Pilot advertisers inside ChatGPT now have access to cost-per-click pricing, a billing structure that charges only when a user clicks an ad rather than levying a flat fee across every thousand views. Bids are set between $3 and $5 per click, a range visible in ads manager screenshots that Digiday obtained and confirmed.
The move expands ChatGPT's advertising model beyond its original CPM structure. Launching on a CPM model lowered the operational bar: without click-tracking infrastructure to build out, OpenAI could bring brand advertisers onto the platform more quickly despite its limited measurement capabilities. Advertisers focused on performance outcomes — a segment that drives most digital ad dollars — have stayed on the sidelines of the pilot, unwilling to buy on an impression basis. CPC pricing opens the channel to that buyer category.
The shift also reflects falling impression prices. Since the pilot launched in February 2026, the cost per thousand impressions has slid from an opening rate of $60 down to roughly $25 in some transactions, Search Engine Journal reports. Entry costs have come down as well — the floor for campaign commitments dropped from a quarter-million dollars to $50,000 — and a self-serve ads manager has been quietly rolled out to select participants, giving them real-time visibility into impression and click data.
Gartner VP analyst Nicole Greene told Digiday the shift to CPC gives buyers a consistent basis for measuring OpenAI's performance against the rest of their media mix. "In a world where everything is changing due to AI tech and consumer behaviors, this consistent measurement will help advertisers justify reallocation of spend to OpenAI," she said.
Moving to CPC means ChatGPT is now competing on ground where Google $GOOGL Search has spent years establishing dominance. Google's auction infrastructure factors in intent signals, quality scores, competitive pressure, and retargeting history to set the price of each click. A key question for ChatGPT advertisers is where its clicks rank on intent value. Ad agency Adthena points out that click prices on Meta $META can run three to five times below Google Search rates — a gap that reflects the difference in user mindset rather than any deficiency in the inventory, since people scrolling social feeds are typically not in active shopping mode the way search users are.
OpenAI is also recruiting its first advertising marketing science leader, a role that would own advertiser measurement strategy, attribution models, incrementality testing, and media mix modeling. Externally, the role calls for building out relationships with independent measurement vendors and clean-room providers to make it easier for advertisers to benchmark OpenAI against the rest of their spending.
OpenAI did not respond to Digiday's request for comment.