ChatGPT’s $200 Pro plan is finally coming back, but OpenAI is changing the deal

For nearly three weeks, anyone who wanted ChatGPT’s most expensive individual plan had to wait on the sidelines. OpenAI paused new sign-ups for its $200 Pro tier on September 10 after unprecedented demand for GPT-6 Astra, leaving the $100 Pro option as the highest plan newcomers could actually buy. That wait is about to end, but the returning $200 plan won’t work exactly like the one that disappeared.

OpenAI’s Thibault “Tibo” Sottiaux says new subscriptions to the $200 Pro plan will reopen on September 30. The price stays the same, but OpenAI is changing how it calculates usage. Sottiaux says the new allowance works out to roughly half the “API spend” of the previous $200 plan.

While that sounds like a straight downgrade, OpenAI argues the picture is more complicated. The company recently slashed API pricing with GPT-6 Sol and Luna, meaning each dollar can stretch further as models become cheaper to run. Sottiaux also says OpenAI won’t restore the five-hour usage window on the $200 tier, which would let subscribers burn through their weekly allowance when they need it. More subscription perks that won’t count toward usage will also be announced very soon.

The reopening should finally answer frustrated users who have spent the past couple of weeks wondering when the tier would return. But an even pricier option may be coming soon. TestingCatalog has spotted an unannounced ChatGPT Pro Max tier in the subscription interface, priced at $500 per month before taxes. One version shows $600, including VAT.

So far, its standout promises are “Fastest Work and Codex,” along with maximum memory, 100GB of file storage, access to OpenAI’s most capable models, and early access to new features. TestingCatalog suggests Cerebras’ infrastructure could provide that speed boost, but that connection remains unconfirmed.

For now, Pro Max remains a leak, with no confirmed launch date or usage limits. But with the $200 plan reopening and more subscription announcements expected at the OpenAI DevDay on September 29, its timing feels right.