ChatGPT can now see and control your web browser. OpenAI’s updated ChatGPT for Chrome extension reads your open tabs, answers questions about them, and in its new Work mode can click through websites for you: filling forms, sending messages, downloading files and organising tabs. It is one of the most searched AI features of the month, and also one of the most debated, because giving an AI agent access to every site you are logged into is a serious decision. This guide walks through what the extension does, how to install and set it up step by step, which permission settings to choose, the real security risks, and how it compares with Gemini in Chrome and Claude in Chrome.
- OpenAI announced the update on October 15, 2026. The free extension is in the Chrome Web Store as “Control your browser with ChatGPT”, and OpenAI says it is available on all ChatGPT plans.
- Chat mode reads your tabs and selected text and answers questions. Work mode acts in your tabs: fills forms, sends messages, downloads files and groups tabs.
- Setup runs through the ChatGPT desktop app on Windows or macOS: Settings → Computer Use, pick your browser, install, then type
@Chromein a Work chat. - It also works in Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi (no side chat in Opera). English only.
- Safety: use a separate browser profile, choose Allow once for new sites, decline banking and government sites, and never use Allow for all sites.
What Is the ChatGPT Chrome Extension?
The ChatGPT extension used to be a simple shortcut to the chatbot. The October 2026 update turns it into a full browser agent. OpenAI announced it in a thread on X on October 15, and 9to5Google covered it the next day. According to PPC Land, the in-browser view shows your full chat history in a side panel next to the page, similar to Chrome’s built-in Gemini panel.
This is also where OpenAI’s agent browsing now lives. OpenAI launched its own Atlas browser in October 2025, then discontinued it on July 9, 2026 and folded its browsing features into ChatGPT Work. So if you used Atlas agent mode, this extension is its replacement, now running inside the browser you already use.
The extension is free in the Chrome Web Store under the tagline “Control your browser with ChatGPT”. Early reviews are rough: Origami reports a 1.9 out of 5 rating from 959 ratings at the time it checked, with many complaints coming from the gradual rollout, where features do not appear for everyone yet.
Chat Mode vs Work Mode
| Chat mode | Work mode | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Reads open tabs and selected text, answers questions | Controls tabs and runs multi-step actions |
| Examples | Summarise a page, compare offers across tabs, explain a YouTube video from its captions | Fill a form, send a message, download invoices, group tabs, enter data |
| Fills forms or sends messages? | No | Yes |
| Needs the desktop app? | No, works from the toolbar side chat | Yes, through Computer Use |
| Risk level | Lower: read-only | Higher: it can act as you |
Work mode first rolled out to Pro, Enterprise and Edu subscribers in July 2026, then to Plus and Business. OpenAI’s October thread says the extension is “available for all ChatGPT plans”, but the sources do not make clear whether free users get Work mode’s tab control. If you do not see it, it is most likely the staged rollout.
Requirements and Supported Browsers
- Desktop app: the latest ChatGPT desktop app on Windows or macOS, for Work mode tasks.
- Browsers: Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera and Vivaldi. Side chat is not available in Opera.
- Language: English only for now.
- Same profile: tasks run in the browser profile where you installed the extension, so that is the profile whose logins ChatGPT can use.
- Workspace accounts: admins of company ChatGPT workspaces can switch the feature off, so it may be missing on a work account.
How to Install and Connect It (Step by Step)
These steps follow Origami’s walkthrough of OpenAI’s setup flow.
- Update the ChatGPT desktop app on Windows or macOS.
- Open Settings → Computer Use. If your browser is not in the list, expand More browsers.
- Select your browser and click Install. This opens the extension’s store page.
- Click Add to Chrome and read the permission prompt before accepting (more on that below).
- Go back to Computer Use in the app. If your browser now shows Manage, it is connected.
- Start a new Work chat, type
@Chromefollowed by your task, and keep the same browser profile open.
For quick read-only help you do not need the app at all: click the ChatGPT icon in the toolbar to open side chat, or right-click any page and choose Ask ChatGPT.
Your First Tasks: Prompts That Work
Start with read-only prompts in Chat mode, then move to low-risk Work tasks.
Chat mode prompts
- “Summarise this article in five bullet points and list any numbers it quotes.”
- “Compare the three laptop tabs I have open on price, RAM, weight and battery life in a table.”
- “Using this YouTube video’s captions, give me the timestamps where they explain the setup.”
- “Explain the error on this GitHub issue page and suggest a fix.”
Work mode prompts
- “@Chrome group my open tabs by topic and name each group.”
- “@Chrome download last month’s invoice from this billing page into my Downloads folder.”
- “@Chrome fill this contact form with the details below and stop before submitting.” Always add “stop before submitting” so you review it first.
- “@Chrome open the sitemap of my site and list any pages that return a 404.”
The habit that matters most: tell it where to stop. Work mode is fastest when you let it do the boring navigation and keep the final click for yourself.
Site Permissions: Which Option to Choose
Every time ChatGPT wants to work on a new website, it asks you to choose one of four options:
| Option | What it means | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Allow once | Access for this task only | Default choice for any new site |
| Allow for this site | Ongoing access to one domain | Trusted tools you use daily, such as your own CMS or a docs site |
| Allow for all sites | Access to every site, always | Avoid. OpenAI itself marks this as elevated risk |
| Decline | Blocks the site | Banks, government portals, email, password managers, health records |
You can manage an allowlist and blocklist of domains under Settings → Computer Use → Manage, and it applies to every connected browser. Browsing history access always asks for your permission and has no “always allow” option.
