Custom GPTs retire on 11 December: how to deal with it

On 11 December 2026, OpenAI is shutting down custom GPTs in ChatGPT, on every plan. From that day on, your GPTs and their pages are no longer accessible. They are being replaced by plugins: packages of reusable instructions (a "skill"), reference files and connected apps. You can take your instructions and knowledge files with you. Custom actions, past conversations, sharing settings and the selected model stay behind. Do you rely on a GPT? Start now, while you still have more than two months.

Below: what exactly disappears, which dates apply, what you can and can't take with you, how to switch step by step and what opportunities this gives you.

What exactly disappears?

Not just the GPT Store, but the whole feature. On 11 September 2026, OpenAI announced in the ChatGPT release notes that it will "retire custom GPTs across ChatGPT plans", with a migration path to plugins. That means:

• Every custom GPT goes, whether you built it for yourself, your team or the public.
• Other people's GPTs that you use go too. You can't migrate those yourself; the creator has to.
• Links to GPTs stop working after 11 December. OpenAI's guidance used to say migrated links were planned to redirect, but that sentence has been removed. Don't count on it.

Until the retirement date, existing GPTs keep working as usual.

The dates at a glance

OpenAI has already moved some of these dates once, without mentioning it in the release notes. The notice in your own account or workspace is what counts.

What comes with you, and what doesn't?

After migrating, your old GPT keeps working until the retirement date, but you can no longer edit or delete it.

Who is hit hardest?

• Businesses using a GPT as an intake or lead form. A public GPT link where customers ask a question or book an appointment goes quiet on 11 December. Plugins have no public store with a shareable link like the GPT Store.
• GPTs with custom actions. The very connections to your own systems don't move across automatically.
• Teams relying on one colleague's GPT. If that colleague is gone or busy, nobody migrates it.
• Anyone using other people's GPTs. You depend on the creator.

How to switch, in six steps

1. Make a list. Which GPTs do you or your team actually use? Which are yours, which belong to others? Often only a few remain.
2. Save what you have. Copy the instructions into a document, download your knowledge files and export important conversations. That's your backup, whatever you choose next.
3. Pick a destination per GPT. For personal use, a ChatGPT project is often simplest: instructions in, files added. If a team or department needs it, choose a plugin. If customers or visitors need it, an assistant on your own site or in your own environment is usually better.
4. Migrate. In "My GPTs", select the GPT and choose the option to migrate it to a plugin, if it's already available to you. It takes under a minute.
5. Rebuild custom actions. Use a supported connector, or have an MCP server built that connects your system to ChatGPT.
6. Test and share again. Compare the answers with your old GPT. The plugin starts private, so invite your users again and replace old links on your site, in emails and in manuals.

Using other people's GPTs? Ask the creator about their plan. Or build your own replacement in a project, with your own instructions.

The opportunities

A forced move is also a good moment to tidy up. This is what it gives you:

• A clean-up. Many GPTs were built in an afternoon and never updated. Only take what you actually use, and improve the instructions along the way.
• Your knowledge in one place. Instructions, tone of voice and product information scattered across separate GPTs can now go into one plugin or one set of documents. That helps with other AI tools too.
• Less dependence on one platform. This shutdown shows how quickly a platform can drop something. Keep your instructions and knowledge outside ChatGPT, and you can use them in Claude, Gemini or your own tools as well.
• Your own assistant for customers. If you used a GPT to help customers, an assistant on your own site is often stronger. You decide the design and the data, and the conversation belongs to your own brand and your own CRM. Want to know more about what that can look like? Read about AI agents and digital workers.
• Better connections. Custom actions were often a shaky solution. An MCP server or a proper connector is more stable, and you can use it in several AI tools.

The honest counterpoint

• Not everything is clear yet. Plugins aren't rolling out everywhere at once, and OpenAI has changed dates before. Plan with margin.
• A project is not a GPT. You can't share a project publicly, so it's no replacement for customer contact.
• Not every GPT deserves a successor. Used it three times a year? The instructions in a document may be enough.

Need help?

Want to look together at which GPTs to keep, which connections need rebuilding and whether your own assistant is worth it? In a free advice call you map out the route. Doing it yourself is fine too. Want to build it yourself? Read more about Lovable.

Sources

• OpenAI, ChatGPT release notes, 11 September 2026
• OpenAI Help Center, Custom GPT retirement and migration FAQ, consulted on 4 October 2026

Frequently asked questions

When do custom GPTs disappear?

On 11 December 2026, on every ChatGPT plan. From that date, GPTs and their pages are no longer accessible. Only Enterprise workspaces with an approved deferral get until 11 February 2027.

What replaces custom GPTs?

Plugins. A plugin bundles reusable instructions (a skill), reference files and connected apps. When you migrate, your GPT's instructions become a skill and your knowledge files and connected apps come along.

What doesn't move across when migrating?

Custom actions, past conversations, the selected model and sharing settings. The plugin starts private, so you need to invite users again. Custom actions must be rebuilt with a supported connector or an MCP server.

Can I still create a new GPT?

Not on Free, Go, Plus or Pro. Enterprise workspaces can until 26 October 2026. Existing GPTs keep working until 11 December.

Will links to my GPT still work?

Don't count on it. After 11 December, GPT pages are no longer accessible, and OpenAI no longer promises a redirect. Replace links on your site, in emails and in manuals.

I use someone else's GPT. What now?

You can't migrate it yourself. Ask the creator whether a plugin is coming, or build your own version in a ChatGPT project with your own instructions.

Is a ChatGPT project a good replacement?

For personal use, often yes: you put instructions and files in the project and continue there. For customers or visitors, no, because you can't share a project publicly.