What is ChatGPT-User? AI crawler guide
ChatGPT-User is a crawler or fetcher associated with OpenAI. See source-graded user-agent, robots.txt, verification, and observation guidance.
What is ChatGPT-User?
ChatGPT-User is a documented OpenAI crawler or fetcher. User-triggered OpenAI fetcher for ChatGPT and Custom GPT actions.
Evidence status
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Evidence | Officially documented |
| Lifecycle | Active |
| Purpose | interaction |
| robots.txt posture | partial |
| Source checked | 2026-08-18 |
Documented user-agent
Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko); compatible; ChatGPT-User/1.0; +https://openai.com/bot
ChatGPT-User fires when a real user's question pulls in your page. To know how often ChatGPT reaches for your brand at all, track your brand mentions in ChatGPT.
robots.txt allow example
User-agent: ChatGPT-User Allow: /
robots.txt block example
User-agent: ChatGPT-User Disallow: /
What the rule can and cannot do
Robots.txt expresses an access policy to compliant automated crawlers. It does not authenticate the sender, remove content already collected, or guarantee that a model will use or not use content.
How to verify a request
- Match the complete documented user-agent where one exists. A match is only a clue.
- Use the operator-published check: Published IP ranges.
- Keep the observed request, operator documentation, and any inference as separate fields.
Observed in Trakkr connected-site data
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Matching signature | ChatGPT-User |
| Classified requests | 1192464 |
| Sites in sample | 85 |
| Window | 2026-07-18 through 2026-08-17 |
| Method | Finalized daily crawler summaries from connected Trakkr sites, grouped by the crawler signature detected in each request. |
| Limits | This is a connected-site sample, not a representative sample of the web. A matching user-agent or signature does not prove that the named operator sent the request. Counts describe classified request signatures, not market share or unique pages crawled. |
JavaScript behavior
The cited operator material does not verify JavaScript rendering. Serve useful HTML before client-side JavaScript where possible.
Related bots
- Google-GeminiNotebook: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- Perplexity-User: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- Kimi-User: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- MistralAI-User: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- Amzn-User: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- ChatGPT Agent: Another OpenAI live fetcher to compare.
- Meta-ExternalFetcher: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- Claude-User: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- Google-Agent: Also tracked as a live fetcher.
- ChatGPT-User: ChatGPT-User is the glossary definition behind this crawler guide.
- ChatGPT: ChatGPT-User gives crawler context for ChatGPT.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is ChatGPT-User?
ChatGPT-User is a officially documented crawler or fetcher record associated with OpenAI.
What user-agent does ChatGPT-User use?
Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko); compatible; ChatGPT-User/1.0; +https://openai.com/bot. Check the evidence status before attributing a matching request.
Can ChatGPT-User be blocked in robots.txt?
The record identifies ChatGPT-User as the token to review. Robots.txt is a request policy, not proof of model use or non-use.
How can I verify a ChatGPT-User request?
Start with the full user-agent, then use published ip ranges from the operator. A user-agent match alone is not proof.
Data & Sources
- OpenAI documentation - Primary source for ChatGPT-User crawler details.
- ChatGPT-User verification: Published IP ranges - Verification information published for ChatGPT-User.