GPT-5.5 leaves ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex on 2026-10-14 — the API is excluded
Which three surfaces lose it — and why the API does not
As of 2026-10-07 OpenAI's Models page still says GPT-5.5 retires from ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex on all plans on 2026-10-14, followed directly by «This retirement does not apply to the OpenAI API», and the model card adds that it «remains available on the OpenAI API». For Codex with ChatGPT sign-in, the current official replacement is GPT-6 Sol (gpt-6-sol) on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, and GPT-6 Luna (gpt-6-luna) in the desktop app on Free and Go, both «when available». Separately, GitHub Copilot drops GPT-5.5 on 2026-10-19 and suggests GPT-5.6 Sol.
Updated 2026-10-07
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Four key points
Retirement date
The retirement date on OpenAI’s Models page and in its 2026-09-14 changelog entry (re-checked 2026-10-07).
Where it goes away
ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex when signed in with a ChatGPT account.
OpenAI API
Official line: This retirement does not apply to the OpenAI API.
Official replacement
Codex with ChatGPT sign-in: gpt-6-sol on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu; gpt-6-luna in the desktop app on Free and Go (official Models page, 2026-10-07).
What this is
This is a scheduled model retirement, not an outage. The scope is written against three ChatGPT-family surfaces and the API is explicitly carved out. What actually decides your workload is how Codex authenticates: ChatGPT sign-in (affected) or API key (not affected).
What happened
OpenAI's changelog entry of 2026-09-14 is titled «GPT-5.5 retires from ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work, and Codex on October 14». Re-checked on 2026-10-07, the GPT-5.5 retirement section of the Models page keeps the 2026-10-14 date and the API exclusion and now splits the replacement by plan: GPT-6 Sol (gpt-6-sol) on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, GPT-6 Luna (gpt-6-luna) in the desktop app on Free and Go, both «when available». The first version of this page, from 2026-09-18, recorded gpt-5.6-sol as the named action; the current official wording takes precedence. OpenAI also asks you to replace gpt-5.5 in workspace defaults, saved model settings, managed configurations, custom agents, scheduled tasks and scripts that select a model.
Timeline
2026-09-18 re-check: the retirement entry is marked Scheduled in the official release notes.
2026-10-14 GPT-5.5 leaves ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex; the same sentence excludes the OpenAI API.
2026-11-21 is at least how long gpt-5.6-sol keeps its promotional price (the official pricing page, re-checked on 2026-10-07, still reads «at least through November 21, 2026»); gpt-5.6-sol is also the alternative GitHub Copilot suggests for GPT-5.5.
Confirmed vs caution
Officially confirmed
Official, re-checked on 2026-10-07 on the Models page, the Pricing page and the 2026-09-14 changelog entry: GPT-5.5 leaves ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex on all plans on 2026-10-14; the retirement does not apply to the OpenAI API, and the model card says GPT-5.5 «remains available on the OpenAI API»; Codex with ChatGPT sign-in should switch before 2026-10-14 — gpt-6-sol on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, gpt-6-luna in the desktop app on Free and Go, each «when available». GitHub Copilot's 2026-09-18 notice separately lists GPT-5.5 for removal on 2026-10-19, suggesting GPT-5.6 Sol.
⚠️ Caution
As of 2026-10-07 OpenAI has given no date for gpt-5.5 leaving the OpenAI API, and has not said whether ChatGPT keeps a grace period after 2026-10-14. Any claim that «5.5 is dead after 2026-10-14» goes beyond the source text; Copilot's 2026-10-19 removal likewise applies only inside Copilot.
Same vs differs
Same
ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex all sit on the ChatGPT account system, so one retirement covers all three; the official replacements are split by plan (gpt-6-sol / gpt-6-luna), both from the GPT-6 family.
Differs
The OpenAI API is explicitly outside the scope — that one sentence is the carve-out API users need.
