How to check your Codex usage

The direct answer

1. The usage dashboard (most reliable)

OpenAI’s Codex pricing page says: “You can find your current limits in the usage dashboard.” It lives at chatgpt.com/codex/settings/usage and needs your ChatGPT sign-in. It’s the place to check when:

• you want the reset time for your five-hour or weekly window;
• the CLI and your gut disagree;
• you’re deciding whether to buy credits or use a reset;
• you use Codex from several places (CLI, IDE extension, app, cloud). Local messages and cloud chats share the same plan allowance, so the dashboard sees all of it.

OpenAI also says the published per-plan message figures are estimates, “not fixed message limits; check your usage dashboard for current limits and reset times.” So if a blog post quotes a number of messages, the dashboard wins.

2. /status in the Codex CLI

Inside an interactive Codex session, type:

/status

OpenAI’s pricing page says /status shows your remaining limits during an active Codex CLI session. The CLI slash-command reference describes it more broadly: it displays session configuration and token usage, including the active model, approval policy, writable roots and remaining context capacity. In practice that makes it a quick sanity check (right account, right model, how full the context is) as well as a limits check.

Two caveats. It only knows about the session and account you’re in. And “remaining context” is not your plan allowance: a nearly full context window means the conversation is long, not that you’re near a usage limit. If /status and the dashboard disagree, trust the dashboard.

3. Keep it on screen with /statusline

The Codex TUI footer can show your limits permanently. Run:

/statusline

A picker opens where you choose and reorder footer items such as model, context, limits, git, tokens and session. Turn on the rate limits item. Codex saves your choice to tui.status_line in config.toml, so it sticks across sessions. The slash-command reference names the item but doesn’t spell out its exact format, so we won’t guess at it here.

If you also use Claude Code, its status line can show five-hour and weekly percentages too (see our status line guide), but each tool’s line only shows its own numbers.

4. /usage: token activity and earned resets

/usage
/usage daily
/usage weekly
/usage cumulative

The slash-command reference says /usage opens a menu where you can view account token activity or redeem an available earned reset. The daily, weekly and cumulative forms jump straight to a view of your ChatGPT token activity. If you aren’t signed in with Codex service account auth, Codex asks you to sign in.

Token activity is useful for spotting a heavy day, but it isn’t the same as “percent of limit left”. For that, use the dashboard, /status or the status line.

Banked resets: what they are and how to use one

OpenAI’s help center describes a banked reset as a one-time Codex usage-limit reset saved to your account until you use it or it expires. It isn’t a purchase and doesn’t permanently raise your limit. Using a full reset refreshes your five-hour and weekly Codex windows and changes your weekly reset date.

According to that article, you redeem one from settings → usage in the desktop app, the CLI or on the web: select the usage summary that shows a reset is available, check the expiry, and confirm. The option can also appear after you reach a limit. In the CLI, the slash-command reference describes redeeming “an available earned reset” from the /usage menu. Availability depends on your plan and account, and OpenAI says eligibility can vary and change.

Because a reset moves your weekly reset date, use it when you’re actually blocked, not as a precaution.

Troubleshooting: the numbers look wrong

You’re looking at the wrong account or workspace

Your allowance belongs to the ChatGPT plan you signed in with. If you have a personal Plus plan and a Business workspace, the dashboard and the CLI each show the account they’re signed in to. Check which one /status reports before comparing numbers.

You’re signed in with an API key

OpenAI’s pricing page says Codex used with an API key is billed under API pricing, at standard API rates. That’s handy for extra local chats, but look for that spend in your OpenAI API account, not in the plan dashboard.

You’re on Enterprise or Edu with flexible pricing

OpenAI says these workspaces have no fixed rate limits; usage scales with credits. Enterprise and Edu plans without flexible pricing have the same per-seat limits as Plus for most features. If you don’t see a five-hour window, this may be why.

You’re on Pro and see no five-hour window

That’s expected for now: OpenAI says Pro plans currently have no five-hour limit. Your included allowance and any weekly limit still apply.

/usage asks you to sign in

The slash-command reference says Codex asks you to sign in when you aren’t using Codex service account auth. Sign in with your ChatGPT account and try again.

Which method answers which question

If the numbers say you’re out

1. Let the current turn finish. OpenAI says an agent that hits your limit mid-turn can keep working on that turn, subject to fair-use limits.
2. Buy credits if you’re on Plus or Pro. Your plan’s included usage is used first; credit prices depend on your plan.
3. Use a banked reset if you have one.
4. Use an API key for local work. OpenAI says anyone can run extra local chats with an API key, billed at standard API rates.
5. Wait for the reset time on the dashboard, or switch tools.

OpenAI’s help center says support doesn’t reset ChatGPT or Codex usage limits, so there’s no point opening a ticket to clear one. See Codex usage limits, explained for how the windows themselves work.

Why usage moves faster than you expect

OpenAI lists the factors: model choice, context, reasoning, tool use, retrieval and caching, plus whether a task runs locally or in the cloud and how big and complex it is. Fast and Ultrafast modes use included limits at different rates, and image generations use included limits about three to five times faster on average. A single long-running agent task can cost more than dozens of quick questions. If your usage jumps, look at what ran in the cloud and which mode you used before assuming something’s wrong.

Common mistakes and myths

“/status shows everything.”

It’s scoped to your session. The dashboard covers your whole allowance, including cloud.

“Remaining context is remaining usage.”

Context is how much this conversation can hold. Usage is your plan allowance. Different numbers.

“The message estimates are my quota.”

OpenAI says they’re estimates, not fixed limits.

“Use a banked reset early, just in case.”

A reset changes your weekly reset date. Use it when you need it.

What changed recently

Sources

Official pages we read on October 9, 2026. If anything here disagrees with them, they win.

• Codex docs: Pricing and usage limits
• Codex docs: Slash commands in Codex CLI
• OpenAI Help Center: How banked Codex resets work
• OpenAI Help Center: Using Codex with your ChatGPT plan
• Codex usage dashboard (sign-in required)

FAQ