrade from Plus to Pro at any time through your account settings. Your billing date may adjust (or you might pay a prorated difference) depending on when you switch. Likewise, you can downgrade from Pro back to Plus if your needs change.
Does Pro include everything you get with Plus?
Yes. ChatGPT Pro contains everything in Plus, and then some. That means unlimited or higher limits on certain features, and exclusive access to the latest models and tools, such as GPT-5 Pro and Pulse. In short, Pro is Plus on steroids.
Here’s a quick table you can scan to see what each plan includes:
| Feature | Free | Plus | Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Model | GPT-5 (Auto, limited) | Most GPT-5 + legacy | All models |
| Legacy | No | Yes | Yes |
| Priority | Standard | Priority | Highest |
| Speed | Standard | Faster | Fastest |
| GPT-4o image generation | Limited | Higher quota | Unlimited |
| Sora 2 video generation | None | 720p / 10s / 2 runs / watermarked | 1080p / 20s / 5 runs / no mark |
| Sora 2 video watermarks | No | No | Yes |
| Voice mode | ~15 min/day | Nearly unlimited | Unlimited |
| Deep Research | ~5 tasks/mo | ~25 tasks/mo | 250 tasks/mo |
| Agent | None | ~40 runs/mo | ~400 runs/mo |
| Codex | No | Yes | Full |
| Web browsing | Yes | Priority | Fastest |
| File/image uploads | ~3 files, 2 imgs/day | Higher limits | Unlimited |
| Memory | Short-term | Extended | Long-term |
| Data analysis | Basic | Extended | Full |
| Custom GPTs | Limited | More slots | Full access |
| 3rd-party apps | Limited | Higher limits | Full access |
| Pulse | No | Coming soon | Yes |
| Early access | No | Yes | Earliest |
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