ChatGPT Connectors in 2026: Apps, Plugins and MCP Servers
ChatGPT connectors are now apps inside Plugins. How to add one, how to add a custom MCP server without developer mode, and what each plan allows.
Quick answer
ChatGPT connectors are now called apps, and you add them from Settings → Plugins. Built-in apps like Gmail and Slack install in a few clicks. For a tool that isn't listed, Plus and higher plans can add a custom MCP server from the Plugins page, without turning on developer mode. On personal plans, custom servers can read but not act.
Questions this page answers
- What are ChatGPT connectors called now?
- How do you add an app to ChatGPT?
- Which ChatGPT plans can add which tools?
- Do you still need developer mode?
- How do you add a custom MCP server, on the web or the desktop app?
- How do you connect ChatGPT to thousands of apps at once?
Checked against OpenAI's own help pages on November 5, 2026.
| Way to add tools | What you add | Plans | Can it act (send, update, create)? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Built-in app | An app from the Plugins directory (Gmail, Drive, Slack, Canva…) | Every plan can browse and use plugins; some apps need a paid plan | Some apps can, after you approve each action |
| Custom MCP server | A web address for a connector you or a vendor run | Plus and above (details below) | Business and Enterprise/Edu only. Personal plans: read and fetch |
| Router | One custom MCP server that reaches thousands of apps | Same as custom MCP | Same as custom MCP |
What are ChatGPT connectors called now?
They are called apps, and they live inside Plugins. OpenAI's help center tells you to "open Settings > Plugins, and select the app or the plugin that includes it," and notes that very old phone versions may still show "Apps".
That is why searches for connectors feel confusing. The word moved twice:
- Connectors was the old name for linking ChatGPT to an account like Google Drive.
- Apps is the current name for the same thing: one service, connected.
- Plugins is the 2026 container that holds apps, plus skills (saved instructions) and templates.
The ChatGPT "plugins" you may remember from 2023 were a different feature, shut down in 2024. Nothing called a plugin today is that old store.
What is the difference between an app, a plugin and an MCP server?
An app connects ChatGPT to one service. A plugin bundles one or more apps and skills for a job. An MCP server is the connector program underneath, which hands ChatGPT a list of tools it can call.
OpenAI's plugins guide puts it this way: "An app connects ChatGPT to an external service… A plugin packages capabilities into a workflow and can include one or more apps, skills, or both."
You only meet the term MCP (Model Context Protocol, the shared standard most AI tools now use for connectors) when you add something that isn't in the directory. If you want the longer version, here is what MCP is, in plain terms.
How do you add an app to ChatGPT?
Open Settings → Plugins, pick the app, install it and sign in to that account. After that, ask ChatGPT to use it in plain words.
The steps OpenAI lists:
- Open Settings → Plugins and select the app, or the plugin that includes it.
- Select Install plugin if you see it.
- Select Connect if prompted.
- Sign in to the account that already has the files or messages you want.
- Review the permissions it asks for and approve.
Then try a request like "Find my project brief in Google Drive and summarize the next steps." You can also type @ and pick the app, or use the + button in the message box.
ChatGPT may ask before it reads something or takes an action. In Work, some apps can also start a task when something happens: a new Gmail message, a new Slack channel message, or GitHub pull request activity.
Which ChatGPT plans can add which tools?
Every plan can browse and use the Plugins directory. Making your own plugins needs Go or above. Custom MCP servers need Plus or above, and only Business and Enterprise/Edu can use their write actions.
| Free | Go | Plus | Pro | Business / Enterprise / Edu | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Discover and use plugins | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (admin decides which) |
| Create and share plugins | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Custom MCP servers | Not listed | Not listed | See note | Read and fetch only | Full, including write actions |
| Custom servers on mobile | No | No | No | No | No (web only) |
Sources: chatgpt.com/pricing and OpenAI's custom MCP help page, both read November 5, 2026.
The Plus note, honestly. OpenAI's pricing page lists "Developer mode (beta)" for Plus and Pro, and its help page says Pro "can connect custom MCP servers with read/fetch permissions." The help page doesn't say what Plus gets. Expect read-only at best, and check the Plugins page in your own account.
If you are deciding whether to pay at all, here is whether Plus is worth it for you.
Do you still need developer mode?
No, not in the current Plugins flow. OpenAI's help page says: "add a custom MCP server directly from Plugins. You don't need to turn on Developer Mode first." You accept a risk warning for each server instead.
Most tutorials, videos and even Google's AI answer still say to open Settings → Connectors → Advanced and flip a developer mode switch. That was the older route. If your settings don't show a Connectors page, that's why.
The pricing page still lists developer mode as a beta feature, so you may see the name, but you don't need it to add a server.
How do you add a custom MCP server to ChatGPT?
