How to Get GPT-6 Astra Access

TL;DR:

Astra rolls out in waves. ChatGPT, Work, Codex, and the API each flip on their own schedule, so a blank model list means nothing yet.
Codex tends to see it first. Install Codex, run /model, look for gpt-6-astra.
The API is the only path that does not wait on your plan. Add a card and call gpt-6-astra today.

Start where you already are

Open ChatGPT and click the model picker. Thirty seconds, no install.

What you should see depends on your plan:

Pro, Business, Enterprise. GPT-6 Pro runs on Astra and is rolling out in ChatGPT now.
Plus. Astra reaches you through ChatGPT Work and Codex first, then the main model list.
Free. Wait. OpenAI has not put Astra on the free tier.

If it is there, stop reading. You have it.

Then check Codex

Codex is OpenAI's coding agent and it lives in a terminal window. If that sentence made you want to close the tab, skip to the API section or wait out the ChatGPT rollout. Nothing below unlocks access early.

Still here? On a Mac, open Terminal and paste this one line:

terminal

curl -fsSL https://chatgpt.com/codex/install.sh | sh

Then:

Quit Terminal and open it again.
Type codex and press Return.
Choose Sign in with ChatGPT.
Type /model and look for gpt-6-astra in the list.

Astra needs Codex CLI 0.153 or newer. If you installed Codex months ago, run that same install line again. It updates in place.

If gpt-6-astra is missing from the list, your account is not enrolled yet. Installing Codex does not force access, and reinstalling it a third time will not either.

Or skip the queue with the API

The API bills separately from your ChatGPT subscription. That is the point. Your plan does not gate it, so this is the one path you control.

Go to platform.openai.com.
Open Billing and add a payment method.
Open API keys and click Create new secret key.
Copy the key somewhere private. You only see it once.
In your code or API tool, set the model to gpt-6-astra.

Never paste a secret key into a chat, a screenshot, or a public repo. Anyone holding it spends your money.

You pay per token used, so a few test calls cost cents, not a subscription.

When it still does not show up

Access depends on your account, your plan, your region, and where OpenAI is in the rollout. Those four move at different speeds, which is why Astra can appear in Codex on Tuesday and in your ChatGPT model list on Friday. That order is common. It is not a rule, and there is no button that reorders it.

Astra is also on Microsoft Azure and AWS Bedrock if you already run models through one of those.

Sources