NEWv1.17: Audited & Actionable
Qwairy
Technical

ChatGPT-User

User-agent OpenAI uses when ChatGPT fetches webpages in real time during a conversation, distinct from the GPTBot training crawler.

What is ChatGPT-User?

ChatGPT-User is the user-agent string used when ChatGPT accesses websites in real-time during conversations. This differs from GPTBot, which is OpenAI's training crawler. When users enable ChatGPT's browsing feature or use ChatGPT Search, requests to websites appear with the ChatGPT-User agent. Allowing this agent enables ChatGPT to cite your content in real-time responses, directly impacting immediate visibility rather than future training data.

How Qwairy Makes This Actionable

Qwairy differentiates between GPTBot (training crawler) and ChatGPT-User (real-time browsing) traffic. Track when ChatGPT actively browses your site during user conversations, indicating immediate citation opportunities.

Frequently Asked Questions

GPTBot collects data for future model training (long-term impact). ChatGPT-User accesses your site in real-time during active conversations (immediate impact). Blocking GPTBot affects future model versions. Blocking ChatGPT-User prevents real-time citations right now. Most sites should allow both for comprehensive ChatGPT visibility: training data and live search citations.

Yes, ChatGPT-User requests happen when ChatGPT's search feature actively visits your site to answer a user's question. Each visit represents potential citation in a real conversation. High ChatGPT-User traffic signals strong real-time relevance. GEO platforms track these visits alongside actual citations to show the conversion rate from crawls to mentions.

Both matter for different reasons. ChatGPT-User drives immediate visibility and citations in current conversations. GPTBot influences future model knowledge. Prioritize ChatGPT-User for urgent visibility needs and real-time citation tracking. Allow both; blocking either limits your total ChatGPT visibility. Real-time search is growing while training crawls happen less frequently.
Share:

Related Terms

AI Crawler

Technical

Indexing robot used by AI companies to collect data intended to train or feed their models.

GPTBot

Technical

OpenAI's web crawler that collects public web content to train future GPT models; site owners control its access via robots.txt.

ChatGPT

AI Platforms

Conversational assistant developed by OpenAI, based on GPT models.

robots.txt

Technical

Text file placed at the root of a website to indicate to indexing robots which pages to explore or avoid.

Previous
ChatGPT

Conversational assistant developed by OpenAI, based on GPT models.

Next
Citability

A measure of how likely a piece of content is to be selected, referenced, or cited by an LLM when generating a response.

← Back to GlossaryLast updated Jun 9, 2026