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HomeAI Plan LimitsChatGPT Free (and Go)

Usage Limits Guide

ChatGPT Free Limits: What's Unlimited and What Isn't

OpenAIFree · Go $8/moVerified October 20, 2026

Quick answer

ChatGPT Free gives unlimited everyday text chats on GPT-6 Luna, subject to abuse guardrails. The real limit is size: Free's GPT Instant context window is 27K tokens, and a single input tops out around 12 pages of text. Uploads, image creation, voice, Deep Research, memory and Codex are all "limited", and OpenAI doesn't publish the numbers. Go ($8/month) doubles the context to 54K (~40 pages) and raises those caps, but it may show ads.

How the limits actually work

  • Text chat itself doesn't run out. Since August 2026 every ChatGPT plan has unlimited text chats, subject to abuse guardrails.
  • What Free limits is everything around the chat: messages with uploads, image creation, voice, Deep Research, memory, Codex and ChatGPT Work on desktop.
  • The hard published number is context. GPT Instant on Free holds 27K tokens in total, and you can paste roughly 12 pages in one message. Long documents get cut off well before any message cap.
  • Response speed is "limited on bandwidth & availability", so Free and Go slow down at busy times.
  • When a capped feature runs out, ChatGPT shows when it resets. Plain text chat keeps working.

The limits, itemized

Figures marked derived are our arithmetic on official statements, not published numbers.

WhatLimitBasis
Text chatsUnlimited on Free and Go, subject to abuse guardrailsofficialofficial
GPT Instant context windowFree 27K tokens · Go 54K · Plus 54K · Pro 128Kofficialofficial
Max single input (Instant)Free ~12 pages of text · Go and Plus ~40 pages · Pro ~250 pagesofficialofficial
Reasoning context windowFree "varies" · Go and Plus 256K (~320 pages input) · Pro 400Kofficialofficial
Uploads, images, voice, Deep Research, memory"Limited" on Free and higher ("More") on Go; no counts publishedofficialofficial
CodexLimited: GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app on Free and Goofficialofficial
AdsGo "may include ads"officialofficial
Training on your chatsOn by default on Free and Go; opt-out availableofficialofficial

Which models you get

GPT-6 Luna

Free and Go. The everyday chat model

GPT-5 Thinking Mini

Free and Go. The reasoning option without paying

GPT-5.6 Terra

Limited access in ChatGPT Work and Codex on desktop

GPT-6.1 Sol, GPT-6 Sol, GPT-6 Astra

Not on Free or Go. Plus and Pro only

Legacy models

Not on Free or Go

How these limits have changed

August 6, 2026

OpenAI removes text-message caps on every plan, Free included. Metering shifts to uploads, reasoning, images, voice and Deep Research.

September 22, 2026

GPT-6 Sol and GPT-6 Luna launch. Luna becomes the model Free and Go users chat with.

October 14, 2026

GPT-5.5 retires from ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex on all plans.

Getting the most out of the limits

  • Split long documents. Free's ~12-page input limit, not a message cap, is what most people hit first.
  • Use GPT-5 Thinking Mini for problems that need reasoning. It's the reasoning model Free includes.
  • Turn off "Improve the model for everyone" in Data Controls if you don't want Free chats used for training.
  • Go ($8) is mainly a context upgrade, from 27K to 54K. If you mostly chat in short bursts, Free covers it.
  • If you need GPT-6.1 Sol, GPT-6 Astra or real Deep Research, that starts at Plus ($20). See our ChatGPT Plus limits guide.

FAQ

Does ChatGPT Free have a message limit?

Not for plain text. OpenAI's pricing page lists unlimited text chats on Free, subject to abuse guardrails. What Free limits is messages with uploads, image creation, voice, Deep Research, memory and Codex, without publishing counts.

What model does ChatGPT Free use?

GPT-6 Luna, plus GPT-5 Thinking Mini for reasoning. GPT-6.1 Sol, GPT-6 Sol and GPT-6 Astra are Plus and Pro only.

How long a document can I paste into ChatGPT Free?

About 12 pages of text in one message, from a 27K-token GPT Instant context window. Go and Plus allow about 40 pages (54K) and Pro about 250 (128K). Reasoning models on Go and Plus take about 320 pages.

What does ChatGPT Go add over Free?

For $8/month, Go gives more messages with tools, more uploads, more image creation and voice, longer memory and double the context window (54K tokens, ~40 pages). It runs the same GPT-6 Luna model as Free and may include ads.

Can I use Codex on ChatGPT Free?

In a limited way. Free and Go get GPT-6 Luna in the Codex desktop app, with no published limits. Plus adds GPT-6.1 Sol and published 5-hour message estimates.

Sources

  • OpenAI — ChatGPT plans and pricing (feature comparison)
  • OpenAI — Codex pricing and usage limits

Providers change these limits without notice, and several are deliberately unpublished compute budgets rather than fixed counts. Everything above was checked against the linked sources on October 20, 2026; if you spot something outdated, email hello@userightai.com.

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