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How to gift ChatGPT credits, step by step

August 31, 2026

Buy from a ChatGPT Plus or Pro personal account on the web, pick an amount, check out, then share the one-time claim link. The recipient opens it, signs in to an eligible personal account, and redeems. Two clocks apply: the link expires unclaimed after 30 days, and redeemed credits expire 12 months later. A nixm gift code has neither.

Before you start: can your account buy one?

This trips people up first. Per OpenAI's help documentation, gift purchases work from a ChatGPT Plus or Pro personal account, or from the Personal workspace attached to a ChatGPT Business account. A Free or Go account cannot buy a gift, though it can receive one. A Business or Enterprise workspace can do neither. Purchases happen on the web only, and OpenAI notes the feature is rolling out gradually, so it may not have reached your account yet.

Buying it

Switch to an eligible account or workspace first — if you use Business, move to the Personal workspace before you start. Open the gifting flow in ChatGPT on the web, choose an amount, and complete checkout. You are charged at checkout, and OpenAI notes that amounts and purchase limits may vary during the rollout.

At delivery you have two options: enter the recipient's email with an optional message and let OpenAI send the link, or copy the link and pass it on yourself. Either way, a confirmation email arrives at your own address and contains the claim link — that email is your record of the purchase.

Treat the claim link like a password

This is the part worth slowing down on. OpenAI states plainly that adding a recipient email does not reserve the gift for that address and does not require the recipient to use it when signing in. Anyone holding the complete link may be able to redeem it. Share it through a private channel and do not post it anywhere public.

And you cannot take it back. There is no cancel button on a generated link — your options are to wait out the 30-day expiry for an automatic refund, or, if your own account is eligible to receive credits, redeem it yourself.

Redeeming it

The recipient opens the link, signs in to an eligible Free, Go, Plus or Pro personal account (or creates one), makes sure the right personal account or Personal workspace is selected, and confirms. A link can only be redeemed once. The recipient's account must use the same billing currency as the purchase — OpenAI's support pages say a gift cannot be promised a currency conversion.

The two clocks

Unclaimed, the link expires after 30 days and the purchase is refunded to the original payment method. Redeemed, the credits expire 12 months after the redemption date and unused credits do not roll over. So the practical window is: give it within a month, and make sure they will use it within a year.

Worth knowing too that your existing credit balance is not part of any of this — OpenAI is explicit that existing balances are non-transferable and cannot be resold or gifted. A gift is always a fresh purchase.

If the option is not showing

Check three things before assuming something is broken: that you are on the web rather than a mobile app, that you are on a Plus or Pro personal account rather than Free, Go, Business or Enterprise, and that the Personal workspace is selected if you use Business. If it still is not there, gifting has not reached your account yet.

The version with no clocks at all

If the countdowns are the part you do not like, a nixm gift code works the way gift cards used to: CA$24.99 buys 100 chat credits and 5 cinematic video credits with sound, the code never expires while it waits to be given, and the credits never expire once redeemed. No claim window, no usage year, no currency to match. More on what you can and cannot gift, and on how the expiry actually works.

frequently asked

Who can buy a ChatGPT gift?

Per OpenAI, ChatGPT Plus and Pro personal accounts, and the Personal workspace attached to a Business account. Free and Go accounts can redeem but not buy; Business and Enterprise workspaces can do neither.

Where do I buy it?

In ChatGPT on the web. OpenAI states gift purchases are web-only and are rolling out gradually, so the option may not be visible on your account yet.

Does entering the recipient's email reserve the gift?

No. OpenAI states the email helps deliver the gift but does not bind the link to that address — anyone with the complete link may be able to redeem it.

Can I cancel a gift link?

No. You can wait 30 days for it to expire and refund automatically, or redeem it yourself if your account is eligible to receive credits.

How long does the recipient have to claim it?

30 days. After that the link expires and the purchase is refunded to the original payment method.

How long do the credits last once redeemed?

12 months from the redemption date, per OpenAI. Unused credits do not roll over.

Is there a gift code that does not expire?

Yes — a nixm gift code never expires while it waits to be given, and the credits never expire once redeemed.

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