ChatGPT Guide: How to Sign Up for Free in 2026

You have probably heard of ChatGPT by now. It is everywhere. And for good reason.

ChatGPT represents an enormous advancement in AI text generators. It can write, rewrite, and continue texts on command. It remembers the chat history. It can ask follow-up questions. And it works in English, German, and dozens of other languages.

The best part:

You can use ChatGPT for free. I'll show you how to do that in this article (don't worry, it's dead simple and takes about 3 minutes).

1. Use Guest Mode or Create an Account

You can first try ChatGPT in guest mode. To save chats and use account-specific features, create an account at OpenAI. To do this, click on this link, which will take you to the ChatGPT login page.

Once there, choose "Log in or sign up" or one of the sign-up methods offered.

The available options can change, so follow the steps ChatGPT presents to you at that time.

2. Complete Sign-up

ChatGPT opens after you sign in. A phone number is not required for a new ChatGPT account. According to the OpenAI Help Center, it is required only when you create your first API key.

3. Use ChatGPT

The interface and available features can look different depending on your account and the time you sign in. Do not share sensitive information, and verify important answers against reliable sources.

To start a new chat with ChatGPT, you can either click "New chat" in the top left or enter your questions or commands to ChatGPT in the input field at the bottom:

By the way:

ChatGPT also understands German. If you give the chatbot a German question or command, it will respond in German.

Tell ChatGPT the length, language, and content you need. Here, it explains a language model in three short sentences: