Custom GPTs in ChatGPT will be retired; other plans may follow the same timeline

One of the best -- and most beloved -- ways to make ChatGPT your own is quietly being put out to pasture.

Custom GPTs, which let you create a customized version of ChatGPT with its own instructions and files, and even its own name, will soon be “retired,” according to a recently updated ChatGPT support page.

These customized GPTs come in many shapes and sizes, with some dedicated to scholarly research while others are designed to be expert programmers. Some ChatGPT users (like me) created GPTs that specialize in food recipes, while others served as life coaches or personal sounding boards. There are also plenty of private GPTs that role-play as romantic companions. (That’s a whole different topic.)

For now, we only have a GPT “retirement” timeline for Enterprise workspace users. The key dates to keep in mind are September 25 -- next week -- when Enterprise workspace users will no longer be able to create new custom GPTs, although existing ones will still work. On December 11, custom GPTs for Enterprise are scheduled to stop functioning altogether.

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That’s the deal for Enterprise workspaces, with the support page noting that “other plans may follow the same transition timeline.” I’ve reached out to OpenAI for more details.

OpenAI says it’s phasing out custom GPTs for ChatGPT plugins, which can offer much of the same functionality for business and enterprise GPTs with advanced workflows and functions. But building a plugin requires coding help from Codex, which can burn both time as well as tokens. And while OpenAI is promising a migration workflow to smooth out the process for Enterprise workplace users, it's not clear whether individual plans will get a similar tool.

For that reason, I recommend an easier and faster alternative for personal users with simple GPTs: ChatGPT projects.

A project lets you define custom instructions and store reference files, just like you can with custom GPTs. You can also share (if you wish) a project with other ChatGPT users, although there’s no equivalent to the public GPT marketplace. Finally, you can import old GPT conversations into your new project.

To get started, go to your custom GPT in the ChatGPT web app, (click GPTs in the left column, then click My GPTs in the top-right corner of the screen), click the Edit button, then select the Configure tab. From there, you’ll want to scoop out your GPT’s instructions and any conversation starters you’ve saved, as well as download any “knowledge” files you may have previously uploaded.

You could save your conversation starters (like “What’s a unique dinner idea for tonight?”) too, but be aware that there’s no equivalent function in projects; instead, just save the best one for kicking off new chats.

Now, go to the Projects heading in the left-hand column, create a new project, and give it a name (ideally the same name as your old GPT). Click the three-dot icon next to the name, select Project Settings, then add your GPT’s custom instructions to the Instructions field. Go back to the three-dot menu, select Project Home, and upload any reference files under the Sources tab.

Last but not least, you can go back to any previous custom GPT chat threads and import them into your new project; click the three-dot menu next to the conversation and select “Move to project.”

If you’re open to switching from ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini offer their own custom GPT equivalents. Claude Projects are similar to ChatGPT Projects while adding a built-in scheduling tool, while Gemini Gems feel more in the spirit of custom GPTs.

No matter which option you choose, your custom GPT can keep chugging away, long after ChatGPT's "retirement" date has passed.