ChatGPT 5 Features: The Complete Guide (with prompt examples)

August 16, 2025

ChatGPT 5 brings smarter “Thinking” depth when it’s useful, snappier everyday replies, native Gmail/Calendar/Contacts connectors, steadier multi-step agents, and stronger coding skills. This guide shows what’s new—plus copy-ready prompts to try today.

Auto “Chat vs Thinking” picks depth when your task needs it—manual control still available.
Connectors for Gmail, Google Calendar, and Contacts eliminate tool-switching.
Agentic workflows research, browse, extract, and act with step approvals.
Coding boosts create cleaner front-ends and debug larger repos more reliably.
Developer controls tune reply length and reasoning effort for faster apps.

What changed in ChatGPT 5?

ChatGPT 5 (GPT-5) is designed to balance speed with deeper reasoning. Instead of forcing you to choose every time, ChatGPT can automatically use extra “Thinking” when your prompt warrants it—like multi-step analysis, planning, or tricky logic. Paired with direct connections to your email and calendar, it makes the everyday stuff feel effortless.

Diagram: Router decides between fast model and deeper thinking model based on task — How ChatGPT 5 routes requests between fast replies and deeper “Thinking.”

Auto “Chat vs Thinking”: smarter depth without micromanaging

In Auto mode, ChatGPT 5 decides when to keep things brisk or dive deeper. For complex assignments, you can lock in Thinking from the model picker for consistently rigorous answers. For simple tasks, stay in Chat for rapid turn-around.

Pro tip

When you need meticulous reasoning, say: “Take your time and reason step-by-step; verify each conclusion.” When you want speed, say: “Be concise—short answer only.”

Gmail, Calendar, and Contacts—now inside your chats

Connect Gmail, Google Calendar, and Google Contacts in Settings → Connectors. ChatGPT will reference them when relevant—like proposing meeting times, summarizing threads, or drafting replies you approve before sending.

ChatGPT Connectors screen showing Gmail, Google Calendar and Google Contacts connected — Connect once; ChatGPT references your email and calendar automatically.

Agentic workflows that actually finish

The ChatGPT agent can browse visually, extract data from files, fill forms, and take actions with your confirmation. It follows a plan, shows its work, and asks permission at key steps—ideal for research, scheduling, and follow-ups.

Coding upgrades: from rough scaffold to shippable UI

GPT-5 produces cleaner front-end code (layout, spacing, a11y) and is steadier across large repositories. You’ll see fewer “almost there” drafts and more production-ready components—plus less hand-holding for debugging.

For builders: new controls that cut friction

Verbosity: Standardize how short or long the response should be (great for UI consistency).
Minimal reasoning: Prefer speed for simple transformations/extractions where depth isn’t needed.

Tip: Use higher verbosity for educational flows; lower for production UI elements to reduce tokens and latency.

Quick wins (5 minutes)

Plan your week: “Find 3 overlapping 45-minute windows next week for the design review and draft the invite.”
Research & summarize: “Compare three options, weigh trade-offs, and recommend one with risks & mitigations.”
Ship a landing page: “Generate a responsive hero, features grid, testimonials, and contact form with ARIA roles.”
Inbox triage: “Summarize my last 10 emails with priorities, deadlines, and suggested replies.”

Prompt examples (copy & use)

These are ChatGPT-native prompts designed for GPT-5. Paste them as-is, then tailor with your details.

1) Everyday work: let Auto decide, or force Thinking

System goal: Be concise unless I ask for depth. Use step-by-step Thinking only when needed.

Task: I’m preparing a decision memo. Compare the three proposals below, identify 5 evaluation criteria, score each proposal 1–5 per criterion, and recommend one option with risks, mitigations, and a 7-day action plan. Ask clarifying questions only if something would materially change the outcome.

Proposals:
1) …
2) …
3) …

Output format:
- Executive summary (120–180 words)
- Scoring table (markdown)
- Decision + rationale (bulleted)
- Risks & mitigations (bulleted)
- 7-day action plan (D1–D7)

2) Connectors: Gmail + Calendar + Contacts

Requires: Settings → Connectors → connect Gmail/Calendar/Contacts

Goal: Plan a 45-minute strategy session next week with Taylor and Priya.

Instructions:
1) Check my Calendar for overlapping times next week (9am–4pm local).
2) Propose 3 options and include a mini-agenda (3 bullets).
3) Draft a friendly email to Taylor and Priya suggesting those times. Keep it under 120 words.
4) Wait for my approval before sending or adding an event.

3) Agentic workflow: research → summarize → act

Mission: Produce a vendor comparison and prepare outreach.

Scope:
- Research 3 vendors for <your need>.
- Create a markdown table: features, pricing, implementation time, SOC2/ISO, noteworthy limitations.
- Summarize top 5 takeaways and a recommendation with trade-offs.
- Draft an outreach email requesting a 30-minute demo with 3 time options next week (based on my Calendar).
- Wait for my approval before any actions.

Constraints:
- Cite sources with links.
- Keep the summary under 180 words.
- Surface any red flags prominently.

4) Coding: generate an accessible, responsive UI

Build a responsive product page with:
- Hero (headline, subhead, CTA), features grid (6 items), testimonials (3), FAQ (5 Q/A), contact form.
Requirements:
- Semantic HTML5, ARIA roles, keyboard navigation, focus states.
- Clean CSS with logical spacing scale (4/8/12/16…).
- Mobile-first; then tablet/desktop breakpoints.
- Include empty/loader/error states for the form.
Deliverables:
- One HTML file
- One CSS file
- Note the color-contrast ratios used.

5) Coding: debug larger repos systematically

Context: You are my debugging assistant. The repo link/summary is below.

Tasks:
1) Map the module structure and identify high-risk areas (async IO, shared state, brittle tests).
2) Propose a minimal failing test for each suspected defect.
3) Suggest fixes and refactors with before/after code diffs.
4) Output a prioritized issue list (title, summary, file path, repro steps).

Repo summary:
- <paste structure or link>

6) Text-Generation: brand voice system + content

Goal: Create a brand voice spec + reusable content system.

Inputs:
- Brand: <name> | Audience: <who> | Offer: <what>

Deliver:
1) Voice pillars (3–4) with do/don’t examples.
2) Messaging ladder (Tagline → Value props → Proofs).
3) 3 hero headlines, 3 CTAs, and a 160-char meta description.
4) Blog outline (H2/H3s) for a TOFU topic, with keyword ideas.
5) A/B variants for hero copy with hypothesis.

7) Text-to-Image: have ChatGPT design a perfect image brief

This produces a richly structured brief you can share with designers or creative tools.

Design an image brief for a surreal poster:
- Style guide: era, medium, composition, lighting, color palette, lens/sensor, post-processing.
- Subject: <describe subject>
- Scene: foreground, midground, background details.
- Negative guidance: what to avoid (5 items).
- Output a bullet brief + a 1-sentence “alt text.”

8) Image-to-Image: structured edit instructions

You will generate structured image edit instructions.

Input:
- Current image (describe briefly): …
- Goal: …

Deliver:
- Edits list (layered, ordered)
- Masks/regions to isolate
- Lighting & color adjustments
- Composition notes (rule of thirds, focal points)
- “Alt text” and a 120-char caption

9) Builder control: concise vs. deep (programmatic)

Instruction preset:
- Verbosity: low (short, UI-friendly answers)
- Reasoning effort: minimal unless asked for Thinking
- Style: neutral, professional, no emojis
- Safety: ask for confirmation before actions
Apply this preset to all responses unless I override.

Level up fast: Grab ready-to-use, ChatGPT-native prompts tuned for GPT-5.

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