OpenAI paused new ChatGPT Pro sign-ups, then reopened it with different usage tiers
pcworld.com
OpenAI reopened ChatGPT Pro sign-ups, but cut the plan’s usage limits in half. The $200 tier is back, just not as generous as before.
Based on reporting by pcworld.com — read the original for the full story.
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OpenAI has reopened sign-ups for its $200-a-month ChatGPT Pro plan after pausing new customers earlier this month because demand for GPT-6 Astra got too high. The catch is simple and annoying: the plan now buys less usage than it did before.
According to a rough chart shared by OpenAI’s Thibault Sottiaux on X, Pro used to offer 20 times the usage of the $20-a-month Plus plan. Now it will offer 10 times the usage, a 50% cut. Existing subscribers are getting a short grace period and some usage credits while the change lands.
Sottiaux, OpenAI’s head of core products, said the company is trying to absorb the strain from new DevDay features that need a lot of compute. He also said OpenAI passed on other options, including bringing back a rolling five-hour usage limit. Instead, the company pointed to a recent 50% API rate cut for GPT-6 Sol and GPT-6 Luna, two newer models that are more efficient, as part of its reasoning.
The logic, as OpenAI frames it, is that it does not want to fake generosity by inflating API prices and then hiding the difference with discounts. The company says it wants to keep lowering prices and raising model capability on the API side, even if that means subscription tiers keep getting shuffled around.
Sottiaux also hinted that Pro may gain new subscription perks that do not count against usage, and chats with OpenAI’s Dot assistants appear to be part of that. For paying users, though, the message is blunt: the flat fee stays high, the ceiling drops, and the company expects everyone to call that progress.
My take — AI-written commentary, not fact-checked reporting
This is the usual AI subscription move: charge for access, then quietly redefine what access means. OpenAI can call it efficiency all it wants, but cutting paid usage while trumpeting new features is exactly how users learn to mistrust the monthly plan. The industry loves flexibility right up until the bill lands on the wrong side of it.
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