ChatGPT training: learn to use it at work

In brief

ChatGPT is OpenAI’s assistant: you write or talk to it in plain language, and it drafts, summarizes, searches the web, reads your files, and creates images. To learn to use it at work, start for free on chatgpt.com with a real task, set your privacy options, then practice three moves: write a complete prompt, attach a file, check the answer.

Where to start

Create your account on chatgpt.com. If your company has a ChatGPT workspace, use your work address: your conversations are better protected there.
Set your privacy options. Profile icon, “Settings,” “Data controls”: turn off “Improve the model for everyone” if you don’t want your conversations used for training.
Make a useful first try. Attach a sales export with no sensitive data and write: “Give me the three trends to remember, in plain sentences. Flag the rows that look abnormal to you and tell me which columns you are relying on.”
Check two figures in your original file before you reuse them.

The rule that makes the difference: a prompt states the context, the reader, the expected result, and the format. Then you correct: shorter, firmer, without this or that point.

What ChatGPT can do at work

ChatGPT has three modes: “Chat” to talk things through, “Work” to hand it a complete job, and “Codex” to produce code. At the office, most of the action happens in the first two.

Write and rephrase. Three lines of notes become a polite customer follow-up, then a more direct version.
Read your files and spreadsheets. A PDF, a Word document, a spreadsheet: it summarizes, answers your questions, and draws charts.
Search the web, all the way to a report. Deep research chains searches together and returns a report with its sources, which you can export to Word or PDF.
Talk out loud, to rehearse an interview or dictate a request.
Create and edit images, for an internal presentation for example.
Work inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Google Sheets, in a panel next to your document.
Hand over a complete job. In “Work” mode, you describe the result: it plans, searches, then returns a document, a spreadsheet, or a presentation that you review.

The details of each feature, with the plan it requires, are on the ChatGPT page.

Plans and prices

Plan	Price	Who it’s for
Free	$0	Getting to know it. Unlimited written conversations; files, images, voice, and deep research with a limit.
Go	$8 per month	Light daily use.
Plus	$20 per month	An employee who uses it every day. “Work” mode, advanced reasoning, no ads.
Pro	From $100 per month	Heavy use, all day long.
Business	$25 per user per month, $20 if billed yearly	A team, from 2 people. Your data is not used to train the AI.
Enterprise	Custom pricing	Large organizations.

Prices checked on October 3, 2026. OpenAI publishes its prices in dollars; on the French App Store, we recorded €7.99 per month for Go and €22.99 for Plus.

Our advice: start for free. Move to Plus the day a limit stops you every week. For company data, ask your employer for a Business plan.

Your data: what to set

Personal plans. Your conversations can be used to train the AI, unless you turn off “Improve the model for everyone.”
Temporary chat. It does not appear in your history, is not used for training, and can be kept for up to 30 days.
Business, Enterprise, and Edu. By default, OpenAI does not use this content for training.
Ads. The Free and Go plans may show them. OpenAI says it does not share your conversations with advertisers.

Whatever the setting, do not paste personal data or confidential documents into a personal account. The right habits are in AI and GDPR at work.

Its limits

It can be confidently wrong: a figure, a date, a quote. Always check what matters.
Custom GPTs are being retired on December 11, 2026, according to OpenAI. Don’t build anything lasting on them.
The pricing page does not put a number on the image and file limits: ChatGPT warns you when you reach them.

Learn ChatGPT with Nova

Nova is subscription software that teaches you to use ChatGPT and the other assistants on your real tasks. You give your job and your level: Nova shows what is possible, then guides you step by step, with the prompt to write, the setting to choose, and the precautions. Use cases are sorted by job, for example for a sales representative or an accountant.

Nova is not ChatGPT and does not replace it: you buy the ChatGPT subscription from OpenAI. Nova costs €19 per month for one person, and from €129 per month for a team. Try the interactive demo or see pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Is ChatGPT free?

Yes, there is a free plan: unlimited written conversations, and a limit on files, images, voice, and deep research. It may show ads. Paid plans start at $8 per month (Go), price checked on October 3, 2026.

Do you need to pay for ChatGPT Plus for work?

Not to get started. The free plan is enough to write, summarize, and try out files. Plus, at $20 per month, becomes useful if a limit blocks you every week or if you want “Work” mode.

Can you put company data into ChatGPT?

Not in a personal account. With the Business or Enterprise plan, OpenAI does not use your content for training by default. Follow your company’s rules and, for personal data, the advice of your data protection officer.

What is the difference between ChatGPT and Microsoft Copilot?

ChatGPT is an assistant that is independent of your office suite. Microsoft 365 Copilot works inside Outlook, Word, Excel, and Teams, with your emails and your files. If your company runs on Microsoft 365, look first at what it has already turned on.

Sources

ChatGPT pricing, OpenAI
Chat, Work, and Codex in ChatGPT, OpenAI
Data controls FAQ, OpenAI
What is ChatGPT Business, OpenAI
Deep research in ChatGPT, OpenAI
Ads in ChatGPT, OpenAI
Custom GPT retirement and migration FAQ, OpenAI
ChatGPT on the App Store (France), Apple

Learn ChatGPT for everyday work