On the web, go to Plugins, choose Add custom MCP server, paste the server's web address and sign in. The server has to be reachable on the public internet over HTTPS.
The steps from OpenAI's custom MCP help page:
- Go to Plugins.
- Select the + button, then Add custom MCP server.
- Enter a name and, if you like, a description.
- Under Connection, paste the server's HTTPS address (it usually ends in
/mcp), or choose Tunnel for a private one. - Set up sign-in for the server.
- Read the risk warning and tick I understand and want to continue.
- Select Create as a plugin, then check the tools it found.
Most vendor servers use a sign-in pop-up rather than a key you paste. You approve access once on their site and ChatGPT keeps the connection.
A server on your own computer. ChatGPT on the web can't reach it directly. OpenAI's answer is a Secure MCP Tunnel, or the desktop app.
The desktop app. It has its own list under Settings → MCP servers → Add server. It can run a local program (STDIO) or connect to an address (Streamable HTTP), then you restart it.
OpenAI says this list is shared with Codex, its coding tool, so a server added in one shows up in the other. Details are in OpenAI's desktop MCP docs. If you also use Claude, here is the same setup in Claude Code.
What we tested. On November 5, 2026 we called a public MCP server (DeepWiki) directly: it listed its three tools and answered a request without any sign-in.
We also added two servers through Codex, whose settings OpenAI says the desktop app shares: the no-sign-in server saved as ready, and treg started its sign-in flow. We did not click through ChatGPT's web Plugins screen, so those steps are OpenAI's, not ours.
How do you connect ChatGPT to thousands of apps at once?
Add one router. A router is a single custom MCP server that reaches a whole catalogue of apps or data, so ChatGPT gets thousands of tools from one connection.
| Router | What it reaches (its own figures) | How you pay |
|---|---|---|
| Zapier MCP, for automations | 9,000+ apps | Included in Zapier plans; each tool call uses two tasks |
| Pipedream, for app connections | 3,000+ apps | Free for your own use |
| treg, for paid data and tools | 4,100+ endpoints from 126 providers | Pay per call; $1.00 free to start |
| Composio, for app connections | 1,000+ integrations | See Composio's pricing |
Figures from each company's own page, November 5, 2026.
Two catches. A router is still a custom MCP server, so the plan rules above apply: on a personal plan it can look things up but not send or update. And each call happens with the accounts you connect inside the router, so you set up permissions in two places.
Some tools in this space, such as Monid, install as a command-line tool for coding agents like Codex or Claude Code. Those don't plug into ChatGPT chat.
Is it safe to connect your accounts?
An app only sees what your own account can see, and ChatGPT may ask before it changes anything. The bigger question for most people is training.
What OpenAI says:
- A plugin "cannot use an app to access content outside the permissions granted to the relevant app connection."
- For write actions, ChatGPT "may ask for confirmation," and some risky actions are blocked.
- On Free, Plus, Go and Pro, "OpenAI may use information accessed from apps to train our models if your 'Improve the model for everyone' setting is on."
So turn that setting off if you connect a work inbox. More on whether ChatGPT trains on your data, by plan.
What if you want ChatGPT to act, not just read?
Then the plan table is the problem. On a personal ChatGPT plan, the built-in apps can take some approved actions, but anything you add yourself can only read. Getting write actions on your own tools means a Business workspace and an admin to set it up.
Bento starts from the other end. Its agents already work in Gmail, Slack, Notion and thousands more apps, with nothing to set up: no server address, no developer settings, no tier that turns off the "do it" half. You ask for the result, "check my inbox for invoices and log them in my sheet," and the agent does the steps.
It is one subscription that also makes the posts, images, videos and voiceovers, and Bento always picks the best AI for the job. Starter is $20 a month, the same as Plus, with a 7-day free trial and your whole team at no extra cost per person. See plans and what's included.
When not to switch: if you only want ChatGPT to read your Drive or calendar, the built-in app already does that on your current plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does ChatGPT Free have connectors?
Yes. OpenAI's pricing page lists "Discover & use Plugins" on Free, so you can install apps from the directory. Some individual apps need a paid plan, and custom MCP servers aren't listed for Free.
Can I add a custom MCP server on my phone?
No. OpenAI says custom MCP servers are "web only." Add it on the web, then use it from any device where that plugin is supported.
Can ChatGPT use an MCP server running on my laptop?
Not from the web directly. Use OpenAI's Secure MCP Tunnel, or add it in the desktop app under Settings → MCP servers, which can run a local program.
Why can't my custom connector send email or update records?
OpenAI says Pro gets read and fetch permissions only on custom servers, and doesn't spell out Plus. Write actions on custom servers are limited to Business and Enterprise/Edu workspaces, where an admin sets them up.
Why don't I see Connectors in my settings?
It moved. Look under Settings → Plugins. Old guides that send you to Connectors → Advanced → Developer mode describe the older layout.
