Advertising

Advertising in ChatGPT: how it works and who it makes sense for

What ChatGPT ads are, who sees them, how targeting works in the EU and Slovenia, how to measure them and which businesses they suit (as of 2 Nov 2026).

Author:: Tim Blažič
Published:: 2 November 2026
7 min read: 7 min read
Slovensko: SL →

ChatGPT ads are paid, clearly labelled ads shown below an answer when the topic of the conversation matches what you offer. Since 24 August 2026 they have also been shown in Slovenia and other European countries, to users on the Free and Go plans. In the EU they are currently based on the conversation itself, not on a personal profile of the user (as of 2 November 2026). They make the most sense for businesses whose customers ask for advice and compare options before they buy.

What ChatGPT ads are

OpenAI set out its plans for advertising on 16 January 2026, and testing began in the US on 9 February 2026. Canada, Australia, the UK, Japan and other markets followed. According to Digiday, ads started serving in 31 European countries on 24 August 2026. Industry sources summarising OpenAI's Help Center list Slovenia among them. The same sources report self-serve access through Ads Manager (ads.openai.com) for these markets from 31 August 2026.

The ad appears below the answer, separated from it and labelled as an ad. It consists of:

the business name and icon;
a headline (up to 50 characters, according to OpenAI's documentation);
a short description (up to 100 characters);
an image;
a link to your website.

OpenAI states that ads do not influence the answer and that advertisers do not see conversations or users' personal details, only aggregate figures.

Who sees them and who does not

According to OpenAI (as of 2 November 2026):

ads may be shown to users on the Free and Go plans;
Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu subscribers do not see ads;
ads are not shown to accounts that OpenAI identifies as belonging to under-18s;
ads do not appear next to sensitive topics such as personal health, mental health and politics.

Reports of ads being shown to logged-out users appeared in autumn 2026, but OpenAI has not officially confirmed them. When planning reach, count mainly on logged-in Free and Go users.

How targeting works: hints instead of keywords

With Google Ads you choose keywords. ChatGPT has none. Instead, the advertiser writes context hints, which OpenAI's documentation describes as free-form descriptions of when your ad might be useful. For a heat pump installer, that could be "an owner of an older house comparing heating options and worried about installation costs". Hints guide delivery, but they do not guarantee that your ad will appear in a given conversation.

You can also target by country or region and by platform (app or browser).

Europe has an important limitation. According to OpenAI's documentation, personalised ads are not yet available in the EEA or Switzerland, so custom audiences (such as a list of existing customers) do not work there either. The ad is chosen based on the current conversation. In practice, the quality of your hints and ads matters more than audience settings.

What it costs and how you pay

In Ads Manager you choose a campaign objective: impressions, clicks or conversions. Depending on that, you pay:

per thousand impressions (CPM), or
per click (CPC); campaigns optimised for conversions are also billed per click.

OpenAI's documentation says the minimum daily budget depends on the account currency, and OpenAI does not publish an official euro figure. Because prices on a new channel are still unsettled, we recommend starting with a test budget you can spend without pressure and deciding only after a few weeks of data.

Before the first campaign, OpenAI reviews the business, the ads and the landing page. There is no fixed timeline for this review.

Who is allowed to advertise

The rules are still changing. In summary, based on OpenAI's ad policies and trade press coverage (as of 2 November 2026):

prohibited: gambling, alcohol, tobacco and drugs, dating and adult content, political ads and misleading claims;
restricted, case by case: financial and healthcare services; legal services are excluded for most advertisers;
usually suitable: online shops, local services and trades, tourism, software, education, home and construction.

Before setting a budget, always check first whether your industry is allowed to advertise at all.

ChatGPT ads, Google Ads and GEO

	ChatGPT ads	Google Ads	GEO
What it is	paid ad below the answer	paid ad in search and other Google placements	unpaid mention in the AI answer itself
Targeting	context hints, country	keywords, location, audiences	content, structure and reputation of your site
Personalised targeting in the EU	not yet available	yes, with consent	not applicable
Payment	per impression or click	mostly per click	work on content, no pay per click
Time to effect	days after approval	days	months
Tool maturity	new, changing fast	mature	measurement is partial

Google catches a short query such as "heat pump price". ChatGPT gets a longer description of the problem. GEO affects whether ChatGPT mentions you in the answer itself, not just below it. The three approaches complement each other. We compared Google and Meta in Google or Facebook ads, and organic AI visibility is covered on our GEO optimisation page.

Who it makes sense for

ChatGPT ads make the most sense when:

customers ask for advice before buying (equipment, installations, travel, courses, software);
the decision is valuable enough that one click can turn into business;
you have a good landing page that answers the same question as the ad;
you already track enquiries and can compare the channel with Google or Meta.

They make less sense when your industry is restricted, when the budget is so small that a few weeks produce no useful data, or when your site does not track forms and calls.

How to measure results

Without measurement you cannot tell whether the channel works. The setup should include:

UTM parameters on every link, so ad visits are separated from organic visits from ChatGPT;
GA4 with goals for forms, calls and purchases;
the OpenAI Pixel and, where possible, the Conversions API, which OpenAI's documentation describes as more reliable than the pixel alone;
cost per enquiry or sale as the headline figure, not just cost per click.

Clicks without enquiries are often a website problem rather than a channel problem. More on that in Why ads bring clicks but no enquiries.

Risks and unknowns

The channel is new. Rules, formats and prices change from month to month.
Limited targeting in the EU. Without personalised ads, reach is less precise than elsewhere.
Little benchmark data. There is no public, verifiable data yet on returns for small European businesses.
Review without a deadline. Approval of an account or an ad can take time.
User trust. Some users are wary of ads inside an assistant, so ads need to be factual.

Frequently asked questions

Are ChatGPT ads available in Slovenia?

Yes. According to sources summarising OpenAI's Help Center, Slovenia is one of 31 European markets where ads have been served since 24 August 2026, with self-serve access since 31 August 2026 (as of 2 November 2026).

Does the ad influence ChatGPT's answer?

OpenAI says it does not. The ad is shown below the answer, separated and labelled. Advertisers do not see the content of conversations.

Can I target my existing customers?

Not in the EEA or Switzerland for now. Custom audiences are not supported there because personalised ads are not yet available.

Does this replace Google Ads?

No. It is an additional channel. It is worth testing alongside Google and comparing channels by cost per enquiry.

Is this the same as GEO?

No. GEO earns unpaid mentions in the answer itself, while ads are paid and shown below the answer.

How we can help

Our ChatGPT ads management costs from €100/month and covers the industry check, account setup, context hints, ads, tracking and regular reports. The ad budget is paid to OpenAI separately. Find out more on the ChatGPT ads page. If you want to know whether the channel suits your industry, get in touch via our contact form.

Sources

OpenAI, Our approach to advertising and expanding access, 16 January 2026, accessed 2 November 2026.
OpenAI, ChatGPT Ads expands across Europe, August 2026, accessed 2 November 2026.
OpenAI Help Center, Ads in ChatGPT, accessed 2 November 2026.
OpenAI, Ad policies, accessed 2 November 2026.
OpenAI for developers, Custom Audiences, Bidding & Budgets, Ads API: Ads, Ads API: Ad Groups, Conversion-Optimized Campaigns, accessed 2 November 2026.
Digiday, OpenAI takes ChatGPT ads into Europe, 19 August 2026, accessed 2 November 2026.
Axios, OpenAI brings ads to ChatGPT Go and Free tiers, 9 February 2026, accessed 2 November 2026.
Search Engine Land, ChatGPT ads expand to logged-out users, accessed 2 November 2026.

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