ChatGPT ads in Malaysia (2026): can you advertise yet?
Can you run ChatGPT ads from Malaysia? As of September 2026, no. The 52-country rule, the USD 25 (RM 102) daily minimum per campaign, and what to do now.
Not yet. As of 14 September 2026, a Malaysian business cannot buy ChatGPT advertising through OpenAI's self-serve ChatGPT Ads Manager. OpenAI opens it only to a legal entity based in one of 52 listed countries, and Malaysia is not one of them. Malaysia is also missing from the locations advertisers can target. You can register interest at ads.openai.com, or work on being named in ChatGPT's answers without buying ads.
Last updated: 14 September 2026.
Key takeaways
- Malaysia is not an eligible country for ChatGPT ads. OpenAI's self-serve Ads Manager requires the legal entity that advertises and is billed to be based in a listed country (OpenAI Help Center).
- Malaysia is not in OpenAI's catalogue of targetable ad locations. OpenAI's downloadable location file (CSV) lists the self-serve countries plus the United Arab Emirates, and no location in Malaysia (OpenAI Help Center).
- ChatGPT ads appear for Free and Go users and in logged-out ChatGPT, not on Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise or Edu accounts (OpenAI Help Center).
- ChatGPT ads have a minimum daily budget of USD 25 per campaign, about RM 102 (OpenAI Help Center).
Can Malaysian businesses advertise on ChatGPT right now?
No. Malaysian businesses cannot buy ChatGPT ads yet, because OpenAI's self-serve Ads Manager only accepts advertisers whose legal entity is based and billed in one of 52 listed countries, and Malaysia is not one of them. OpenAI's guide to setting up Ads Manager inside ChatGPT adds that the country tied to your ChatGPT login or account registration does not override the advertiser account's country (OpenAI Help Center).
"To use self-service Ads Manager, the legal entity that will advertise and be billed must be based in a country listed as available below."
OpenAI Help Center, Ads Manager Availability
Why does ChatGPT have ads?
To pay for free access. The OpenAI Help Center says keeping the Free and Go plans running "requires significant infrastructure and ongoing investment" (OpenAI Help Center). In January 2026, Fidji Simo, OpenAI's CEO of Applications at the time (TechCrunch), wrote that ads would let more people use ChatGPT with fewer limits or without paying (OpenAI).
Which countries can run ChatGPT ads in 2026?
Businesses based in 52 countries can buy ChatGPT ads through self-serve Ads Manager, across Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, the Americas and Asia-Pacific. The United Arab Emirates can be targeted but is not self-serve. No Southeast Asian country is on either list.
| Region | Self-serve countries |
|---|---|
| Europe (32) | 27 EU states, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland, United Kingdom |
| Middle East and North Africa (11) | Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Tunisia |
| Asia-Pacific (5) | Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea |
| Americas (4) | Brazil, Canada, Mexico, United States |
OpenAI counts 31 European markets plus the UK, which joined earlier (OpenAI). OpenAI's Ads Manager Availability page was last updated around 7 September 2026.
How ChatGPT ads rolled out:
- 9 February 2026: ads pilot starts for US users (OpenAI Help Center).
- 27 March 2026: pilot announced for Canada, Australia and New Zealand (Mi3).
- 5 May 2026: self-serve Ads Manager beta launches for US advertisers (OpenAI, MediaPost).
- 7 May 2026: pilot reported for the UK, Brazil, Japan, South Korea and Mexico (Digiday).
- 31 August 2026: self-serve opens across Europe, India, the Middle East and North Africa (OpenAI).
OpenAI has not published when the eight pilot markets outside the US opened to self-serve, but all eight are on the current list.
Can a company in another country target Malaysian customers with ChatGPT ads?
No. Even a sister company registered in an eligible country cannot choose Malaysia as a campaign location, because Malaysia is not in the downloadable location file (CSV) that OpenAI's campaign guide links to. We checked: the file has no location in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines or Vietnam either.
OpenAI's partner route points to the same list: its 31 August post says ChatGPT Ads are "available in over 40 countries through the OpenAI Ads Solutions team and our agency and technology partners", linking to the availability page, which now lists 52 countries and still not Malaysia (OpenAI).
