OpenAI Announces: Free Users Can Now Chat with ChatGPT Without Text Limits

OpenAI announced on Thursday (6th) that with the latest update to its popular AI application ChatGPT, free users will no longer face limits on text-based interactions with the chatbot.

The default model for free users will also be updated to GPT-5.6 Luna. Despite being a lightweight version within the GPT-5.6 series, Luna outperforms the current default model for free users, GPT-5.5 Instant.

Free users and subscribers to the $8 monthly Go plan will also gain access to a new 'Think' button, designed to allow the AI to spend more time reasoning and thereby provide better answers to complex questions.

While text-based chatting is now effectively 'unlimited and free,' features that consume more computing power—such as file uploads, image generation, and voice conversations—will still be subject to usage limits. These updates are expected to roll out starting next week.

OpenAI's latest move may reflect an emerging trend in AI usage—increasing focus on leveraging the most powerful models for reasoning within real-world workflows, while making basic text chat, which consumes less compute, freely accessible.

At the end of last month, OpenAI announced price reductions for two models in the GPT-5.6 family. GPT-5.6 Luna saw an 80% price cut, while GPT-5.6 Terra was reduced by 20%. These price changes come just three weeks after the models were launched.

Luna is the fastest and most cost-efficient version in the GPT-5.6 lineup, with the latest pricing dropping to $0.20 per million input tokens and $1.20 per million output tokens—down from $1.00 and $6.00, respectively.

The mid-tier model Terra now costs $2.00 per million input tokens and $12.00 per million output tokens, down from $2.50 and $15.00. The top-tier GPT-5.6 Sol remains unchanged in price at $5.00 and $30.00 per million input and output tokens, respectively.