Windows 11 Copilot Now Offers Free GPT-5 Access with Fewer Limits
Windows 11 Copilot Now Supports GPT-5 with Fewer Restrictions
Microsoft has announced that its Copilot app in Windows 11 (and Windows 10) now fully supports the AI mode powered by GPT-5. This feature began rolling out on August 7 and is now widely available in the United States and other regions, attracting significant user attention.
How Copilot Leverages GPT-5
The Copilot app uses "Web routing" technology, which automatically identifies and extracts the new model from Azure. This design allows users to enable the "smart" or GPT-5 mode without updating the app. Compared to OpenAI's implementation, Microsoft's Copilot imposes more lenient usage restrictions. For example, free ChatGPT accounts are limited to 10 prompts to GPT-5 before downgrading to a weaker model (GPT-5-mini), while Copilot appears more generous.
Advanced Reasoning Capabilities
GPT-5 supports reasoning, automatically deciding whether to engage its "thinking" endpoint when answering queries. Free ChatGPT accounts are restricted to one thinking message per day, while ChatGPT Plus ($20/month) offers higher limits. In testing, Copilot's GPT-5 mode showed high usage rates, with users rarely encountering limits. Although the exact daily limit for Copilot remains unclear, testing revealed it could switch to "thinking" mode five times a day.
Performance and Accessibility
Copilot excelled in complex problem-solving tests, accurately answering diverse questions and successfully requesting GPT-5 reasoning multiple times. Accessing GPT-5 through Copilot is straightforward:
- Visit copilot.microsoft.com or download the Copilot app from the Microsoft Store.
- Log in with a Microsoft account.
- The smart mode activates automatically (users may need to wait briefly if it doesn’t appear immediately).
Key Points
- 🚀 Free GPT-5 Access: Copilot now supports GPT-5 with fewer restrictions than ChatGPT.
- 🤖 Advanced Reasoning: Automatically engages "thinking" mode for complex queries.
- 💻 Easy Setup: No app updates required; accessible via browser or Microsoft Store.
- 🔍 Global Availability: Rolled out in the U.S. and other regions since August 7.
