# ChatGPT Work

> ChatGPT's agent for multi-step tasks: it plans, works through the steps across files and apps, and hands you a finished document, sheet, deck, report, or Site.

**Category:** ChatGPT

**Work is the mode where ChatGPT does the job, not just answers.** You describe an outcome, it makes a plan, reads what it needs, works through many steps, asks you to approve important actions, and delivers a finished file.

On web and mobile, Work runs **in the cloud** and can't reach files on your computer. In the **desktop app** it can work in a local folder you open for it. Grant access only to the files a task needs. Work uses more of your allowance than Chat, and can be started on a schedule or by an event with a [scheduled task](/glossary#chatgpt-scheduled-task).

## At work

Give Work a folder with twelve supplier quotes and ask for a comparison table in Excel. Approve what it asks, then check the numbers.

## Often confused with

Chat. Chat is quick back-and-forth; Work takes on a whole task and hands back a deliverable.

## Related terms

- Codex
- Prompt injection
- Scheduled task (ChatGPT)

## See it in a lesson

[ChatGPT Work: tasks on your files](/en/learn/chatgpt/working-smart/chatgpt-work-on-your-files)

## Further reading

- [ChatGPT Work and Codex](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001275-chatgpt-work-and-codex): Where Work runs, approvals, and usage.
- [ChatGPT is now a partner for your most ambitious work](https://openai.com/index/chatgpt-for-your-most-ambitious-work/): OpenAI's launch post.
- [Moving to the new ChatGPT desktop app](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001276-moving-to-the-new-chatgpt-desktop-app): Chat, Work, and Codex in one app.

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Last updated: 14/10/2026  
Source: Rollo Academy glossary