ChatGPT ads in Switzerland: who sees them and how to spot them

Yes. Since 24 August 2026 ChatGPT has also shown ads in Switzerland, but only on the Free and Go plans: according to the OpenAI Help Center, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu stay ad-free, and accounts of minors do not see them. The ad appears below the answer, with a label. OpenAI writes that advertising does not influence the answers. For supermarket deals the point is a different one: an ad is a paid message, not a neutral comparison, so you need to recognise it before trusting the price.

Updated November 2026. Sources: OpenAI (announcement of 18 August 2026 and Help Center, “Ads in ChatGPT”); blue News on the Swiss start; IamExpat; Google (Google Ads Help, blog post of 28 October 2026); Search Engine Roundtable (30 October 2026). All viewed on 9 November 2026.

Does ChatGPT have ads in Switzerland?

Yes. On 18 August 2026 OpenAI announced ads in 31 European countries from the following week, and blue News reports that they started on 24 August 2026 in Switzerland too. The OpenAI Help Center confirms Switzerland on one detail: here, as in the European Economic Area, personalised ads are not available at first. In the United States the tests had begun on 9 February 2026.

The ads follow the conversation. According to OpenAI, the system chooses the ad based on the context of the current chat, the advertiser’s text and page and, if personalisation is on, other signals from your use of ChatGPT. The language of the ad can differ from that of the conversation: OpenAI writes that it is chosen by considering location, language settings and the language of the chat.

Which ChatGPT plans see ads?

Source: OpenAI Help Center, viewed on 9 November 2026; Go price according to IamExpat. Prices and plans change: check in the app.

Does advertising change ChatGPT’s answers?

OpenAI says no. According to the Help Center, ads run on systems separate from the model, and advertisers cannot steer, rank or alter the answers. Advertisers do not see chats, history, memories or personal data and receive only aggregate data, such as views and clicks. Ads do not appear near sensitive topics such as health, mental health and politics, nor in temporary chats.

These are statements by the company, not an independent check. What you can check yourself is the form: the ad sits below the answer, in a labelled box. The text of the answer is not an ad. If, however, you use an ad’s menu to ask ChatGPT about it, you are asking the assistant to reason about a paid message.

Can you remove ads from ChatGPT?

With Plus or Pro, yes. If you stay on the free plan, you can switch to an ad-free experience: according to OpenAI you open Settings, then the ads controls (“Ads controls” in the English version), choose to change plan and accept lower limits, meaning fewer messages and no tools such as image generation or deep research. OpenAI warns that the wording can vary from one device to another. Turning off personalisation does not remove ads: you still see them, based on the current chat.

For ChatGPT data and settings in general there is the guide ChatGPT and personal data; for privacy questions about assistants, AI apps and privacy.

And in other assistants: Google and Microsoft?

Google writes that ads in AI Overviews and AI Mode are offered in English in countries such as the United States, Australia, Canada and India; on 28 October 2026 it announced an expansion to more countries, with Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom planned by the end of the year, without naming Switzerland. The page warns that the list may be incomplete. For how AI Mode works with grocery questions there is the guide Google AI Mode and groceries.

How do I recognise an ad when I look for deals?

By the label, the position and a simple question: who paid for me to see this? An ad can be useful, but it presents a product or shop chosen by the advertiser, not a comparison of all the chains. A neutral comparison has no commercial agreements with the ones it compares; it is a test you can ask of any source, Rappn included.

Supermarket deals are a delicate case because they are valid for only a few days and change by chain and canton: the assistant can get it wrong even without advertising (see ChatGPT and this week’s deals), and a well-placed ad makes the error harder to see. If you want the deals side by side without going through an assistant, there is the offers view.

How to check: the list in 6 points

1. Look for the label. In ChatGPT the ad sits below the text and carries a label. What is inside the answer is not an ad, but it can be wrong.
2. Look at the plan. On Free or Go, expect ads; on Plus or Pro, according to the sources, you do not see any.
3. Ask for the price source. Ask which page or flyer each deal comes from and what the two validity dates are.
4. Open the source, not the ad. Go to the shop’s page or the app, not just through the advertiser’s link.
5. Compare at least two sources. The unit price per kilo or per litre says more than the price in big print (see price per litre and per kilo).
6. Check the settings. Look at the ads controls and the data shared; remember that turning off personalisation does not remove ads.

For tricks in how prices are presented in general, there is the guide to supermarket price traps.

What to do with Rappn

Rappn is a free Swiss app (iOS and Android) that compares the current promotions of seven Swiss retailers in all 26 cantons, in 4 languages. The promotions are updated daily as the chains publish them. You can search products and unit prices, follow products with price alerts, share lists and scan receipts to get a monthly spending overview by category. Rappn has no commercial agreements with any retailer. The method is explained in how Rappn compares offers.