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Getting started with ChatGPT: desktop or web

Start using ChatGPT from scratch — choosing between the desktop app and the web, signing in, when to use Chat versus Work, and how to write a first prompt that actually returns something usable.

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Platforms

  • ChatGPT desktop app (macOS / Windows / Linux)
  • ChatGPT on the web (chatgpt.com)

What the official documentation says

  • The ChatGPT desktop app is available for macOS, Windows and Linux.

    Quickstart

  • ChatGPT on the web is used by signing in at chatgpt.com, and includes both Chat and ChatGPT Work.

    Quickstart

  • In the desktop app you start a chat, create a project, or open a folder; ChatGPT can read and modify files in the folder you choose.

    Quickstart

  • The documented split is Work for research, analysis and deliverables, Codex for software development with codebase context, and Chat for a quick question.

    Quickstart

  • You may also use Codex with an OpenAI API key, though some features might not be available.

    Quickstart

  • The ChatGPT documentation is published as an llms.txt index, and any documentation page has a Markdown version available by appending .md to its URL.

    ChatGPT documentation index (llms.txt)

The first decision: does ChatGPT need to touch your files?

The usual wrong turn when starting with ChatGPT is not picking the wrong model. It is picking the wrong entry point on day one.

The official Quickstart offers two: the desktop app and the web. What separates them is not a feature count — it is what ChatGPT can reach. The desktop app is described as the place for projects, local files and longer work, and in it you can open a folder outright, after which ChatGPT can read and modify the files inside it. The web is used by signing in at chatgpt.com and includes both Chat and ChatGPT Work.

So the test is short:

  • Your material lives on your disk and you want ChatGPT to read and edit it directly → desktop app.
  • Your material is uploads, links, or connected services → the web is enough.

Get this right and every later configuration decision follows from it.

Chat, Work and Codex are three ways of working, not three products

The switcher in the interface confuses almost everyone at first. The documented split is blunt:

  • Chat — a quick question, an explanation, a short draft.
  • Work — research and analysis, or a finished artifact: a document, a deck, a spreadsheet, a Site.
  • Codex — software development, with codebase context and developer tools.

The practical value of this split is expectation management. Ask Chat to read five sources, compare three options and produce a one-page memo and you will get loose paragraphs, because you chose a mode designed to answer rather than one designed to deliver. The reverse is just as wasteful: switching into Work to ask how to spell a word is a detour with no payoff.

In the desktop app you switch between Work and Chat at the top of the new chat page, above the composer, and select Codex from the ChatGPT dropdown. On the web you get Chat and Work.

Your first prompt: write the acceptance criteria into it

The example prompts in the official Quickstart share a trait worth naming: they do not merely describe a task, they describe the shape of the output.

Its "prepare a decision" example asks ChatGPT to review the reports and notes in a project, compare the options, and create a one-page decision memo with a recommendation, risks, open questions and source links.

That single sentence carries four separate instructions:

  1. what material to use (the reports and notes in this project)
  2. what to do with it (compare the options)
  3. what to produce (a one-page decision memo)
  4. what must be in it (recommendation, risks, open questions, source links)

Point 4 is the one nearly everyone omits on a first attempt. Adding it changes how usable the first draft is.

A habit worth forming early

The ChatGPT documentation is machine-readable by design: the index is published as llms.txt, and any documentation page has a Markdown twin available by appending .md to its URL.

For a beginner, the practical value is this: when you are unsure whether a feature still exists or what it is called now, you do not have to dig through second-hand blog posts. You can read the vendor's own Markdown. That is exactly the path this site uses to verify every tutorial it publishes.

Where to go next

Once you are installed, signed in and working in the right mode, pick the thread that matches what you actually want:

  • You want real deliverables out of it → read the ChatGPT Work tutorial.
  • You want something to run on a schedule → read the scheduled tasks tutorial.
  • You develop on Windows → read the Windows tutorial.

How to do it

  1. Decide first whether ChatGPT needs to touch files on your machine. If it does, install the desktop app; if you only need research, writing and analysis, the web is enough.
  2. Desktop — download and install the ChatGPT desktop app for your operating system, open it, and sign in with your ChatGPT account.
  3. Web — go to chatgpt.com and sign in with your ChatGPT account.
  4. Choose where ChatGPT should work: start a chat, create a project, or (in the desktop app) open a folder.
  5. Pick the mode. Chat for a quick question, Work for a deliverable such as a document, deck, spreadsheet or report, Codex for software development.
  6. In your first message, state the goal, the source material, and what "finished" looks like.

On Windows

  1. The ChatGPT desktop app has an official Windows build, installable from the Microsoft Store.
  2. From the command line, run in PowerShell: `winget install --id 9PLM9XGG6VKS -s msstore`.
  3. After installing, sign in as above. Windows-specific behaviour and developer setup are covered in the Windows tutorial.

On mobile

N/AThe official Quickstart in the ChatGPT documentation set covers only the desktop app and the web as getting-started paths. It has no mobile section. The mobile behaviour that is officially documented today is Remote — see the ChatGPT on mobile tutorial.

Use cases

  • You are new to ChatGPT and want to know whether to install the desktop app or just use the web.
  • You already use the web and now want ChatGPT to work with files in a folder on your machine.
  • Your team needs a shared rule for which work goes to Chat and which goes to Work.

Common mistakes

  • Handing a multi-step, multi-source task to Chat. Chat is built for quick answers; structured deliverables belong in Work.
  • Sending "write me a proposal" with no source material, no audience and no acceptance criteria, then iterating five times to recover the missing context.
  • Expecting the web to reach folders on your computer. Reading and writing local files requires the desktop app.
  • Installing the desktop app and then issuing file-related instructions before choosing where ChatGPT should work.

FAQ

Desktop app or web — which should I pick?
The deciding question is whether ChatGPT needs access to local files. The official Quickstart positions the desktop app for projects, local files and longer tasks, and the web as signing in at chatgpt.com to use Chat and ChatGPT Work. If you want ChatGPT reading and writing folders on your computer, install the desktop app.
What actually separates Chat, Work and Codex?
Per the official Quickstart: use Work for research, analysis, or deliverables such as documents, presentations, spreadsheets and Sites; use Codex for software development with codebase context and developer tools; use Chat for a quick question or conversation.
Can I use it with an API key instead of a ChatGPT account?
The documentation states you may use Codex with an API key, and warns in the same breath that some features might not be available that way. If you need the full feature set, sign in with a ChatGPT account.
Is there a Linux desktop app?
Yes. The Quickstart lists macOS, Windows and Linux, and points to a separate Linux desktop app guide for supported distributions and package installation.

Official sources

These are the pages this tutorial is checked against. Follow them if you need the vendor's exact wording.

Source status