What Data It Can See and What OpenAI Keeps
When you install the extension, Chrome asks for eight broad permissions, including:
- Read and change data on all websites
- Browsing history
- The page debugger (used to click and type for you)
- Downloads, bookmarks and tab groups
That is a lot, but it is what any agent that can act in your browser needs. On retention, OpenAI says it does not keep a separate complete log of extension activity. It stores what becomes part of your chat: text read from pages, screenshots and summaries. So treat everything the agent reads as something that will sit in your ChatGPT history, and delete those chats if they contain sensitive material.
The Real Risks: Prompt Injection and Account Access
The biggest risk with any browser agent is prompt injection: a web page hides instructions in its text or markup, and the AI follows them as if you had typed them. A malicious page might tell the agent to open your email and forward something, or to fill a form with your data. OpenAI’s own documentation tells users to treat page content as untrusted for exactly this reason.
OpenAI has not published prompt injection test results for the extension. For context, when Anthropic opened its Claude in Chrome research preview in August 2025, it reported a 23.6% attack success rate without mitigations, falling to 11.2% with them. Those are different products and different tests, but they show the problem is real and not fully solved by anyone.
The second risk is simply that the agent acts with your logins. In the same week, AI Weekly reported that major US banks are detecting unauthorised third-party AI agents operating inside customer accounts. That is exactly why the “Decline” option exists for financial sites.
A Safe Setup in 5 Minutes
- Create a separate Chrome profile (click your profile icon → Add) just for ChatGPT work, and sign in only to the sites you want the agent to use.
- Install the extension only in that profile. Your main profile with email and banking stays out of reach.
- Add blocklist entries under Settings → Computer Use → Manage for your bank, email, password manager and government sites.
- Use Allow once for every new site, and Allow for this site only for tools you fully trust.
- Never paste passwords or sensitive customer data into a task, and end Work prompts with “stop before submitting”.
ChatGPT vs Gemini in Chrome vs Claude in Chrome
| ChatGPT for Chrome | Gemini in Chrome | Claude in Chrome | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Type | Extension plus desktop app | Built into Chrome | Extension |
| Reads multiple tabs | Yes | Yes (since September 2025) | Yes |
| Acts on pages | Yes, Work mode | Yes, auto browse (July 2026) | Yes |
| Pauses before sensitive actions | You set stops; per-site permission prompts | Pauses before purchases or social posts | Per-site permissions; mitigations reported against prompt injection |
| Browsers | Chrome, Edge, Brave, Opera, Vivaldi | Chrome | Chrome |
If you already pay for ChatGPT and use its desktop app, the extension is the natural pick. If you want zero install and live in Google’s apps, Gemini in Chrome is already there. The honest summary is that all three can now do the same basic jobs, and your choice should come down to which assistant you already trust with your data.
ChatGPT Chrome Extension Not Working? Fixes
- No Work option or no browser in Computer Use: the rollout is gradual. Update the desktop app, sign out and back in, and check again over the next few days.
- Browser shows Install, not Manage: the extension is installed in a different profile from the one the app is checking. Install it in the profile you want to use.
- @Chrome does nothing: make sure you are in a Work chat, not a normal chat, and that the browser is open.
- Company account: your workspace admin may have disabled it.
- Opera: side chat is not supported there; use Work tasks from the app instead.
- Stuck on a site: check whether you blocked that domain under Computer Use → Manage.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the ChatGPT Chrome extension free?
Yes, the extension itself is free, and OpenAI says it is available on all ChatGPT plans. Whether free accounts get Work mode’s tab control during the rollout is not confirmed.
Can ChatGPT read all my tabs?
It can read the open tabs in the profile where it is installed, when you ask it to. It cannot reach other profiles. Browsing history access always asks for permission.
Does it work without the desktop app?
Chat mode (side chat and right-click Ask ChatGPT) works from the browser. Work mode tasks run through the ChatGPT desktop app’s Computer Use on Windows or macOS.
Is it safe to use ChatGPT for Chrome with online banking?
I would not. Decline banking sites and add them to the blocklist. Prompt injection is not a solved problem for any browser agent.
What happened to ChatGPT Atlas?
OpenAI discontinued the Atlas browser on July 9, 2026 and moved its agent browsing into ChatGPT Work, which is what this extension connects to.
Which model powers it?
OpenAI has not said. The July 2026 Work agent was described as built on GPT-5.6, and The Decoder ties the extension’s Computer Use to GPT-6 Astra, but neither is officially confirmed for the extension.
Final Thoughts
ChatGPT for Chrome is the moment browser agents went mainstream. Reading tabs and comparing pages is genuinely useful and low risk, so turn on Chat mode freely. Work mode is powerful, but it acts with your logins, so give it its own browser profile, start every new site with Allow once, and keep the final click for yourself.
If you like AI agents that do the clicking for you, see my guide to Comfy Agent, which builds and fixes ComfyUI workflows from plain English. And if you run a WordPress site, read my PHP2Shell WordPress fix guide; the AI-discovered PHP flaw is being exploited right now.
