Overview
Plugins bundle capabilities into reusable workflows in ChatGPT and Codex. They can include skills, connectors, or both. Both products use one universal plugin directory, so the same public plugins are discoverable from their supported surfaces.
Plugins are available with ChatGPT Work on the web and with ChatGPT Work or Codex in the ChatGPT desktop app. Codex CLI also has a plugin browser for Codex environments. Plugins aren’t available in Chat, the IDE extension, or mobile.
In the ChatGPT desktop app, select ChatGPT and turn on Work in the switcher, or select Codex. Then open Plugins to browse, install, and use plugins. Installed plugins can add skills, connectors, and MCP tools to new chats.
In ChatGPT web, turn on Work in the switcher and open Plugins to browse, install, and use plugins. A plugin can prompt you to connect an external service before its tools become available.
In Codex CLI, enter /plugins to open the plugin browser. Install a plugin from
a configured marketplace, then start a new session before using its bundled
skills or tools.
Use plugins from a supported surface
Plugins aren’t available in the IDE extension. To browse and install plugins for Codex, use the ChatGPT desktop app or Codex CLI.
Extend what ChatGPT and Codex can do, for example:
- Install the Codex Security plugin to scan authorized code and confirm plausible vulnerability findings.
- Install the Gmail plugin to work with Gmail.
- Install the Google Drive plugin to work across Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides.
- Install the Slack plugin to summarize channels or draft replies.
A plugin can contain one or more of these parts:
- Skills: reusable instructions for specific kinds of work. ChatGPT and Codex can load them when needed so they follow the right steps and use the right references or helper scripts for a task.
- Connectors: connections to tools like GitHub, Slack, or Google Drive, so ChatGPT and Codex can read information from those tools and take actions in them. Connectors expose tools and can optionally include custom UI.
- MCP servers: services that give ChatGPT and Codex access to more tools or shared information, often from systems outside your local project. They’re also the services behind connectors. They define tools, enforce auth, return structured data, and perform actions against external systems.
- Browser extensions: browser capabilities that a plugin needs for its workflow.
- Hooks: commands that run at configured lifecycle points. Review and trust plugin hooks before you enable them.
- Scheduled task templates: reusable starting points for recurring tasks where scheduled tasks are available.
You can share plugins by publishing them through a marketplace source, such as a repo marketplace for a project or team. See Build plugins for marketplace setup, packaging, and distribution guidance.
If you are building an integration, start with Build an MCP server. If the plugin needs custom UI, use the optional UI guide.
Use and install plugins
Universal plugin directory
ChatGPT and Codex use the same public plugin catalog. To browse and install plugins from a supported graphical surface:
- On the web, turn on Work in the switcher and open Plugins.
- In the ChatGPT desktop app, select ChatGPT and turn on Work in the switcher, or select Codex. Then open Plugins.
The Plugins Directory organizes plugins into tabs:
- OpenAI: plugins built by OpenAI.
- Your workspace name: plugins provided by your workspace.
- Personal: personal marketplace plugins, including Created by me and Shared with me sections when those plugins are available.
Use the separate Installed row to review plugins you already installed.
Install and use a plugin
Once you open the Plugins Directory:
- Search or browse for a plugin, then open its details.
- Select the plus button to install the plugin.
- If the plugin needs a connector, connect it when prompted. Some plugins ask you to authenticate during install. Others wait until the first time you use them.
- After installation, start a new chat and ask ChatGPT or Codex to use the plugin.
After you install a plugin, you can use it directly in the prompt window:
Describe the task directly
Ask for the outcome you want, such as “Summarize unread Gmail threads from today” or “Pull the latest launch notes from Google Drive.”
Use this when you want ChatGPT to choose the right installed tools for the task.
Choose a specific plugin
Type @ to invoke the plugin or one of its bundled skills
explicitly.
Use this when you want to be specific about which plugin or skill ChatGPT should use. See Skills & Plugins.
Plugin browser in Codex CLI
In Codex CLI, run the following command to open the plugin browser:
codex
/pluginsThe CLI plugin browser groups plugins by marketplace. Use the marketplace tabs to switch sources, open a plugin to inspect details, install or uninstall marketplace entries, and press Space on an installed plugin to turn it on or off.
API key availability
If you sign in to Codex with an OpenAI API key, you can browse, install, and manage supported OpenAI-curated plugins in Codex CLI and Codex in the ChatGPT desktop app. Some plugins aren’t available with API key authentication because their connection flows require unsupported OAuth capabilities. Review plugin usage on the Platform Usage page.
How permissions and data sharing work
On ChatGPT web, ChatGPT Work chats use the workspace permissions and tools available to that chat. Connectors still require their own sign-in and access.
When a plugin capability runs through a Codex host, the host’s sandbox and approval policy applies. Connections to external services use that service’s own authentication and access controls.
- Bundled skills become available when you start a new chat or CLI session after installation.
- If a plugin includes connectors, the active product may prompt you to install or sign in to those connectors during setup or the first time you use them.
- If a plugin includes MCP servers, they may require extra setup or authentication before you can use them.
- When ChatGPT sends data through a bundled connector, that service’s terms and privacy policy apply.
Remove a plugin
To remove a plugin, open it from a supported plugin browser and select Uninstall plugin when that action is available. Workspace-installed or default plugins may not offer that action; your workspace administrator controls them instead.
Uninstalling a plugin removes the plugin bundle from that ChatGPT or Codex environment, but bundled connectors stay connected until you manage them in ChatGPT.
Build your own plugin
If you want to create, test, or distribute your own plugin, see Build plugins. That page covers local scaffolding, manual marketplace setup, workspace sharing, plugin manifests, and packaging guidance.
If your plugin includes server-backed capabilities, see Build an MCP server. MCP tools can work without custom UI or return UI when a visual surface helps the workflow.
When your plugin is ready for review, see Submit plugins for the OpenAI Platform submission flow, required permissions, review materials, MCP checks, and test case requirements.
Plugin guides
- Record & Replay: Show ChatGPT a workflow once and turn it into a reusable skill.
- Codex Security plugin: Scan authorized code, confirm findings, and prepare reviewed fixes.