The Verdict
✓ Ideal For
- Users wanting text, image, voice, and video in one platform
- Creative professionals (DALL-E, Sora access)
- Developers building with the GPT ecosystem
- Teams using custom GPTs and plugins
- Power users willing to pay for Pro ($200/mo)
✗ Not Ideal For
- Privacy-conscious users (data practices less clear)
- Budget users (Pro tier very expensive)
- Tasks requiring maximum reasoning depth
- Users uncomfortable with OpenAI's corporate direction
💪 Top Strengths
- Multimodal powerhouse: Text, images (DALL-E), voice, video (Sora), code (Codex) in one platform
- Ecosystem: Custom GPTs, plugins, enterprise integrations
- Voice mode: Natural real-time conversation capability
- Codex agent: Autonomous coding assistant for complex tasks
⚠️ Top Weaknesses
- Confusing tiers: Free/Go/Plus/Pro is hard to navigate
- Pro is expensive: $200/mo for "unlimited" access
- Privacy concerns: Less transparent than Anthropic on data use
- Context limitations: 32K for Plus vs Claude's 200K
💡 What the marketing page doesn't tell you
OpenAI introduced a "Go" tier between Free and Plus, fragmenting the product further. The Plus plan ($20/mo) now feels limited compared to before—advanced reasoning models and expanded features are increasingly gated to Pro ($200/mo). The "unlimited" in Pro is subject to "abuse guardrails" that aren't clearly defined.
Deep Dive Analysis
Core AI Performance — 92/100↓
GPT-5.2 represents a significant leap in capability:
- General knowledge: 94% accuracy on our benchmark suite
- Coding: 91% on code generation, excellent multi-language support
- Reasoning: 89% on complex analytical tasks (slightly behind Claude)
- Image understanding: Industry-leading vision capabilities
- Multimodal integration: Seamless text-to-image, voice, video
The GPT-5.2 Thinking model adds chain-of-thought reasoning but requires Plus or higher.
Data Privacy & Security — 78/100↓
OpenAI's privacy practices have improved but remain less transparent than competitors:
SOC 2 Type II certified
Enterprise: Data not used for training
Consumer plans: Unclear training data practices
Memory feature stores conversation context (can disable)
Data retention policies less specific than Anthropic
Pricing Analysis
| Tier | Price | What You Get | Hidden Costs? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | Limited GPT-5.2, basic features | Data may train models |
| Go | ~$10/mo | More messages, longer memory | No advanced reasoning |
| Plus | $20/mo | Advanced reasoning, Codex, DALL-E, Sora | Still has limits |
| Pro | $200/mo | "Unlimited" GPT-5.2 Pro, max features | Abuse guardrails apply |
| Enterprise | Custom | Admin controls, no training, compliance | Annual commitment |
Value Assessment: Plus at $20/mo is good value for multimodal use. Pro at $200/mo is 10x Claude's equivalent—worth it only for heavy professional use.
How We Tested
- Duration: 30 days (Jan-Feb 2026)
- Plans tested: Free, Plus ($20), Pro ($200)
- Test scenarios: 500+ prompts, image generation, voice, code
- Real-world use: Daily productivity, creative work, development
Alternatives to Consider
Claude
89
Better reasoning, clearer privacy
Gemini
82
Google ecosystem, competitive
Perplexity
80
Better for research/search
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Review Change Log
Feb 20, 2026Initial review published. Score: 87/100