ChatGPT Shopping
Product search and shopping features built directly into ChatGPT.
What is ChatGPT Shopping?
ChatGPT Shopping refers to product search and shopping features built directly into ChatGPT: when a question suggests shopping intent, ChatGPT can show product cards with images, prices, and details, and link out to places to buy, alongside its normal conversational answer. For example, asking "what's a good espresso machine under $300" can return a curated set of product options rather than just a text description. OpenAI's help center calls this capability "Shopping with ChatGPT Search."
Why it matters
ChatGPT Shopping has gone through a notable pivot: OpenAI initially paired product discovery with in-chat purchase completion via Instant Checkout (launched September 29, 2025), but in March 2026 it split the two apart, deciding to focus ChatGPT's own capabilities on discovery (letting users search by uploading images or describing needs and constraints, and comparing options visually) while routing the actual purchase to retailer-built apps inside ChatGPT (using OpenAI's Apps SDK) such as Walmart's Sparky-powered app, which handles account linking, loyalty, and its own checkout. As of mid-2026, OpenAI has reported ChatGPT Shopping processing tens of millions of shopping-related queries per day, and product discovery, not autonomous checkout, is now positioned as the feature's core value proposition, with the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) continuing to power the underlying product-discovery data exchange with participating retailers.