- A Windows PC or a Mac with an internet connection
- An email address, or a Google, Apple or Microsoft account
- For the Mac app: macOS 14 (Sonoma) or newer
Easiest: use your web browser
Open Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox and type
chatgpt.cominto the address bar yourself. That's the official site, and nothing needs to be installed.⚠️ Type it, don't click ads. Search results and ads can lead to look-alike sites. Never download a “ChatGPT installer” from an email, pop-up or text message.Sign in or sign up
Click Log in or Sign up and follow the steps. You can stop here and just use ChatGPT in your browser.
Want an app instead? Go to the official download page
Type
chatgpt.com/downloadinto your browser. The page offers the desktop app for Windows and Mac. As of October 2026 OpenAI offers more than one desktop app there; for everyday chatting, any of them (or the website) works.On Windows: install from the Microsoft Store
OpenAI distributes the Windows app through the Microsoft Store. Choose the Windows download, and when the Store opens, check that the publisher is OpenAI, then click Get or Install.
On a Mac: install the downloaded app
Choose the Mac download (the page picks the right version for your Mac). Open the downloaded file and drag ChatGPT into your Applications folder if asked, then open it from Applications.
Open the app and sign in
Sign in with the same account you use on your phone. Your chats sync across devices.
Next, ask your first questions or check your privacy settings.
Related game: AI or Not?. Related explainer: AI models compared: ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini and friends .