The short version
OpenAI began showing ads inside ChatGPT in the United States in February 2026, opened a self-serve Ads Manager beta on May 5 with no account minimum (the floor is a $25 daily budget in the US), and has since expanded ads to more countries. Ads appear as clearly labeled sponsored placements below an answer when the conversation matches what you offer. They are shown only to adults on ChatGPT's Free and Go plans; Plus, Pro and Business plans stay ad-free.
Where the ad shows up
Unlike a search results page, there is no stack of ten blue links to compete in. A sponsored placement appears beneath the assistant's answer, visually separate from it, with a label. One or a small number of advertisers can appear for a given conversation. That makes relevance matter more than it does in traditional search: the ad has to fit the question, or it doesn't run.
Who sees it
Only Free and Go users, and only adults. If your customers skew toward people paying for ChatGPT Plus or Pro, you won't reach them with ads. You can still reach them organically, which is why we treat sponsored placements and organic recommendations as two halves of one plan.
How targeting works
You don't bid on exact keywords. You describe your business, your offer and the kinds of questions you want to appear for, and the platform matches your placement to conversations with the right intent. Geography can be constrained, so a Columbus roofer isn't paying to appear for someone in Portland. When several advertisers are eligible, a relevance-weighted auction decides who shows, so a well-matched ad from a small business can beat a sloppy one from a large brand.
How it's priced
Most small businesses buy per click: you pay when someone taps your placement, not when it's shown. (Campaigns can also bid per thousand views for awareness.) OpenAI recommends starting bids of $3 to $5 per click, and advertisers have reported paying roughly $3 to $9, which is competitive with search in many local categories. There is no account minimum; the floor is $25 a day per campaign in the US.
The practical takeaway: a modest, tightly targeted budget can test the channel in weeks, and the first thing you learn is which questions your customers are really asking.
What to expect from a first campaign
- Weeks one and two: the placement runs against your prompt families. You learn which questions produce clicks and which produce calls.
- Weeks three and four: copy and offers get rewritten around what worked. Budget shifts toward the prompt families with the lowest cost per lead.
- Month two onward: the paid data tells us which organic gaps are worth closing, so the organic work starts compounding on the paid results.
What it isn't
It isn't a guarantee of being mentioned in the answer itself. The sponsored placement sits with the answer; it is not the recommendation inside it. Earning the recommendation is organic work, and it can't be bought. Any vendor promising "guaranteed mentions" in ChatGPT is selling something that doesn't exist.
Ready to set one up? Follow our step-by-step guide to advertising on ChatGPT.
Availability and formats change often. Our platform status page tracks what's buyable today.