Quick Answer
What happens to custom GPTs?
OpenAI is retiring custom GPTs on December 11, 2026. If you built a GPT, migrate it to a plugin or move your work into a project before that date.
Your past conversations stay available. If you only use other people's GPTs, you don't have to migrate anything yourself. And if your GPT helped customers find your products, listings or services, this is a good moment to rebuild it on a live connection to your own data.
If you have ever built a custom GPT, you have probably received an email from OpenAI. The message is short: custom GPTs are retiring. Many of their features move to plugins, and for simpler work there are projects.
In this article I explain what changes, how to move a GPT to a plugin, and what it means for businesses that built a GPT for their customers. Everything below is based on OpenAI's notice and its developer documentation for plugins.
What Is Changing
From December 11, 2026, custom GPTs are retired. A few things to know:
- Your conversations stay. You can still access your past conversations with GPTs.
- Until the date, your GPTs keep working. After you migrate a GPT, you can keep using the original until December 11, but you can no longer edit it.
- Check your own notice. Business and enterprise workspaces may get their own timeline, so the notice in your account or workspace is what counts.
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Projects or Plugins: What Replaces a GPT?
OpenAI points to two replacements, and which one fits depends on what you used your GPT for.
| If you used your GPT for… | Use | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Your own ongoing work with fixed instructions and files | A project | Keeps related chats, instructions and reference files together, so new chats start with the same context. |
| Reusable instructions you want in any chat, or something others use | A plugin | Brings reusable instructions, reference files and connected apps into your conversations, and can be shared. |
| Answering questions from your own catalog, listings or systems | A plugin with a data connection | Searches your live data instead of a copy you uploaded once. |
In OpenAI's developer documentation, a plugin is the package people discover, install, share and publish in ChatGPT and Codex. It can contain skills (a folder with instructions and supporting files), an MCP server that connects ChatGPT to external systems, or both. ChatGPT and Codex share one plugin directory, which is also where apps are listed now.
How to Migrate Your GPT to a Plugin
- Go to My GPTs and choose Migrate to plugin once the option is available for your account.
- Review the replacement plugin. The migration can carry over your instructions and files, but the plugin may work differently from your GPT.
- Test it on your usual tasks. Run the questions and jobs you normally use the GPT for, and compare the results before December 11.
- Share it again if others use it. People who used your GPT don't move over automatically. Either submit the plugin for review to publish it in the plugin directory (not every submission is accepted), or download it as a ZIP file and send it to them so they can upload it in the plugin directory.
To use a plugin in a chat, people type @ and select it, so it's worth giving yours a clear name and description of what it does.
If You Use Someone Else's GPT
You don't need to migrate anything yourself. Look at the notice on the GPT and any message from its creator to see whether there is a replacement plugin. Your access to the GPT does not transfer to that plugin automatically, so you may need to add it. If there is no replacement, recreate the setup in a project with your own instructions and files.
For Businesses: Rebuild Rather Than Copy
Many businesses built a GPT for their customers: a product adviser for a webshop, a home finder for a real estate agency, a job search for a staffing agency. Usually the GPT worked with files that were uploaded once. That means the GPT knew last month's stock, last week's listings or a job that had already been filled.
If you migrate such a GPT as it is, you keep that weakness. A plugin can do better: with an MCP server, ChatGPT searches your live data through an API, feed or your CMS, with current prices, availability and details. That's what I build as a ChatGPT app: a connection to your own catalog, with examples for real estate, car dealers and recruitment.
Keep one thing in mind: a plugin is not the same as being recommended. People need to find and add your plugin, publishing it publicly requires a review by OpenAI, and ChatGPT won't suggest it for every general question. Your visibility in ChatGPT's normal answers still depends on your website and your presence across the web.
Checklist Before December 11
- Make a list of the GPTs you built and decide per GPT: project, plugin, or stop.
- Save your instructions and knowledge files separately, as a backup.
- Migrate the GPTs you want to keep and test them on real tasks.
- Tell the people who use your GPT where to find the replacement.
- For a customer-facing GPT: consider rebuilding it on a live connection to your data.
Not sure whether your GPT should become a project, a simple plugin or a plugin with a data connection? Look at the AI integrations I build, or ask my assistant on that page.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do custom GPTs stop working?
OpenAI is retiring custom GPTs on December 11, 2026. Until then you can keep using them. Check the notice in your own account or workspace, as business workspaces may have their own timeline.
Will I lose my conversations with GPTs?
No. According to OpenAI, you can still access your past conversations with GPTs after the retirement.
What is the difference between a custom GPT and a ChatGPT plugin?
A custom GPT was a separate version of ChatGPT with its own instructions and files. A plugin is a package you install and use inside your own chats. It can contain skills (reusable instructions and files) and an MCP server that connects ChatGPT to external systems, such as your own data.
Do I need to migrate a GPT I use but did not build?
No. Check the notice on the GPT for a replacement plugin from its creator. If there is none, continue your work in a ChatGPT project with your own instructions and files.
How do I share my plugin with others?
Either submit it for review to publish it in the plugin directory, or download it as a ZIP file and send it to people, who can then upload it in the plugin directory. Not every submission is accepted.