- There is a Google Chrome extension for ChatGPT search that makes using it much better
- It's easy to install and here we show you how.
- Sam Altman, CEO of Open AI, calls it “really good”
ChatGPT Search, a new search engine built into the popular ChatGPT chatbot, is already changing the way people search the web, but you can make it even easier to use by using its Chrome extension.
ChatGPT search is fast, accurate and there are no ads. Unlike Google, it treats search more like a conversation, so you can ask it to search for something and then refine your search with follow-up prompts and ChatGPT's search will maintain the original context of your search. Lance Ulanoff, editor-at-large here at TechRadar, was so impressed with ChatGPT's search that he said, “I may never search on Google again.”
Of course, everything in life has its downsides, and with ChatGPT search there is currently no way to access it unless you are on the original waiting list or pay for ChatGPT Plus, which costs $20 (around £16 / AU$30). a month. If you were on the original waitlist, you'll get it now, even on the free tier.
The only other negative is that unless you're using the app, you have to launch ChatGPT in your web browser to access the search option. It can be accessed by clicking the search icon, which works like a toggle switch, within the message bar. If enabled, you will be using ChatGPT search.
However, there is a way to avoid having to load the ChatGPT website before searching in Chrome, and that is by using the Google Chrome extension, which means you can search using ChatGPT search by typing directly into the bar address of your browser.
In fact, the Google extension is a much better way to use ChatGPT search, but the problem with Google extensions is that it is very difficult to find, so here is the direct link to it.
Installing the extension
Go to the ChatGPT search extension page, then click the blue “Add to Chrome” button and confirm the installation once prompted. That's all there is to do. Now, when you start typing in the address bar, you will search with ChatGPT, not Google.
You can turn the ChatGPT search extension on and off by going to the Window menu in Chrome and selecting Extensions. You will see an on/off button for the extension here.
If you need even more convincing to install the Google Chrome extension, listen to Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI. He recently posted on X that the Chrome extension is the best way to use ChatGPT search.
“Hey, I'm really sorry to keep promoting our own product, but you should get ChatGPT plus and install the Chrome extension for search,” Altman wrote. “I'm happily the first to admit that when we ship something it's not very good, but this time it's… really good.”
If the CEO of the company suggests that this is the best way to use their product, then that is a pretty strong recommendation.