Paying to See Ads? ChatGPT's New $8 'Go' Tier Has a Catch That's Infuriating Fans

Fears of declining quality are rippling through the ChatGPT user community as OpenAI confirms plans to introduce advertising alongside the global rollout of its new low-cost subscription, ChatGPT Go. While the company insists ads will not interfere with answers, many users remain sceptical, worried that the platform may be entering a familiar cycle of gradual degradation.

The concern comes at a pivotal moment for ChatGPT. Once positioned as a largely ad-free alternative to traditional search and social platforms, it is now expanding aggressively with multiple paid tiers and, for the first time, advertising baked into lower-cost access.

For fans who embraced ChatGPT for its clean interface and perceived neutrality, the shift feels like a turning point.

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OpenAI argues the move is about accessibility rather than monetisation alone. Yet critics say the introduction of ads, even if carefully separated from responses, risks undermining trust. For some, the arrival of ChatGPT Go marks not just a new subscription option but the beginning of a more commercialised era for conversational AI.

ChatGPT Go Goes Global

ChatGPT Go was first introduced in India in August 2025 as a low-cost subscription aimed at widening access to advanced AI tools. Since then, it has expanded to 170 additional countries, becoming OpenAI's fastest-growing plan and one of the most affordable AI subscriptions worldwide.

Starting today, ChatGPT Go is available globally wherever ChatGPT operates. In the US, it is priced at $8.00 (£6.32) per month, with localised pricing in some markets.

The launch means ChatGPT now offers three consumer tiers worldwide: ChatGPT Go at $8.00 (£6.32) a month, ChatGPT Plus at $20.00 (£15.80), and ChatGPT Pro at $200.00 (£158.00).

Go is positioned between the free tier and the Plus tier. It offers 10 times more messages, file uploads, and image creation than the free version, along with access to GPT-5.2 Instant. Users also benefit from a longer memory and context window, allowing ChatGPT to retain more personal details over time.

Plus and Pro, meanwhile, remain targeted at heavier users. Plus focuses on deeper reasoning, research and analysis with access to GPT-5.2 Thinking, while Pro is aimed at power users, offering GPT-5.2 Pro, maximum memory and early feature previews.

Ads Enter The Conversation

Alongside the global rollout of Go, OpenAI has confirmed it will begin testing advertisements in both the free tier and ChatGPT Go in the US. Plus, Pro, Business and Enterprise subscriptions will remain ad-free.

OpenAI says advertising supports its mission to make AI accessible. 'Our mission is to ensure AGI benefits all of humanity; our pursuit of advertising is always in support of that mission and making AI more accessible,' the company said. It added that it prioritises 'user trust and user experience over revenue'.

According to OpenAI, ads will appear after answers rather than be embedded within them and will not influence responses. 'Answers are optimized based on what's most helpful to you,' the company said. Conversations are also described as private from advertisers, with a promise to never sell user data.

Users will have options to turn off personalisation and clear ad-related data. However, OpenAI also made clear that the surest way to avoid ads entirely is to pay more. 'We'll always offer a way to not see ads in ChatGPT, including a paid tier that's ad-free,' it said.

Enshittification Fears Grow

Despite the reassurances, many users see the move as a classic case of enshittification in progress. Coined by writer Cory Doctorow, the term describes how platforms often degrade user experience after building a large audience, shifting focus towards monetisation.

For critics, ads in ChatGPT Go signal a transition from user-first innovation to revenue optimisation. Even if answers remain untouched for now, sceptics fear subtle changes over time, from increased friction to nudges towards higher-priced plans.

As ChatGPT continues to grow, OpenAI's challenge will be maintaining trust while balancing accessibility and profitability. For fans already wary of ads, the rollout of ChatGPT Go may feel less like progress and more like the start of a slippery slope.