How do ChatGPT ads work, and what do they look like?
ChatGPT ads appear below a response, labelled as sponsored (OpenAI Help Center). Each ad shows the advertiser's name, logo, headline, short description, image and landing page link (OpenAI Help Center). OpenAI picks which ad to show from the conversation's context and intent, the ad itself and the advertiser's targeting choices (OpenAI Help Center).
Are ChatGPT ads targeted, and what do advertisers see?
Yes. Advertisers can use country, platform (such as the iOS app or desktop web) and custom-audience targeting for each campaign (OpenAI Help Center). With ads personalisation on, OpenAI can also use select signals from a user's wider ChatGPT experience to choose which ad to show (OpenAI Help Center).
Advertisers do not see users' conversations: they "do not have access to your chats, chat history, memories, or personal details", OpenAI says (OpenAI Help Center).
Do ChatGPT ads influence the answers ChatGPT gives?
No, according to OpenAI. The OpenAI Help Center says ads run on separate systems from the chat model and that advertisers cannot shape, rank or alter ChatGPT's responses. If ChatGPT ads open here, paying will buy a labelled slot under the answer, not a recommendation inside it.
"[Y]ou need to trust that ChatGPT's responses are driven by what's objectively useful, never by advertising."
Fidji Simo, OpenAI, 16 January 2026
How much do ChatGPT ads cost?
OpenAI recommends a starting maximum bid of USD 3 to USD 5 per click, and its campaign guide sets a minimum daily budget of USD 25 per campaign. At Bank Negara Malaysia's middle rate of RM 4.0705 per US dollar on 14 September 2026, that is about RM 102 a day.
ChatGPT ads cost at a glance (RM at that Bank Negara Malaysia middle rate)
| Item | Figure |
|---|---|
| Pricing model | Per click (CPC) or per 1,000 ad views (CPM), by auction |
| Minimum daily budget | USD 25 per campaign, about RM 102 |
| Recommended starting maximum click bid | USD 3 to USD 5, about RM 12 to RM 20 |
| Billing currencies | 21 listed; no ringgit |
OpenAI treats the daily budget as an average over seven days and says "Daily spend will not exceed twice your selected daily budget" (OpenAI Help Center). For one campaign running 30 days at the minimum: USD 25 × 30 = USD 750, and USD 750 × 4.0705 = about RM 3,050, before any tax and card currency-conversion fees.
ChatGPT ads, Google Ads or AI SEO: which fits a Malaysian SME?
Today a Malaysian SME can choose between Google Ads, including ad slots inside Google's AI Overviews in English (Google Ads Help), and AI SEO, the work of getting a business named inside AI answers. ChatGPT ads are not open here yet.
| ChatGPT ads | Google Ads | AI SEO | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Open to a Malaysian-registered business today? | No | Yes; 8% SST applies to accounts with a Malaysian business address (Google) | Yes |
| How you pay | Per click or per 1,000 views, by auction; daily budget from USD 25 per campaign, or a campaign-total budget | Click bids within an average daily budget (Google) | Your time or an agency fee |
| Changes what ChatGPT recommends? | No, per OpenAI | No | It can, with no guarantee (our view) |
Our view: if you need leads this month, use Google Ads, which is open today. If you want to be the business ChatGPT names, that is AI SEO work, and ranking first on Google does not guarantee it. The two run side by side, because AI search has not replaced Google, and ChatGPT ads can be added once Malaysia opens.
How can a Malaysian business prepare for ChatGPT ads now?
Two things help now: registering interest with OpenAI, and making sure ChatGPT can already find and name your business. Creating an account "does not give you access before your country is supported" (OpenAI Help Center), and OpenAI has not said the sales form does either.
- Register interest at ads.openai.com and ask to be notified when Malaysia opens. Sign up under the company that will pay for the ads.
- Larger advertisers: use OpenAI's sales form. It is for advertisers "with more complex needs".
Meanwhile:
- Test what ChatGPT names today. Ask ChatGPT "best (your service) in (your city)", note who it names, then run the full test in how to check if ChatGPT recommends your business.
