ChatGPT ads: the specs, bidding and rules in the official docs

A ChatGPT ad is one labeled unit below a ChatGPT response. OpenAI's help center lists what every ad includes: advertiser name, favicon, a title, copy, a landing page and an image. OpenAI's setup pages cap the title at 50 characters and the copy at 100, recommend 16–24 and 32–48, and ask for a square PNG or JPG no larger than 1200 × 1200 pixels. Its API docs add WebP and a 640 × 640 floor. A multi-image ad, in open beta since October 26, 2026, takes 4–6 square images under one title, copy and landing page. You buy Views (CPM), Clicks (CPC) or Conversions, and OpenAI recommends starting a CPC bid at $3–$5. During the test, ads are mostly limited to consumer categories. And from October 30, 2026, creative enhancements are on by default, which lets OpenAI adapt your title and copy to the conversation, resize the image, optimize the landing URL and translate the text.

The facts below come from OpenAI's help center, Ads API docs, ad policies and two announcements. They describe what OpenAI documents, not how ChatGPT ads perform in practice. ChatGPT ads are in beta, OpenAI says availability may keep evolving and its ad platform will get new formats, and most help articles carry an update stamp only hours or days old.

What does a ChatGPT ad look like?

OpenAI's Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics page says "Ads appear below ChatGPT responses" and lists six parts:

The name and favicon belong to the account. OpenAI's Launch Campaigns page asks you to have "Your advertiser account set up (name, favicon)" before you begin. Everything else is set per ad. In OpenAI's Ads API this unit is a chat_card; the API's other creative type, product_ad_template, takes its image and landing page from a product feed.

How many ads a person sees is answered in OpenAI's user FAQ:

You will see one ad unit that may contain one or multiple images below a ChatGPT response.

Multiple images are a format you pick when you build the ad. OpenAI's Creating ads for ChatGPT Ads page says "Starting Monday, October 26, 2026, we’re introducing the multi-image ad format in Ads Manager as an open beta." Under Ad format you choose Single image or Multiple images. Both "follow the same headline and description requirements," and a multi-image ad takes "4–6 square images, each with a 1:1 aspect ratio." Every image links to the same landing page, and "Learn more is currently the only call-to-action (CTA) option." In the Ads API, a multi-image ad lists its images as an "Ordered array of 4–6 distinct square-image file IDs" that "Requires chat_card and an account enabled for ads with multiple images." To turn a single-image ad into one, the API docs say to create a new ad.

A separate format is in testing. OpenAI's October 5 announcement introduced a visual ad format and said: "Initially, we’ll test this new ad format during image generation in ChatGPT for users on the Free and Go plans." Testing was set to "begin later this month in the US with an initial group of advertisers." The FAQ describes it as "an ad with several images from the same advertiser" that "will disappear once your image finishes generating." OpenAI hasn't published specs for that format.

Who sees ChatGPT ads?

Eligible users on the Free and Go plans in select regions, and people using ChatGPT logged out. The FAQ says "Ads may appear for users on the Free and Go plans. Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu accounts will not have ads." It also says testing "started in the United States on February 9, 2026," and that OpenAI is "gradually rolling out ads to eligible users on the Free and Go plans in select regions." Logged-out use is covered too: "Ads shown in logged-out experiences are appropriate for all audiences, while mature-content ads are limited to eligible logged-in users."

The same page rules out several audiences and contexts:

• Under-18 accounts. OpenAI does not show ads to accounts "identified as belonging to users under 18, based on account-level age information and age prediction where available."
• Temporary Chats. "Temporary Chats will not show ads."
• Sensitive chats. "Ads are not eligible to appear near sensitive topics, including personal health, mental health, or politics."
• Personalization in Europe. "Personalized ads are not initially available in the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland."

What are the character limits and image specs for ChatGPT ads?

