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ChatGPT Deep Research
AI system that autonomously browses the web
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Agent
Deep Research can interpret and analyze text, images, and PDFs.[4] Since February 2026, it uses a model based on OpenAI's GPT-5.2,[5][6] having originally been released with a specialized version of OpenAI's o3.[4]
o3-based Deep Research scored 26.6% on the "Humanity's Last Exam" benchmark, outperforming rivals like DeepSeek's model R1 (9.4%) and GPT-4o (3.3%).[7]
According to OpenAI, Deep Research occasionally makes factual hallucinations (errors) or incorrect inferences.[4] It may also reference rumors, and may not accurately convey uncertainty.[8] The tool's reliability has also drawn outside criticism. Writing in The Guardian, Andrew Rogoyski of the University of Surrey warned that users might be tempted to adopt Deep Research's output verbatim without retrospective checking, even though verifying whether such analysis is sound can itself take many hours of human work.[9]
In April 2025, OpenAI announced a "lightweight" version of Deep Research that would be available to free users, based on o4-mini instead of o3.[10]
As of June 2025, ChatGPT Pro subscribers ($200/month) receive 250 queries per month (half of which are "lightweight"), Plus, Team and Enterprise users receive 25 queries per month (15 of which being "lightweight"), and free users receive 5 "lightweight" queries per month.[11]
In February 2026, OpenAI announced updates to Deep Research with a new GPT-5.2-based model, better steering, limiting scope to select sites, connecting additional data using MCP servers, along with better UI for the final reports.[5][6]
Usage limit
Deep Research was introduced in February 2025.[12][13] In an April 2025 update, OpenAI said it was increasing Deep Research allowances to 25 queries per month for Plus, Team, Enterprise, and Edu users, 250 for Pro users, and 5 for free users. It also said that, after a user's standard allowance was exhausted, later queries would automatically switch to a cheaper "lightweight" version powered by a version of o4-mini.[12]
By 2026, OpenAI's public documentation described Deep Research access more generally as varying by plan rather than through a single universal quota table. According to the Help Center, ChatGPT shows an in-product counter for the number of Deep Research tasks a user has left, and for plans with fixed monthly allowances the limit resets 30 days after the user's first use.[14] OpenAI's pricing page lists Deep Research as "limited" on the Free and Go plans, included with Plus, Business, and Enterprise, and available at a higher tier on Pro, which it describes as providing "maximum" Deep Research access.[15]