- Make your website easy for AI to read. Put your services, areas and contact details in plain text, then follow how to get recommended by ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity.
- Measure the ChatGPT traffic you already get with Google Analytics. Once you run ads, tracking tags such as UTM parameters "persist on ad clicks" (OpenAI Help Center).
When ChatGPT ads arrive, they will sit under the answer. Getting inside the answer means ChatGPT has to find and trust your business. Acclaira's AI SEO work, covering schema, FAQ markup and answer-first content, starts with a free 0-100 AI-Search readiness audit. Message us on WhatsApp for the free audit.
Sources
- OpenAI Help Center, Ads Manager Availability, checked 14 September 2026.
- OpenAI Help Center, Ads Manager Beta Account Setup.
- OpenAI Help Center, Create Campaigns for ChatGPT Ads, including the linked location file, checked 14 September 2026.
- OpenAI Help Center, Ads in ChatGPT.
- OpenAI Help Center, Ads in ChatGPT: The Basics.
- OpenAI, Our approach to advertising and expanding access to ChatGPT, 16 January 2026, by Fidji Simo.
- OpenAI, OpenAI Expands Leadership with Fidji Simo, 7 May 2025.
- TechCrunch, Fidji Simo steps down from OpenAI's No. 2 role, 9 July 2026.
- OpenAI, New ways to buy ChatGPT ads, 5 May 2026.
- OpenAI, ChatGPT Ads expands across Europe, 18 August 2026.
- OpenAI, A milestone in expanding access to AI, 31 August 2026.
- Mi3, OpenAI expands ChatGPT ads pilot to Australia, New Zealand, and Canada, 27 March 2026.
- Digiday, OpenAI offers ChatGPT ads to new markets including the U.K., Brazil and Japan, 7 May 2026.
- MediaPost, OpenAI Opens Ad Platform To CPC Bidding, Self-Serve Buys, 5 May 2026.
- How Marketers AI, ChatGPT Ads: What to know before it arrives in the rest of APAC, 5 September 2026.
- Google Ads Help, About ads and AI Overviews.
- Google Ads Help, Taxes in your country.
- Google Ads Help, Budgets and bids.
- Bank Negara Malaysia, Exchange rates, USD middle rate 4.0705 on 14 September 2026.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
- Do people in Malaysia see ads in ChatGPT?
- Not yet. Malaysia is not on OpenAI's list of countries for ChatGPT ads or among the locations advertisers can target. How Marketers AI, an industry newsletter, separately reported that ChatGPT ads are not running in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, Hong Kong or Taiwan.
- Can a Malaysian agency run ChatGPT ads for my business?
- No, not while Malaysia is unsupported, because the business behind the ads must be based in an available country. Where self-serve is open, OpenAI's setup guide says each advertiser requires its own account, so an agency managing several clients needs a separate account for each one. Once an account is set up, its owner can invite additional team members to work in it.
- When will ChatGPT ads launch in Malaysia?
- OpenAI has not published a date. Its availability page can mark a country as Coming Soon; on 14 September 2026, no country carried that label and Malaysia was not listed. OpenAI's 31 August 2026 post says its next phase of growth will bring ChatGPT Ads to more markets, without naming them.
- Do I need a registered company to sign up for ChatGPT ads?
- In practice, you need a registered business, though this only matters once Malaysia opens. OpenAI's setup asks you to confirm a legal business name, and its guide to setting up from inside ChatGPT says ChatGPT Ads Manager supports eligible business advertiser accounts. You then complete account verification through Persona. Some account fields may not be editable later, so use the entity that will advertise and be billed.
- Can ChatGPT users avoid seeing ads?
- Yes. Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu accounts have no ads. Free users can switch to an Ads-Free option that removes ads in exchange for fewer messages and no access to some tools, such as image generation or deep research. Temporary Chats show no ads, and users can turn off ad personalisation in Ad controls, although ads based on the current chat still appear.
About the author
Dan Duar
Founder, Acclaira · Director, DNE Logistics
Dan founded Acclaira to help Malaysian SMEs get understood, trusted and recommended by AI search. He also runs DNE Logistics, a Port Klang freight and customs business, so he writes about digital growth from a business owner’s seat, not an agency’s.
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