OpenAI does publish them, mostly outside the page about writing ads. They sit in the bulk-upload checklist, the launch guide and the API docs:

In the checklist's words, titles are "16-24 characters recommended; 50 characters maximum" and copy is "32-48 characters recommended; 100 characters maximum." The API docs say "Use JPEG, PNG, or WebP and provide an image at least 640 × 640 pixels." Read together, a square PNG or JPG between 640 and 1200 pixels on a side meets every number OpenAI publishes; a multi-image ad needs four to six of them. Image links in a bulk upload must also be "publicly accessible and open directly to the image in the browser."

Apart from the multi-image rule, the Creating ads page is about craft, not numbers. On images it adds three things:

Keep images simple and relevant: use clear visuals that support the message of the ad

Avoid overly abstract or cluttered visuals: keep images straightforward and easy to interpret

Align images with the ad message: where possible, ensure the visual matches the title and copy so the creative feels cohesive

On titles, "Spell out the value clearly." On copy, "Complement the title: add new information rather than repeating the same message." OpenAI's pages set no rule about text inside the image and publish no safe zone.

The same page asks for volume. "Build for coverage, not just one message: a high volume and diverse set of ads (multiple title/copy variations per offering) allows the system to identify more opportunities where your ads may be relevant to users." And each variation "should introduce a different angle rather than repeating the same message."

How do you bid on ChatGPT ads?

You pick an objective, and the objective decides what you pay for. OpenAI's Creating campaigns and Conversion-optimized Campaigns pages give four combinations:

On the last two, OpenAI is blunt: "You do not pay per conversion." It is also blunt about which to pick: "Impressions optimize for more conversions, including those driven by views and clicks. Selecting Clicks will lower your conversions." A Conversions campaign optimizes toward one standard event, and "Custom conversion events are not currently supported." The objective cannot be edited later; OpenAI says to create a new campaign instead.

The bid sits on the ad group. From the Basics page:

Advertisers set a maximum bid at the ad-group level: a maximum CPM bid for Reach campaigns or a maximum CPC bid for Clicks campaigns. For CPC campaigns, we recommend starting with a maximum bid of $3–$5 USD per click.

(A CPM is the price of 1,000 impressions.) The auction is "a relevance-weighted, second-price auction," and the FAQ says that when several ads are eligible, OpenAI weighs "relevance and advertiser bids" to pick one.

Two newer details change that picture. OpenAI's Maximize results page says "For eligible new ad groups, maximize results is selected by default," which means OpenAI sets the bid; the manual option is labeled "Manual: Max bid." And for Conversions campaigns, the bid is a Bid Cap per conversion, with "no recommended bid amount at this time."

CPC came later than CPM. OpenAI's May 5 announcement said that "In the first phase of the pilot, advertisers could buy ChatGPT ads on a CPM (cost-per-mille impressions) basis" and that it was "adding cost-per-click (CPC) bidding."

Budgets follow a weekly rule. A daily budget is "the average amount you want the campaign to spend per day over a 7-day period," and "Daily spend will not exceed twice your selected daily budget, and spend over the applicable 7-day period will not exceed seven times your selected daily budget." The minimum daily budget is 25 USD, 15 EUR or 15 GBP, with a table for other currencies. Meta's ceiling on a single day is lower, at 175% of the daily budget (see how Meta's pacing works).

Are ChatGPT context hints the same as keywords?

No. You add context hints to an ad group to describe when your ad is relevant. OpenAI's ad groups page is explicit:

Context hints inform relevance. They are not exact-match keywords or targeting rules, and they do not guarantee delivery for particular conversations or audiences.

The same page gives the example that "cushioned everyday running shoes for beginners training for their first 5K" adds more useful context than "running shoes." OpenAI's context hints guide says to write "a clear, natural phrase focused on one idea rather than a list of disconnected keywords," and that hints "cannot enforce geographic limits, schedules, or exclusions." Location belongs in the campaign's targeting, which the Creating campaigns page says can go down to "states or regions, cities, markets, and postal codes where available." New product-feed campaigns target by country only.

Hints are one signal among several. The Basics page says the system weighs "the context and intent of the current conversation, the ad’s landing page, title, copy, advertiser-provided context hints, and, when ads personalization is enabled, select signals from a user’s broader ChatGPT experience." Your title, copy and landing page are matching inputs, not just the words people read.

