OpenAI Deprecating chatgpt-4o-latest: Migrate to GPT-5.2 by Feb 17, 2026

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• What is OpenAI deprecating and when does access end?
• Why is OpenAI shutting off chatgpt-4o-latest?
• What happens on February 13 and February 17, 2026?
• What do API developers need to do to migrate?
• What is GPT-5.2 and how does it compare to GPT-4o?
• What are best practices for migrating to GPT-5.2?
• What if I use ChatGPT or enterprise Custom GPTs?
• Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

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Introduction

OpenAI is retiring the chatgpt-4o-latest model from its API. If you use that model name in your code or integrations, your requests will stop working after February 17, 2026. The company has been notifying API users and recommending a move to GPT-5.2 as the flagship model, or gpt-5.2-chat-latest for chat-focused use cases. This deprecation is part of a broader shift away from older model lines and toward newer infrastructure.

This guide walks you through what is being deprecated, the exact shutdown dates, why the change is happening, and how to migrate with minimal disruption. Whether you run a small script or a large production system, you need to update your model parameter before the cutoff or your API calls will start failing.

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What is OpenAI deprecating and when does access end?

OpenAI is deprecating chatgpt-4o-latest for API use. That model identifier will be shut off on February 17, 2026. The notice applies only to API usage of chatgpt-4o-latest; other models are unaffected. If your application sends requests to chatgpt-4o-latest, those requests will begin to fail (e.g. with 404 or deprecation errors) after that date. Your API keys remain valid; the change is strictly about the model endpoint.

In parallel, OpenAI is sunsetting other legacy models, including GPT-4o (the non-"latest" variant), GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, and o4-mini. ChatGPT product access to these models is removed earlier: February 13, 2026 - they disappear from the model selector in the ChatGPT interface. API shutdown for those model names follows on February 16-17, 2026, depending on endpoint. So the timeline has two important dates: February 13 for the ChatGPT UI, and February 16-17 for the API.

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Why is OpenAI shutting off chatgpt-4o-latest?

OpenAI is consolidating its stack around newer models and reducing the cost of maintaining older ones. chatgpt-4o-latest and the broader GPT-4o family are built on an older architecture. Keeping multiple generations running in parallel is expensive and slows down the rollout of improvements. By retiring chatgpt-4o-latest, the company can focus capacity and engineering on GPT-5.2 and related models.

There is also a quality and freshness argument. Older models have knowledge cutoffs from 2024. For code generation, documentation, and current-events-style use cases, that leads to outdated or incorrect outputs. OpenAI prefers to direct users to models that are better aligned with current APIs and information. Finally, API usage has already shifted toward newer models; maintaining chatgpt-4o-latest for a shrinking share of traffic is harder to justify.

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What happens on February 13 and February 17, 2026?

On February 13, 2026, GPT-4o and the other retiring models are removed from the ChatGPT model dropdown. Users can no longer start new chats with those models. Existing chat histories that used them remain readable, but you cannot select those models for new conversations. This applies to both free and paid ChatGPT users.

On February 16-17, 2026, the API stops accepting requests that specify the deprecated model names. Any call that uses chatgpt-4o-latest (or the other retired identifiers) will fail. There is no gradual degradation or automatic fallback; if you have not updated your code, those requests will error. For production systems, that means a hard cutover: you must migrate before the deadline or accept downtime or failures for those calls.

One exception: ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, and Edu customers keep access to GPT-4o inside Custom GPTs until March 31, 2026. That gives enterprises more time to update Custom GPTs that depend on the old model. It does not extend the API shutdown; API usage must switch to a supported model by mid-February regardless of plan.

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What do API developers need to do to migrate?

Update the model parameter in every place you call the OpenAI API. Replace chatgpt-4o-latest with a supported model. OpenAI recommends GPT-5.2 for most API use cases and gpt-5.2-chat-latest for chat-oriented workloads. You can use gpt-5.2-chat-latest to stay on the latest chat improvements as OpenAI updates that pointer.

Concretely, change your request payload from something like model: "chatgpt-4o-latest" to model: "gpt-5.2" or model: "gpt-5.2-chat-latest". If you use a config file or environment variable for the model name, update it there so all services pick up the new value. Search your codebase and any configs for "chatgpt-4o-latest", "gpt-4o", and related strings so nothing is left pointing at deprecated models.

If you use other deprecated models (e.g. o4-mini), OpenAI recommends moving to o3-mini or gpt-5.2-mini-style variants. Check the latest API docs for the exact model IDs. After switching, run your test suite and key user flows to confirm behavior and latency. Newer models may have different context limits, pricing, or response characteristics, so validate before the cutoff.

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What is GPT-5.2 and how does it compare to GPT-4o?

GPT-5.2 is OpenAI's current flagship model. It succeeds GPT-4o and the 4-series line. For API users, it is the recommended replacement for chatgpt-4o-latest and GPT-4o. GPT-5.2 offers larger context windows, improved reasoning, and better throughput in many scenarios. It is also positioned as price-competitive or cheaper than GPT-4o for typical use, so upgrading often does not mean higher cost.

gpt-5.2-chat-latest is the rolling "latest" variant for chat. Using it lets you automatically benefit from model updates and tuning for conversational use without changing your code each time. For most chat applications, gpt-5.2-chat-latest is a good default. For workloads where you need a fixed model version for reproducibility, use a specific model ID like gpt-5.2 instead of a "latest" pointer.

Multimodal capabilities (text, image, audio) that existed in GPT-4o are supported in the GPT-5.2 family. If you rely on vision or audio, check the current API documentation for the right model and parameters, and re-test your pipelines after migration.

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What are best practices for migrating to GPT-5.2?

Centralize your model choice in config or environment variables instead of hard-coding the model name in many files. That way you can switch or A/B test with a single change. Before the cutoff, run your full test suite and critical user journeys against the new model. Pay attention to latency and output quality; you may need to tweak prompts or parameters.

Use a staged rollout if you can: route a fraction of traffic to GPT-5.2 first and monitor errors and latency before moving everything over. Document any prompt or parameter changes you make so the team can reproduce and debug behavior. If you have high-scale or unusual requirements, consider reaching out to OpenAI support; they may be able to help with migration or clarify timelines.

Start migration as soon as possible. With only a short window left before February 17, delaying increases the risk of last-minute issues. Audit all services, scripts, and integrations that call the API so no reference to chatgpt-4o-latest is missed.

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What if I use ChatGPT or enterprise Custom GPTs?

If you only use ChatGPT in the browser or app, you will no longer see GPT-4o (or the other retired models) in the model list after February 13, 2026. You can keep using ChatGPT with the remaining models, including the GPT-5.2 family. Your old conversations stay available; you just cannot start new ones with the deprecated models.

If you are on ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, or Edu and use Custom GPTs that rely on GPT-4o, you have until March 31, 2026 to update those Custom GPTs to a supported model. After that date, even enterprise access to the deprecated model in Custom GPTs ends. Plan to switch your Custom GPTs to GPT-5.2 or gpt-5.2-chat-latest before March 31.

API usage is not extended by the enterprise Custom GPT deadline. Any code or integration that calls the API with chatgpt-4o-latest or other deprecated model names must be updated by February 16-17, 2026, regardless of your ChatGPT plan.

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