How to use it
- Read the live status above. It tests ChatGPT from outside your network.
- Open the official OpenAI Status page for confirmed incidents.
- If ChatGPT is up, work through the fixes below, cheapest first.
- Press the report button if it still fails, so other visitors see it.
Is ChatGPT down for everyone or only for you?
OpenAI tracks ChatGPT and its API as separate product groups on its status page. Inside ChatGPT it lists parts such as Conversations, Login, File uploads, Voice mode, Image Generation, Search, Agent and Connectors. Each can fail on its own. You might chat normally while voice mode or image generation is down.
Our check requests the ChatGPT website and the OpenAI API from outside your network. Both usually answer with an access response rather than a page, which still proves the servers are up. If they answer and ChatGPT fails for you, the cause is likely your account session, browser, network or one feature.
The live check on this page requests chatgpt.com and api.openai.com from our servers every few minutes. A normal answer from those addresses means the service is reachable from outside your network. It does not prove that every feature inside ChatGPT works, which is why the problem reports and the fixes below matter.
What usually breaks with ChatGPT
Login and sessions
You are sent back to the sign-in screen again and again, or the page never finishes loading. Login is its own tracked component.
Conversations not responding
Your message sends but no answer appears, or the reply stops halfway. This is the core chat service under load.
Voice mode and image generation
Voice will not connect or images never render while text chat works, because these features run on separate systems.
File uploads and connectors
Attachments fail to upload or connected apps do not respond. Both are listed as separate components.
API calls
Apps built on the OpenAI API return 429 or 503 errors even when the ChatGPT website works, since the API has its own capacity and limits.
How to fix ChatGPT when it only fails for you
Start at the top. The first steps are the cheapest and fix most cases that are not a real outage.
- Wait 60 seconds, then retry. For a generic Something went wrong message, OpenAI's login help advises waiting at least a minute before trying again.
- Open a private window. Load chatgpt.com in an incognito or private window with extensions disabled. Browser extensions are a listed cause of ChatGPT errors.
- Clear cookies for chatgpt.com. In Chrome open Settings, Privacy and security, Third-party cookies or Site settings, find chatgpt.com and clear its data, then sign in again.
- Turn off VPN and secure DNS tools. These can break the connection to OpenAI's servers. Disconnect, reload and test again.
- Switch networks. Move between Wi-Fi and mobile data. OpenAI publishes network recommendations for ChatGPT errors on web and apps, and a restrictive office or school network is a common cause.
- Update or reinstall the mobile app. On iPhone or Android install the latest ChatGPT app. If it still fails, sign out in Settings, delete the app and install it again.
- Start a new chat. A very long thread can fail to load. Open a new conversation and test with a short message.
- Check which component is affected. Open status.openai.com and look at the ChatGPT group, not just the overall banner. Voice, uploads and login are listed individually.
If none of this helps and the live check above shows the service as up, read our guide on why a website is not loading, or see how to flush DNS.
Common ChatGPT error messages
| Message or code | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| 429 Rate limit reached for requests | API requests are coming in too quickly for your limit. | Slow down, honor the Retry-After header and use exponential backoff with jitter. |
| 429 Credit balance exhausted | The API organization has no prepaid credits left. | Add credits in billing settings. Retrying will not help. |
| 503 Model temporarily overloaded | The model does not have capacity at the moment. | Wait, honor Retry-After if present, and check the status page. |
| 401 Incorrect API key | The API key is wrong. | Check the key for typos, clear cached credentials or generate a new key. |
| 500 Server error | A problem occurred on OpenAI's servers. | Retry after a brief wait and check the status page. |
Official ChatGPT status and support
The company itself has the final word on outages. Check OpenAI Status for confirmed incidents and use OpenAI Help Center if your account has a problem that is not an outage. We are not affiliated with ChatGPT.
Facts and menu names on this page were checked against the official sources below on October 28, 2026. Apps change their menus, so a setting may sit in a slightly different place in your version.
Other services people check
Frequently asked questions
How do I know if ChatGPT is down or if it is just me?
Run the live check above and open status.openai.com. If both look normal, try a private window and a different network. If it works there, the cause is your browser or connection.
Why does ChatGPT work but voice mode does not?
Voice mode is a separate component on OpenAI's status page. It can fail while text chat works. Check the ChatGPT group for voice, then also check microphone permission for your browser or app.
Where can I see official ChatGPT outages?
OpenAI publishes incidents at status.openai.com, split into APIs, ChatGPT, Codex and other products, with per-component history.
Is the API down when ChatGPT is down?
Not always. They are listed as separate groups. A website problem does not automatically mean API errors, and the reverse is also true.
Why do I get 429 errors in my own app?
A 429 means a rate limit or spending limit, not an outage. Read the message to see whether it is request rate, credits or a spend limit before retrying.