What do ChatGPT creative enhancements change?

Creative enhancements are OpenAI's automatic edits to your ad. The creative enhancements page lists them:

We may adjust your headlines and descriptions, resize images, optimize destination URLs, or translate ad text to make your ads more relevant.

It adds that "Variations may be prepared in advance or created in real time based on the conversation." OpenAI's example, for a chat about weeknight dinners:

OpenAI's page dates the change:

Starting Friday, October 30, 2026, creative enhancements will be enabled automatically for new and existing campaigns.

You can "change your settings at any time in Ads Manager." "Existing account- and campaign-level opt-outs are preserved," and "Campaign-specific settings take priority over your account default." So OpenAI documents both an account default and a per-campaign setting. That is different from Meta, whose help center documents no account-level switch that turns its enhancements off (Meta calls them Advantage+ creative).

What you give up is a look at each version. "The experience does not provide a preview of every variation. When enabled, enhanced creatives can run automatically." The enhancements draw on your existing ad and your landing page, so OpenAI asks you to "Keep your ads and landing pages current, including prices, promotions, product details, and availability."

How fast does ChatGPT ads reporting update?

Not all at once. From the Basics, Measure Results and Troubleshooting Common Issues pages:

The spend lag is the one that misleads. The Basics page says "a displayed spend of zero does not necessarily mean no charges have accrued."

For your own analytics, UTM parameters on the landing page URL "persist on ad clicks." Ads Manager also fills in macros such as {campaign_id}, {ad_group_id}, {ad_id} and {ad_account_id}. One trap: OpenAI's review crawlers may visit your landing page with those parameters, and "Third-party analytics may classify these visits as paid traffic, but crawler visits are not billable ad clicks."

Conversions come from OpenAI's pixel or its Conversions API. You can pick a 7-, 14- or 30-day click window and a 0- or 1-day view window, but "Changing the reporting window affects reporting only; it does not change campaign optimization, bidding, or billing." And on what good looks like, the advertiser FAQ says: "As an early platform, ChatGPT Ads does not yet have performance benchmarks across advertisers, industries, or campaign types."

What gets a ChatGPT ad rejected?

Three layers: the category, a baseline that applies to every ad, and the landing page. All three are in OpenAI's ad policies, last updated September 10, 2026.

The category. During the test, ads are limited:

During the initial test period, ads are primarily limited to consumer verticals such as lifestyle and household goods, local services, travel and experiences, and digital products or education.

Financial services, healthcare and legal services are possible "from approved advertisers," reviewed "manually on a case-by-case basis." OpenAI's policy troubleshooting page has a table by category and market. Some rows:

The same page notes that "An ad can pass review and still be ineligible to serve in its selected countries."

The baseline. "An ad that violates these standards is prohibited even if the product category is otherwise allowed." It covers misleading claims, offensive language "including in product names, event titles, or branding," and discrimination. One rule is specific to this platform:

Ads must be clearly distinguishable from the ChatGPT product experience. We may remove or require modification of ads that imitate the appearance, functionality, or voice of ChatGPT or other OpenAI interfaces in a way that could reasonably cause users to believe the ad is part of the product.

For the image, that means: don't make your picture look like part of ChatGPT. The policies also bar "assets featuring sexualized poses or explicit/racy imagery," while "lingerie, underwear, or swimwear may be allowed when presented in a standard fashion or retail context." Graphic violence is out; "Stylized or cartoon violence without gore may also be allowed."

The landing page. "These standards apply to all ad assets, including copy, images or video, and landing pages. Ads must be consistent end-to-end." OpenAI reviews "the title, copy, media, and landing page" when an ad is uploaded, and "Ads or landing pages that cannot be reviewed or evaluated by our systems are not eligible to run." The Creating ads page says landing pages "must not block OpenAI user agents (OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot)."

Review is mostly automated. OpenAI says it uses "machine learning systems, including LLMs and classifiers," with some decisions "escalated for human review." In the API, editing an ad's creative "creates a new submitted version and starts another review."

