Deep Research in ChatGPT: The Complete Help Center Guide

Deep Research is designed for multi-step or in-depth questions that require aggregation and synthesis across multiple sources. Unlike standard search, it creates a proposed research plan that you can modify, allowing you to follow progress in real-time and interrupt to refine the focus.

The end result is a structured, fullscreen report complete with citations and source links, ensuring transparency and traceability for professional or academic work.

You can initiate a Deep Research task through several entry points within the ChatGPT interface:

Deep Research gives you explicit control over where information is gathered. By default, it accesses the public web, uploaded files, and connected apps.

You can connect to document stores like Google Drive or SharePoint, or industry data sources like FactSet and PitchBook. If you need to focus on specific domains, you can manage this via 'Sites -> Manage sites' in the prompt window. You can either restrict the AI to these sites exclusively or tell it to prioritize them while allowing full-web search.

Before the agent begins its work, it will propose a research plan based on your prompt. This is a critical step where you can confirm the goals or adjust the scope.

ChatGPT may ask clarifying questions to ensure the outcome meets your requirements. You can edit this plan at the start, and you can also view the activity history in real-time to see which links are being visited and which thoughts the AI is processing.

Completed research opens in a fullscreen report view. This includes a table of contents, a detailed sources section for reference checking, and the full activity history of the research agent.

You can download these reports for external use or sharing in several professional formats: Markdown, Microsoft Word (DOCX), and PDF.

Deep Research availability depends on your specific plan and territory. Usage is tracked via an in-product counter showing your remaining tasks. For plans with a fixed monthly allowance, the quota resets every 30 days from the date of your first use.

If you need an urgent answer for a quick fact, standard ChatGPT search is recommended. Save Deep Research for tasks where depth, thoroughness, and documented evidence are the priority.