ChatGPT Desktop App

0:43 The ChatGPT desktop app is a free download from chatgpt.com/download for macOS and Windows, with a Linux version in public preview, and it holds all three ChatGPT modes in one window: Chat for questions, Work for longer tasks and Codex for software (ChatGPT release notes, Jul 9, 2026). It works on every ChatGPT plan, including Free. This app replaced both the earlier ChatGPT desktop app, which can stay installed as "ChatGPT Classic", and the separate Codex app.

Quick facts

How to install the ChatGPT desktop app

1. Go to chatgpt.com/download and pick the version for macOS or Windows, or follow the Linux installation guide.
2. Install and open it, then sign in with a ChatGPT account.
3. Choose ChatGPT or Codex at the top. In ChatGPT, use the toggle above the composer to pick Chat or Work; in Codex, start with New chat (OpenAI docs: app).

People who already had the Codex app simply update it: it "becomes the new ChatGPT desktop app". People with the previous ChatGPT desktop app follow a prompt inside it. On Linux the preview ships as .deb and .rpm packages for x64 and ARM64 (Codex changelog, Aug 11, 2026).

Chat, Work and Codex in one app

Since a Jul 16, 2026 update, a switcher at the top chooses between ChatGPT and Codex, and inside ChatGPT a toggle chooses Chat for quick questions or Work to finish a task end to end. Recents are shared across modes and can be sorted, filtered and pinned, and Projects show in the sidebar. Cloud Work conversations sync with the web and phone; local ones stay on the computer. Quick Chats remain available.

0:04 What the desktop adds over the web is access to the computer itself. With permission, Work can use local files and other desktop apps (ChatGPT Work and Codex), and Codex can work in local code folders. On Linux, browser actions work but controlling other desktop apps is not yet supported.

ChatGPT Classic

The pre-July ChatGPT app for Mac and Windows may stay installed under the name ChatGPT Classic. It keeps getting model updates, bug fixes and security patches, but "new agent features such as Work and Codex are available in the new app" only. Some newer features need the new app outright: ChatGPT Sites are not in ChatGPT Classic, and Locked Chats on desktop need the new app.

The built-in browser and the extension

0:05 The app has a built-in browser that Work and Codex use for web tasks. Since Aug 31, 2026 it shows the tools a website offers (WebMCP) under the arrow in the address bar. For a person's everyday browser there is the ChatGPT Browser Extension, for Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi: it can pass open tabs to ChatGPT as context or let ChatGPT do a task in the browser at the desktop app's request. This pair replaced the Atlas browser, which stopped working on Aug 9, 2026.

Computer use and Computer History

Codex gained computer use and remote control on Windows on May 29, 2026, not in the EEA, UK or Switzerland at launch, and Codex chats on a desktop can be continued from the phone through the Remote tab of the mobile app.

1:32 Computer History, on macOS since Aug 13, 2026, lets ChatGPT remember what was done on the Mac. It is off by default and available to Pro, Business and Enterprise users; it records interaction events, "not screenshots, screen recordings, microphone input, or system audio". Pro users in the EEA, Switzerland and the UK got it on Aug 20, 2026.

Record mode and the Meetings plugin (macOS)

Record Mode records and transcribes a meeting or voice note from the Record button at the bottom of a chat, for up to 4 hours (240 minutes) a session, only in the macOS app, on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu. The audio is deleted after transcription. OpenAI now points to the Meetings plugin instead, in beta on Mac for Pro and Business since Sep 29, 2026, with Windows and Enterprise support "coming soon".

Voice and keyboard shortcuts

Voice was removed from the old macOS app on Jan 15, 2026 and returned in the new app on Jul 23, 2026, in Work and Codex as well as Chat. Voice on the desktop can start from "a shortcut you configured in Settings". On the desktop, voice in Work and Codex spends the Codex budget at $0.05 a minute (Voice Mode).

OpenAI's help pages read on Nov 6, 2026 do not list a default system-wide shortcut to open the app. Search inside ChatGPT opens with Ctrl+K on Windows or Cmd+K on macOS (Finding your chats); more on ChatGPT Keyboard Shortcuts.

Earlier desktop apps

OpenAI shipped ChatGPT desktop apps for macOS and Windows before 2026 (the ones now called ChatGPT Classic); their launch dates are not in the release notes read for this page. The Codex app came first for macOS on Feb 2, 2026 and for Windows on Mar 4, 2026, and on Jul 9, 2026 Codex joined ChatGPT in the one app described here (Codex App).

Frequently asked questions

Is there a ChatGPT app for Windows? Yes. The ChatGPT desktop app for Windows is a free download from chatgpt.com/download, with Chat, Work and Codex in one app.

Is there a ChatGPT app for Linux? Yes, in public preview since Aug 14, 2026, for Ubuntu 24.04 LTS and 26.04 LTS, Debian 13 and Fedora 43 and 44. It cannot yet control other desktop apps.

Is the ChatGPT desktop app free? Yes. The ChatGPT desktop app is free to download and works on every plan, including Free; Free and Go get limited Work and Codex use in it.

What is ChatGPT Classic? ChatGPT Classic is the earlier ChatGPT desktop app, which may stay installed after the Jul 9, 2026 app arrives. It gets fixes and model updates but not Work, Codex or other new agent features.

Where is the Codex app now? The Codex app became the ChatGPT desktop app on Jul 9, 2026. Codex is chosen from the switcher at the top of the app.

Can the ChatGPT desktop app control my computer? With permission, ChatGPT Work and Codex in the desktop app can use local files and other apps on macOS and Windows. The Linux preview can do browser actions only.

Sources

• ChatGPT release notes, OpenAI Help Center, read Nov 6, 2026
• The new ChatGPT desktop app, OpenAI Help Center, read Nov 6, 2026
• ChatGPT Work and Codex, OpenAI Help Center, read Nov 6, 2026
• ChatGPT Record, OpenAI Help Center, read Nov 6, 2026
• Finding your chats, projects, and files in ChatGPT, OpenAI Help Center, read Nov 6, 2026
• App, What's new, Changelog and Pricing, OpenAI Codex and ChatGPT docs, read Nov 6, 2026
• Download ChatGPT, OpenAI, read Nov 6, 2026
• Introducing the Codex app, OpenAI, Feb 2, 2026
• Getting Started with ChatGPT Work, OpenAI, Aug 28, 2026 (video)
• Use Your Computer and Browser, OpenAI, Aug 28, 2026 (video)
• ChatGPT can now complete tasks on your computer, OpenAI, Jul 16, 2026 (video)
• Computer History in ChatGPT, OpenAI, Aug 13, 2026 (video)