How long does review take? OpenAI doesn't publish a turnaround for ad review. The "up to 7 Business days" on the policy troubleshooting page is for business verification, a separate check. A second 7-day figure on that page is how long an appeal can be pending before you contact support. The 24 hours, on the general troubleshooting page, is how long to wait before reporting zero delivery. Meta does publish a figure for its review (most ads within 24 hours), but that applies to Meta only.

What third-party ChatGPT ad guides get wrong

Three guides to ChatGPT ad specs and formats contradict OpenAI's pages:

• Abmatic AI's chat card guide (published May 29, 2026) calls the image "optional," lists "Min ~256x256 px," and calls a "~16-24 characters" headline "Hard-capped." OpenAI's Basics page lists the image among the parts "Each ad includes," its API requires a file_id (or 4–6 file_ids) for a chat_card, its floor is 640 × 640, and its hard cap is 50 characters.
• All Ad Specs' ChatGPT page (last updated October 2026) shows "Copy limits" of 16–24 and 32–48 characters, with no 50 or 100 maximum. Those ranges are OpenAI's recommendations.
• Single Grain's ad formats guide (last updated February 8, 2026, the day before OpenAI's test began) describes "Sponsored Answers" that "appear inline in the chat" and "Sidebar Ads" in "a side panel next to the conversation." OpenAI's pages describe one ad unit below the response and say advertisers "have no ability to shape, rank, or alter ChatGPT’s responses."

Part of the confusion starts at OpenAI. Its Launch Campaigns page lists "Ad title (16–24 characters recommended; 50 characters maximum)" in step 4. Step 5 then asks you to confirm "Ad titles and copy are within character limits (title: 16-24 characters, copy: 32-48 characters)." The same page lists the bulk objective as "(Views or Clicks)," while the checklist allows Conversions. And the Basics page says "Reach campaigns" for the objective it elsewhere calls Views. A guide that quotes one OpenAI line can be quoting OpenAI and still be wrong.

Before you launch a ChatGPT campaign

1. Write titles of 16–24 characters, never over 50. Copy 32–48, never over 100.
2. Use a square PNG or JPG between 640 and 1200 pixels. OpenAI's bulk-upload pages list PNG or JPG; only its API docs mention WebP. A multi-image ad takes four to six.
3. Write several distinct angles per offering. OpenAI asks for "a high volume and diverse set of ads."
4. Check the bid strategy on each new ad group. Maximize results is the default where eligible. If you bid manually on clicks, OpenAI suggests $3–$5.
5. Check your creative enhancements setting. From October 30, 2026, they are on by default for new and existing campaigns unless you opted out; you can turn them off for the account or per campaign at any time in Ads Manager.
6. Don't read zero spend as free. Spend lags about 7–8 hours; conversions 24–48.
7. Let OAI-AdsBot in, and make the landing page match the ad.
8. Check your category against the country table before you build the campaign.

Sources

• Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Ads in ChatGPT — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Bulk Upload Campaign Schema Checklist — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Launch Campaigns — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Campaign Management and Ads — OpenAI Ads API docs (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Files — OpenAI Ads API docs (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Creating ads for ChatGPT Ads — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Creating campaigns for ChatGPT Ads — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Conversion-optimized Campaigns — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Maximize results bid strategy — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Create Ad Groups for ChatGPT Ads and Writing context hints for ChatGPT Ads — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Creative enhancements for ChatGPT Ads — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Measure Results — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Troubleshooting Common Issues — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Troubleshooting Common Onboarding and Policy Issues — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Frequently asked questions — OpenAI Help Center (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Ad policies — OpenAI (accessed October 31, 2026)
• New ways to buy ChatGPT ads — OpenAI, May 5, 2026 (accessed October 31, 2026)
• Building advertising for the way people use AI — OpenAI, October 5, 2026 (accessed October 31, 2026)

---

ChatGPT ads are in beta and these pages change often, so check the source before acting on any of it.

Terrads makes several square creatives from one brief, in different layouts, so each title-and-copy angle you write can carry an image of its own.