Setup guide
Connect Giraffe to ChatGPT.
Turn on Developer mode in ChatGPT on the web, add Giraffe as a custom app, then @-mention it to use it.
Which route applies to you
Giraffe is not in ChatGPT's plugin directory yet, so searching for it there will not find it. You add it yourself as a custom app in Developer mode — that is the route below.
If Giraffe is listed in the directory later, connecting will be a single Connect button and none of the Developer mode steps will be needed.
Free and Go cannot connect. Paid plans can, on the web — saving may depend on your plan and workspace. Who can connect
In a hurry
- Check you're on a paid plan — Free and Go can't connect.
- Turn on Developer mode — a free switch in your ChatGPT settings.
- Go to Settings, then Apps, and click Create.
- Paste Giraffe's connection address and pick OAuth to sign in.
- Click Scan Tools and sign in to Giraffe, then click Create.
- In a chat, @-mention Giraffe or use + then More to use it.
Giraffe’s address
You’ll paste this in during setup.
Giraffe's connection address
https://mcp.withgiraffe.com/mcp
Setting up
Turn on Developer mode
WebDeveloper mode is a free switch in your own settings — it is not an upgrade, and it only lets you add tools OpenAI has not listed itself. It sits in one of two places depending on your account: look under Settings, then Apps, then Advanced settings first; if it is not there, look under Settings, then Security and login.
If neither matches what you see, search your ChatGPT settings for "Developer mode" — OpenAI's own pages list both locations, so either can be right depending on your account.
Settings, then Apps, then Create
WebGo to Settings, choose Apps, and click Create to start a new app connection.
What you should see: A blank app form asking for a name and a server address.
- Enabled apps
- Create
The Apps section of ChatGPT settings — diagram, not a screenshot Paste Giraffe's address
WebPaste Giraffe's connection address — the one in the copy field above — into the server field.
Create app
Name
Server address
https://mcp.withgiraffe.com/mcp
Authentication
OAuth
New app form — diagram, not a screenshot Choose OAuth as the sign-in method
WebPick OAuth from the authentication options. That is what lets ChatGPT sign in to your Giraffe account rather than asking you for a key.
What you should see: The form accepts it without asking for any extra credentials.
Click Scan Tools, then sign in
WebScan Tools is what triggers the sign-in prompt. Approve the connection with your Giraffe account when it appears.
What you should see: A list of what Giraffe can do, pulled in after the sign-in succeeds.
Create app
MCP server endpoint
https://mcp.withgiraffe.com/mcp
Scan ToolsNew app form, ready to scan — diagram, not a screenshot Click Create
WebFinish by clicking Create. Your app now appears under Enabled Apps with a Dev label.
After you connect
Adding Giraffe isn’t the same as using it. This part is easy to miss and the reason a fresh connection can feel like it’s “not working.”
Find it under Settings, then Plugins
WebYou set it up under Apps and you will find it afterwards under Plugins — that is not a mistake in these instructions. OpenAI renamed this area to Plugins on 9 July 2026 and both names are still in the interface. (It is unrelated to the separate, retired 2023 "plugins" feature.)
@-mention it, or use + then More
Any platformChatGPT doesn't reach for your app on its own — type @ and the app's name in a message, or click + then More and select it. For a developer-mode draft app, choose Developer mode from the + menu first, then select it.
This is the step people skip. Creating the app without invoking it means ChatGPT never touches Giraffe.
- Add photos & files
- More
- Developer mode
The + menu inside a ChatGPT conversation — diagram, not a screenshot Expect an approval prompt on saves
Any platformThe default approval level is "Important actions" — ChatGPT reads freely but asks before it writes anything. For a raw developer-mode app, that choice is remembered for the current conversation only; a new conversation asks again. That's expected, not a bug. Change the level to Always ask, Any changes, or Never ask in the app's own settings if you'd rather.
Who can connect
Availability depends on your ChatGPT plan and workspace settings. Free and Go cannot connect. On paid plans it works through Developer mode on the web — but whether saving works, and whether ChatGPT asks you to confirm each save, depends on your plan and, in a Business or Enterprise workspace, on your administrator.
Verified by Giraffe
- Giraffe's own test — On 12 August 2026 we connected a real ChatGPT Plus account, on the web with Developer mode on, and it both read from Giraffe and saved to it. So saving is not blocked for Plus in practice — whatever the documentation below says. One caveat we hit: it does not work inside a ChatGPT Project, and ChatGPT asks you to approve each save.
Per the provider's docs
- Free and Go — Cannot connect. Developer mode is listed as unavailable on these plans. ChatGPT pricing
- Saving on Plus and Pro — OpenAI's own pages disagree, so we will not tell you it definitely works or definitely does not. The help centre says full MCP — including saving — is Business, Enterprise and Edu only, and describes Pro as read-only. The developer documentation lists Plus and Pro as eligible and says read versus write is decided per tool by the server, not by plan. Both are current. Try it; if a save is refused, that is why. Developer mode and MCP apps (help centre)
- The other side of that conflict — The developer documentation states developer mode gives full MCP support for all tools, both read and write, subject to your confirmation settings. ChatGPT developer mode (developer docs)
- On a phone — Developer mode and custom apps are web only. There is no mobile setup path. Developer mode and MCP apps (help centre)
- Agent mode and Deep Research — Agent mode cannot use custom apps at all. Deep Research can read from Giraffe but cannot save to it. Developer mode and MCP apps (help centre)
Depends on your setup
- Business, Enterprise and Edu — An administrator turns developer mode on and publishes the app; members cannot add one themselves. An admin can also restrict an app to read-only or switch it off entirely, whatever your plan otherwise allows.
- Everyone — OpenAI labels this beta and says functionality, UI and permissions may change. If a step here does not match what you see, that is the most likely reason.
If something’s not working
I can't find the Developer mode toggle.
OpenAI's help centre and developer docs list two different locations — Settings, then Apps, then Advanced settings; or Settings, then Security and login. Check both, or search Settings for "Developer mode". You'll also need a plan that supports it — see "Who can connect" further down.
I'm on Pro and can't save anything to Giraffe.
This is the one genuinely ambiguous part. OpenAI's help centre says saving is Business, Enterprise and Edu only; its developer documentation says Plus and Pro can use every tool a server exposes, read or write. We have seen saving work on a real account, so it is worth trying — but if ChatGPT refuses, the plan limit in the first document is the likely reason, and a Business or Enterprise workspace is the documented way around it.
I'm on Plus — will saving work?
Developer mode is available on Plus, but OpenAI hasn't published whether that includes write access. We can't confirm it either way — try it and see what Scan Tools shows.
I created the app but ChatGPT never uses it.
Creating an app doesn't mean ChatGPT will reach for it automatically. @-mention it by name, or use + then More — see "After you connect" above.
It keeps asking me to approve every save.
The default level is "Important actions": reads are free, writes ask first, and for a developer-mode app that approval resets each new conversation. Change it in the app's own settings if you want it to ask less — or more.
Can I set this up from my phone?
No — creating a developer-mode app is web only, per OpenAI's own FAQ. Set it up on a computer; using an already-created app afterwards may work depending on the ChatGPT app version.