GPT (ChatGPT) Pricing and How to Use It: How Far Does the Free Orbit Go?

What differs by orbit

3 steps for your first route in the free orbit

Frequently asked questions

A little more detail

What's the difference between GPT and ChatGPT, and what are they used for?

GPT is the name of a series of models made by OpenAI, and the chat window we open is ChatGPT. According to Wikipedia, it is a generative AI chatbot released on November 30, 2022, and it converses through text, voice, and images.

At its core is a large language model (LLM) that learns from a huge amount of text and generates sentences. The sentence you type is a 'prompt', and the answer that comes back is a 'response'. Unlike a search box, it uses the earlier conversation as context, so follow-up requests like "make that last answer shorter" work.

It's useful for writing, translating and summarizing, writing code and finding errors, and brainstorming business ideas. In daily life, that means cutting a long notice down to three lines, drafting an English email, or pasting in an error message and asking what caused it. The App Store description also mentions an advanced voice mode, where you tap the sound-wave icon and talk in real time, which suits practicing a foreign language.

How far does the free plan go, and how much does the paid plan cost?

The short answer: you can start for free by signing up, and if you run out of allowance, you move up to a paid plan. Wikipedia says free users can also use GPT-4o, but only within limits. The Plus, Pro, Team and Enterprise subscriptions raise the usage limits and unlock extra features or models.

For pricing, the App Store app description listed ChatGPT Plus at KRW 29,000 (October 18, 2026). It isn't clear whether this is a monthly amount, or whether the price is the same if you pay on the web. For the other plans, check both the price and the limits on the official pricing page.

Model names and limits change often. The most accurate approach is to sign up and check what's currently available on the in-app guide screen first.

What are the downsides when you actually use it?

The biggest weakness is hallucination: answers that sound plausible but are not true. Wikipedia describes a case where CNBC asked for song lyrics and got made-up lyrics instead of the real ones. The trap is that the sentences read so smoothly that mistakes are hard to notice.

So always check dates, amounts, laws and quotations against the original source. Namuwiki says user data is collected to further train the service, so it's safer not to enter company secrets or personal information such as resident registration numbers.

Wikipedia also reports concerns that it can encourage plagiarism and spread misinformation. We don't recommend copying its output straight into school assignments or reports. It's right to use it as a tool for getting a first draft and to do the final check yourself.

Are there any prompts I can copy and use right away?

If you just say "summarize this," you get a vague answer. Adding a role, a length and a format makes a difference.

First, for organizing a meeting. "Organize the meeting notes below into a three-column table: decisions / owner / deadline. Don't guess anything that isn't in the notes; write 'TBD' instead." Second, for polishing writing. "Rewrite the sentence below in two tones (polite and friendly) with the same meaning. Don't make it longer than the original."

Both prompts include lines such as "don't guess" and "length limit" that stop the AI from filling in gaps on its own. It's the easiest habit for reducing hallucinations. Adding one more line to the same template, "If you don't know, say you don't know," also works well.

Who is it for, and how do you get started?

It's a solid entry-level choice for office workers and students who deal with writing, translation, summaries and code drafts every day, and for people trying AI for the first time. On the other hand, it isn't suited to cases where you must have search results with sources, or to work where even a single wrong answer is a problem (contract review, medical decisions).

According to Wikipedia, after ChatGPT's release, competing services such as Gemini, Claude, Llama, Ernie and Grok appeared. Putting the same question into two of them and comparing the answers is a quick way to find which suits your work. This material has no pricing comparison values for each tool, so we did not rank them.

To start, sign up on the official site; on a smartphone use the App Store app, and on a computer use the desktop download page. The App Store age rating is 12+, and the listing says the app includes ads. Pick one memo you need to handle this week and try summarizing it with the prompts above. This article is based on official guides and public material, not on a long hands-on review, and pricing and features may change.