openai/plugins-quickstart
OfficialGet a ChatGPT plugin up and running in under 5 minutes!
Plugins-quickstart is OpenAI's official Python starter template, archived since 2024, that shows how a ChatGPT plugin manifest and TODO-list API used to work. It is a frozen snapshot now that OpenAI's own README points builders toward GPT Actions instead.
Our Review
Plugins-quickstart pulled in 4,235 GitHub stars and 705 forks during the single year ChatGPT plugins existed as OpenAI's official third-party integration model. OpenAI archived the repository in 2024, but its README still tells you plainly what to build instead.
What this quickstart teaches:
- •A working plugin manifest the repo wires up an
ai-plugin.jsonmanifest plus an OpenAPI spec so ChatGPT could discover a TODO-list API automatically. - •A minimal FastAPI backend
main.pyimplements the TODO-list endpoints the manifest points at, in well under 100 lines of Python. - •A local plugin installation flow step-by-step instructions for enabling "Develop your own plugin" mode in the old ChatGPT UI and pointing it at localhost:5003.
- •The deprecation notice, in OpenAI's own words the README states plugins "have been superseded by GPTs" and links straight to the GPT Actions docs, making this repo a documented handoff point rather than a dead end.
Where this fits in OpenAI's timeline:
- •2023 ChatGPT plugins launch as OpenAI's first third-party integration model; this repo ships as the official Python starter.
- •2024 OpenAI retires the plugin store and archives this repository, replacing it with Custom GPTs and GPT Actions.
- •2026 OpenAI's current integration surface is the Apps SDK behind "Apps in ChatGPT," the third architecture in three years for connecting external tools to ChatGPT.
Getting started:
Clone the archived repo, run pip install -r requirements.txt, then python main.py to start the FastAPI server on port 5003. The install and manifest-discovery steps still work exactly as documented, since the code has not changed since January 2024: only the ChatGPT UI that consumed it has been removed.
Limitations:
The repository is archived and read-only, so its 35 open issues will never be triaged and pull requests cannot be merged. The plugin-installation flow it documents no longer exists in the ChatGPT UI, so the only genuine use for this code today is reading the pattern, not deploying it. Anyone building a real ChatGPT integration in 2026 should start from OpenAI's GPT Actions or Apps SDK documentation instead.
Our Verdict
Plugins-quickstart is a frozen snapshot of how OpenAI wanted developers to connect ChatGPT to external APIs in 2023, not a tool to build on in 2026.
For developers, the value here is historical: reading a real ai-plugin.json manifest next to a working FastAPI backend is a fast way to understand the plugin-era architecture before comparing it to OpenAI's current GPT Actions or Apps SDK conventions.
Teams researching why OpenAI moved away from the plugin model, or writing documentation that references the ChatGPT plugin era, will find this repository more useful as a primary source than any retrospective blog post, since the deprecation notice sits right in the README, in OpenAI's own words.
Skip if you actually want to ship a ChatGPT integration today. Start from OpenAI's GPT Actions or Apps SDK documentation instead, since neither the manifest format nor the installation flow this repo teaches functions in the current ChatGPT product.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is openai/plugins-quickstart?
Plugins-quickstart is OpenAI's official Python starter template for the ChatGPT plugin system, a feature that let ChatGPT call external APIs through a JSON manifest and an OpenAPI spec. The repository ships a minimal FastAPI backend for a TODO-list app plus step-by-step instructions for installing it inside ChatGPT's old plugin-development mode. OpenAI released it in April 2023 and it earned 4,235 stars before the plugin system itself was retired.
Is openai/plugins-quickstart still maintained?
No. GitHub marks the repository as archived and read-only, and its last code push was in January 2024. The 35 open issues on the repo will never be triaged, and pull requests cannot be merged because OpenAI locked the repository after retiring the ChatGPT plugin feature it supports. Treat the code as a historical reference, not a starting point for a new integration.
What replaced ChatGPT plugins?
OpenAI replaced ChatGPT plugins with Custom GPTs and GPT Actions in 2024, then moved again by 2026 to the Apps SDK, which now powers Apps in ChatGPT. The README inside this repository states the change directly: plugins have been superseded by GPTs, with a link to OpenAI's GPT Actions documentation. Anyone building a ChatGPT integration today should start from the current Apps SDK docs instead of this repo's manifest format.
Is openai/plugins-quickstart open source?
Yes. The repository is released under the MIT license, OpenAI's standard permissive license for its open-source developer tools, so the code can be freely copied, modified, and reused even though the repo itself is archived. It has 705 forks, mostly from 2023 and early 2024 when developers were building their own ChatGPT plugins from this exact template. Being MIT-licensed and archived are independent facts, since the license never expires even though the project is frozen.
Can I still build a ChatGPT plugin with this repository in 2026?
Not in any way that ChatGPT will recognize. The plugin-installation flow this repo documents, selecting Develop your own plugin from ChatGPT's model picker, was removed from the ChatGPT product after OpenAI deprecated plugins, so pointing ChatGPT at a locally running manifest no longer works. The Python code itself still runs fine as a standalone FastAPI TODO-list API; it simply has no path back into ChatGPT anymore.
What is plugins-quickstart?
Plugins-quickstart is OpenAI's official Python starter template, archived since 2024, that shows how a ChatGPT plugin manifest and TODO-list API used to work. It is a frozen snapshot now that OpenAI's own README points builders toward GPT Actions instead.
How do I install plugins-quickstart?
Visit the GitHub repository at https://github.com/openai/plugins-quickstart for installation instructions.
What license does plugins-quickstart use?
plugins-quickstart uses the MIT license.
What are alternatives to plugins-quickstart?
Explore related tools and alternatives on My AI Guide.
Open source & community-verified
MIT licensed: free to use in any project, no strings attached. 4,235 developers have starred this, meaning the community has reviewed and trusted it.
Reviewed by My AI Guide for relevance, quality, and active maintenance before listing.
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