ChatGPT vs Codex: Side-by-Side Comparison 2026
ChatGPT vs Codex comparison 2026. Side-by-side features, pricing & capabilities.
| Feature | ChatGPT | Codex |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Assistant | Agent |
| Starting Price | Free | Free |
| Model Family | GPT / o-series | GPT / Codex |
| Context Window | 32K (Plus) / 196K (Pro) | 400K |
| Code Completion | ✗ | ✓ |
| Chat | ✓ | ✓ |
| Inline Editing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Agentic Mode | ✗ | ✓ |
| Multi-File Editing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Terminal Commands | ✗ | ✓ |
| Browser Use | ✓ | ✗ |
| Test Generation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Debugging | ✓ | ✓ |
| Refactoring | ✓ | ✓ |
| Code Review | ✓ | ✓ |
| PR Review | ✗ | ✓ |
| Documentation | ✓ | ✓ |
| Image to Code | ✓ | ✗ |
| Voice Input | ✓ | ✗ |
| App Generation | ✗ | ✓ |
| Deployment | ✗ | ✗ |
| Git Integration | ✗ | ✓ |
| Supported IDEs | N/A (standalone) | Codex App, VS Code, CLI |
| Open Source | No | Yes (CLI) |
Pricing verified 2026-02-05. ChatGPT pricing | Codex pricing
Overview
ChatGPT is ai assistant from OpenAI. Codex is ai agent from OpenAI. Both tools are actively maintained as of 2026.
ChatGPT: What You Get
ChatGPT — Conversational AI from OpenAI. General + Coding.
- AI chat
- Test generation
- Debugging
- Code review
Pricing: Free / $8/mo. 6 plans available.
Models: GPT-5.2, GPT-5.2 Thinking, GPT-4o, o1, o1-mini
Codex: What You Get
Codex — AI Coding Agent from OpenAI. App / CLI / IDE.
- Code completions
- AI chat
- Agentic mode
- Multi-file editing
- Terminal commands
- Test generation
- Debugging
- Code review
- Git integration
- App generation
Pricing: Free / $8/mo. 6 plans available.
Models: GPT-5.3-Codex, Codex-mini-latest
Key Differences
- Category: ChatGPT is ai assistant, Codex is ai agent.
- Agentic mode: Codex supports agentic mode; ChatGPT does not.
- Model family: ChatGPT uses GPT / o-series; Codex uses GPT / Codex.
Which Should You Choose?
Choose ChatGPT if you want AI-powered coding assistance. Choose Codex if you want Codex handles multi-step tasks independently. Both tools are strong options — the right choice depends on your workflow and priorities.
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