GPT-5 Has Officially Launched, but You Might Need to Log Out to See It in Your Account

OpenAI officially released GPT-5 on August 7, 2025, and it’s already stirring discussion, not just about its features, but even about the way it’s being presented. A viral tweet by Nilesh Trivedi pointed out a curious chart from OpenAI’s presentation showing GPT-5 performance, questioning, “WTH is going on with this chart axis?” The visual in question shows GPT-5’s “thinking” and “non-thinking” performance on SWE-bench Verified benchmarks, but the axis scaling appears to exaggerate differences visually. Whether it’s intentional marketing flair or a harmless mistake, the buzz has undeniably amplified attention around the launch.

But beyond the charts and headlines, a lot of people are asking: where is GPT-5 in my account?

Here’s what you need to know.

GPT-5 is Released and Available, But Not Always Instantly Visible

OpenAI has made GPT-5 broadly available across its platforms:

• ChatGPT Free, Plus, and Pro users all have access
• Rollout prioritization and tiered usage still apply
• Some users may not immediately see GPT-5 in their account, even though it’s there

If you’re not seeing GPT-5 yet in your ChatGPT model switcher, you’re not alone. Some users are reporting that GPT-5 doesn’t show up automatically in their account, even after refreshing. Fortunately, there’s a very simple fix:

Log out of your ChatGPT account and log back in.

This action seems to trigger the refreshed model access for many users. After logging back in, GPT-5 typically appears either as the default or in your list of selectable models.

Why Some Users Can’t Access GPT-5 (Yet)

While OpenAI has made GPT-5 technically available to all users, that doesn’t mean everyone gets equal access on day one. Here’s why you might be having trouble:

• Free tier usage is throttled: Free-tier users can access GPT-5 but may encounter wait times, message limits, or degraded performance during peak hours.
• API access is gated: If you’re trying to access GPT-5 via OpenAI’s API and seeing errors like “The model gpt-5 does not exist or you do not have access to it”, it may mean your account or organization hasn’t been granted API-level permissions yet.
• Pro and Plus tiers have higher limits: These subscription levels get more usage tokens, higher priority access, and fewer delays in new feature rollouts.
• Enterprise and Education rollouts are slower: Some corporate and institutional accounts are still in phased rollout mode, depending on administrator permissions and usage policies.

In short: just because it’s launched doesn’t mean it’s turned on for every user at the same time or with the same capabilities.

What Makes GPT-5 Different?

GPT-5 isn’t just a slightly better chatbot. It’s a leap forward in intelligence, reasoning, and usability.

Some headline features include:

• Multi-step logical reasoning: It can handle more complex, nuanced tasks with fewer hallucinations.
• Multimodal input support: Text, images, voice, and soon, native video processing.
• Variant models for different tasks: Including GPT-5 Mini, GPT-5 Nano, and GPT-5 Chat for different latency, cost, and conversational needs.
• Enhanced coding ability: Especially in tools like GitHub Copilot, where it enables software-on-demand capabilities.
• Safer and more reliable outputs: OpenAI claims GPT-5 is significantly better at avoiding false or misleading results.

In performance terms, OpenAI describes the experience of using GPT-5 as like “having a team of PhD-level experts” at your fingertips.

Best Way to Access GPT-5 Now

If you want to start using GPT-5 with minimal issues:

1. Use ChatGPT on web or mobile: GPT-5 is live across both platforms.
2. Subscribe to ChatGPT Plus or Pro: These plans unlock priority access and higher usage caps.
3. Log out and back in: If you can’t see GPT-5 listed yet, this fixes it for most users.
4. Avoid peak hours: Free users may get delayed or bumped if servers are busy.
5. Double-check your workspace settings (for API users): Admins may need to approve access at the organization level.

One More Thing: Keep an Eye on Visual Presentation

As that viral chart showed, the way GPT-5 performance is communicated matters. Whether it’s misleading axes or selectively bold claims, the early marketing rollout has drawn criticism for hype over substance in some cases. Still, most testers and users agree: GPT-5 feels like a major leap forward.

Expect ongoing UI and access updates as OpenAI continues to tune the rollout. In the meantime, the simplest tip remains the most effective:

Try logging out and back in. GPT-5 might be waiting for you.