What to do
Three steps: 1) confirm how your Codex authenticates (ChatGPT account or API key); 2) with ChatGPT sign-in, replace gpt-5.5 with gpt-6-sol before 2026-10-14 (gpt-6-luna in the desktop app on Free and Go) in workspace defaults, saved model settings, managed configurations, custom agents, scheduled tasks and scripts; in an admin-managed workspace an administrator must first enable gpt-6-sol for the affected users, because changing a default does not grant access; 3) if you must stay on 5.5, move to API-key mode — the official text excludes the API from this retirement.
On QCode
As of 2026-10-07, gpt-6.1-sol, gpt-6-sol and gpt-5.6-sol are callable on QCode, and so is gpt-5.5 itself; one key switches between them by changing model. QCode works on the API side, which this retirement does not touch. Whether gpt-5.5 stays on QCode later is governed by /models; this page makes no promise about when it might leave. Billing is per token; see /models for each model's price.
FAQ
Will GPT-5.5 be unusable after 2026-10-14?
No. The scope is ChatGPT, ChatGPT Work and Codex, with «This retirement does not apply to the OpenAI API», and on 2026-10-07 the model card on the Models page still says GPT-5.5 «remains available on the OpenAI API». OpenAI has not given an API removal date.
Does my Codex count as affected?
Depends on authentication: Codex signed in with a ChatGPT account is affected; API-key mode is not. As of 2026-10-07 the official replacement is gpt-6-sol on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, and gpt-6-luna in the desktop app on Free and Go, each «when available».
Does the replacement model cost more?
On OpenAI's API pricing page (Standard, per 1M tokens, input / output, up to 272K input tokens, checked 2026-10-07): gpt-5.5 is $5 / $30, gpt-6-sol and gpt-6.1-sol are both $2 / $10, and gpt-5.6-sol is $4 / $20; the same page notes that GPT-5.6 Sol’s promotional pricing is available at least through 2026-11-21. These are API prices; OpenAI’s Pricing page separately says ChatGPT Work and Codex are included in your ChatGPT plan. The official pricing page is authoritative.
Can I keep both?
Yes, via different channels: gpt-6-sol (gpt-6-luna in the desktop app on Free and Go) on the ChatGPT-signed-in side, gpt-5.5 over an API key for workloads that must stay. Don't mix them in one profile.
Is this an outage?
No, it is a registered retirement. The real failure shape is "Selected model is at capacity. Please try a different model" — a capacity signal, covered in related reading.
Did OpenAI name other replacements?
As of 2026-10-07 the Models page names two by plan: gpt-6-sol (Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, Edu) and gpt-6-luna (Free, Go). The same page recommends GPT-6.1 Sol for complex coding and agentic workflows «when available to your account and client» and says GPT-5.6 Sol, GPT-5.6 Terra and GPT-5.6 Luna «remain available during the rollout». GitHub Copilot's suggested alternative for GPT-5.5 is GPT-5.6 Sol. Anything else is your own choice, not official guidance.
Sources
OpenAI official pages fetched on 2026-10-07: on learn.chatgpt.com the Models page (GPT-5.5 retirement section and model card), the Pricing page, the changelog (2026-09-14 entry) and Workspace model availability; on developers.openai.com the API pricing page. Plus GitHub's 2026-09-18 Copilot changelog notice. Scope follows the official pages.
Compare gpt-5.5, gpt-6-sol and gpt-6.1-sol on one key
Switch by model id; the API side is untouched by this retirement.
Related
gpt-5.3-codex, gpt-5.1, gpt-5.4-nano shut down 2027-04-01
Which model replaces each of the three, how to handle snapshots and default effort, and what changes in Codex (official table checked 2026-10-08)
November 2026 model release calendar
Sonnet 4.5 retirement, GPT-5.6 Sol promo pricing, OpenAI shutdowns and three conferences, each with its source and check date.
GPT-6 Astra quota burn
Real usage shape on the sibling tier.
Checked on 2026-10-07. This page restates only the official retirement entry, the official replacement guidance and figures from the official pricing page, with no third-party speculation; effective dates and prices follow the official pages, and model availability follows /models.