ChatGPT Ads in Europe: Open an Account and Launch a First Campaign

Eligibility, account setup, verification, billing, campaign settings, context hints and ads: a step-by-step guide to launching your first ChatGPT Ads campaign in Europe.

Published on September 27, 2026 · Strategy

To launch a first ChatGPT Ads campaign in Europe, create a business account at ads.openai.com, get your company verified, add a payment method, then build a campaign with an objective, a daily budget (€15 minimum for euro-billed accounts), ad groups described with "context hints," and your ads. Expect a review period before anything runs.

This walkthrough follows OpenAI's official documentation, read on September 30, 2026. If you're not sure yet what ChatGPT Ads is, where the ads appear or who sees them, start with our explainer ChatGPT Ads: what they are and how they work. As a running example we'll use Maison Sirop, a fictional maker of non-alcoholic craft syrups that sells online from Lyon, France, and wants to reach customers across Europe.

Can your business advertise on ChatGPT?

Check three things before you create anything. They'll save you days on an account that's going to be declined.

1. Country. The legal entity that advertises and gets billed must be based in an available country. Self-serve has been live across 31 European markets since August 31, 2026, including France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordics and Austria, and the UK and Switzerland are listed too. Check the current list on Ads Manager Availability.
2. Status. Ads Manager is for business accounts. Individuals can't sign up as advertisers, and an agency can't create an account on a client's behalf (it can be invited afterward).
3. Category. OpenAI's ad policies mainly allow lifestyle and household goods, local services, travel and experiences, and digital products or education. Alcohol (above 0.5% ABV), gambling, political content and individual job or housing listings are prohibited. Financial, legal and health services are generally prohibited outside the United States.

Maison Sirop passes all three: a French company, non-alcoholic products, a household goods category. A spirits brand would stop right here.

Step 1: create the advertiser account

Go to ads.openai.com. You need an OpenAI account; OpenAI recommends one tied to your work email, and you can create it during sign-up. OpenAI's account setup guide breaks what follows into five steps: create the account, complete onboarding and verification, fill in account details, set up billing, invite your team.

One person creates the account and becomes its owner, then invites everyone else.

Step 2: enter your company details carefully

The form asks for your company name, website, logo and industry, then the account's country, currency and time zone. Review those last three before you submit: OpenAI says they can't be changed after the account is created. Pick the wrong currency and you'll be opening a new account.

Step 3: get through verification

Next you answer a few verification questions through Persona. Your application then goes into review, where OpenAI checks among other things that your products are eligible for ads. You'll get an email once full access is granted. OpenAI notes that review can take a while because of volume, that it can't be expedited, and that opening a duplicate account only slows things down.

Step 4: finish your name, logo and billing

Once you have access, go to Settings, then Account Info. The account name and logo are what people will see in your ad, and ads won't serve until this is done. Then create a billing profile (legal name, invoice email, full address) and add a card. Finally, invite colleagues or your agency from Settings, Users, Invite.

Step 5: set up the campaign

A campaign holds your objective, budget, dates and targeting. OpenAI's page on creating campaigns covers every setting:

• Objective: Views (CPM), Clicks (CPC) or Conversions. You can't change it later; you'd have to create a new campaign.
• Budget: campaign total or daily. As of September 2026 the minimum daily budget is €15, £15 or CHF 20 depending on your currency. OpenAI suggests starting with a daily budget so you can watch delivery. Note that switching a total budget to daily can't be undone.
• Start and end dates, leaving the campaign enough time to gather data.
• Countries, and in some countries regions, cities or postal codes.
• Platforms, optional: Android app, Android web, desktop web, iOS app, iOS web.
• Custom audiences, optional. For campaigns targeting the EEA or Switzerland, OpenAI advises avoiding them while ad personalization isn't available there.

For a first test, Maison Sirop picks the Clicks objective, a modest daily budget, France only and every platform. The maximum bid is set at the ad group level; OpenAI recommends starting at $3 to $5 per click and shows a bid-strength indicator.

One trap to know about: some new accounts can only advertise in their home country at first. Targeting Germany or Belgium from a brand-new French account may do nothing until identity verification is approved and you've reached the required spend in France.

Step 6: write ad groups and context hints

An ad group bundles ads that answer the same customer need. OpenAI's example is a plumber who separates "emergency repairs" from "preventive maintenance." Each group gets context hints, phrases describing what you offer, who it's for and when it helps. They guide matching but aren't exact-match keywords.

Step 7: create the ads

An ad has a title, copy, an image and a landing page. OpenAI's ad creation guidance points the same way throughout:

1. Several variations per offer, each from a different angle, so the system finds more relevant moments.
2. A title that states the value, short and concrete rather than a slogan.
3. Copy that adds to the title instead of repeating it: benefit, use case, audience.
4. The most specific landing page (product or collection) rather than your homepage, with your UTM parameters in the URL.
5. A simple image that matches the title and copy.

Also make sure your site doesn't block the OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot crawlers; OpenAI requires that for landing pages. And don't mimic ChatGPT's interface in your creative, which the ad policies prohibit. Producing several consistent image variations is easier with a steady content workflow like the one in our guide to automating your social media.

Step 8: submit, monitor, adjust

Submit the campaign; every ad is reviewed before it can serve. In Ads Manager a live ad shows as "Serving." If it says "Not serving," hover over the status for the reason. The usual suspects, per OpenAI's FAQ: review not finished, account not verified, budget spent, end date passed, a payment issue.

To measure what happens after the click, create a data source in Ads Manager and install the OpenAI Pixel on your site, optionally alongside the Conversions API. In Europe, collect visitor consent where the law requires it, as OpenAI's Conversion Measurement page reminds you. Then read the numbers with a method; our piece on integrating AI into your marketing strategy explains how to tie tools to outcomes.

Your pre-launch checklist

• Entity based in an available country, category allowed.
• Country, currency and time zone checked before creating the account.
• Account name and logo filled in, billing complete.
• Two or three distinct ad groups, each with specific context hints.
• Several ads per group, specific landing pages with UTMs.
• OAI-AdsBot and OAI-SearchBot allowed on your site.
• Pixel installed and consent handled, if you track conversions.

Where does Oposto come in?

Oposto doesn't build your ChatGPT Ads campaigns and never buys ads for you. What it does is help you produce the content around your ads: it learns your brand from your website, generates posts, carousels and on-brand visuals, publishes them to your networks once you approve and measures what works. The Pro plan adds ad advice and analysis. Try Oposto free, no credit card required.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need an agency to run ChatGPT Ads in Europe?

No. Since August 31, 2026, a business based in one of the available European countries can sign up on its own at ads.openai.com. An agency can be invited to the account afterward, but it can't create it for the client.

How long before my first ad runs?

OpenAI doesn't give a timeline. The account goes through verification and review, then each ad is reviewed. Review can't be expedited, and a duplicate account slows it down.

Can I change my account currency later?

No. The country, billing currency and time zone you pick at creation can't be changed. If one is wrong, you need to create a new ad account.

Can I use custom audiences in Europe?

OpenAI advises avoiding them for campaigns targeting the EEA or Switzerland while ad personalization isn't available there. An inclusion audience also needs at least 25,000 matched users.