ChatGPT Memory can use personal context to tailor future replies. If you want to review or limit that personalization, open Settings → Personalization → Memory; the controls available to you may vary by account.

What ChatGPT Memory can use

Depending on your plan and region, Memory may draw on saved memories, past chats, Custom Instructions, Library files, and connected apps. It can carry forward details such as preferences or ongoing projects, but OpenAI says it does not retain or use every detail from every conversation.

Memory supplies personal context for replies; Custom Instructions let you set standing guidance for how ChatGPT should respond.

How Memory developed

OpenAI says saved memories first launched in April 2024, letting people ask ChatGPT to remember information for future conversations. In April 2025, OpenAI introduced an initial version of “dreaming,” which automatically curated memories using chat history.

On June 4, 2026, OpenAI announced a more capable memory architecture and said it was then available to Plus and Pro users in the United States. The announcement described a broader rollout to additional countries and to Free and Go users as a plan for the following weeks.

How to find and manage Memory

You need access to your ChatGPT account and Settings. OpenAI’s general route is Settings → Personalization → Memory, though the names and options can differ across accounts and experiences.

  1. Open Memory settings. Go to Settings → Personalization → Memory to see the controls available on your account.
  2. Review the saved context. If your account offers a Memory summary or saved-memory list, inspect it and use the available controls to correct or remove details.
  3. Choose which memory features to use. Depending on your account, you may see separate controls for saved memories and Reference chat history. Select the setting that matches what you want ChatGPT to use.
  4. Remove a source when needed. Deleting a saved memory may not remove the information from its original chat, file, or connected app. OpenAI says you may also need to delete the relevant chat or file, or disconnect the app containing it.

What happens when you switch Memory off

Turning off Memory does not delete saved memories or past chats. If you turn Memory back on, ChatGPT may create new remembered information from chats that remain in your history.

Reference chat history is a separate control. Turning it off schedules information remembered from past chats for deletion from OpenAI’s systems within 30 days. Your original chats remain unless you delete them separately.

When to use a Temporary Chat

A Temporary Chat does not create or update memories. When you start one, you choose whether it can use existing memories and Custom Instructions; choosing Unpersonalized prevents that use. Make the choice at the start of the chat.

Quick reference

  • To review Memory: Settings → Personalization → Memory.
  • To stop Memory personalization: turn off Memory; saved memories and chats are not deleted by that switch.
  • To schedule deletion of information derived from past chats: turn off Reference chat history; the original chats remain.
  • For a chat that does not create or update memories: start a Temporary Chat and choose its personalization setting at the outset.