Sites: build and publish websites

Build a small website with Sites, review a saved version, and publish it for the intended audience. Sites is managed in ChatGPT on the web or in the desktop app; Codex can help prepare and test a compatible local source project.

Before you start

• Sites access in ChatGPT. Sites is in public beta for Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise, and Edu, subject to plan limits and workspace settings.
• A short brief with the audience, purpose, pages, approved text, and the action visitors should take. Have any photos or logo files you have permission to use ready.
• A decision about who should visit the site. Public publishing depends on workspace settings and is off by default in Enterprise.
• For an existing local project: a saved copy, the correct project folder open in the desktop app, and permission to make any compatibility changes.

Want to do it yourself?

Difficulty

6 out of 10

Estimated completion time

1–3 hours for a small first site

Skills you’ll need: Write a clear page brief, review generated content, and test the preview and published result across screen sizes.

I’ll do it myselfI’d rather get help

How this helps your brand

A reviewed Site gives your intended audience a place to understand your offer and use its main action. Deliberate sharing and deployed-link checks help the published experience match what you approved.

1. 1

   Step 1: Start Sites with a bounded brief

   Open Sites in the ChatGPT desktop app, or select More, then Sites on ChatGPT web. Include the word website in your request or mention @Sites to start the workflow explicitly.

   Begin with a simple information site, such as a café’s home page, menu, and contact page. Supply the real business details and ask for missing information to be marked rather than invented. The prompt below requests a saved version without deploying it.

   For an existing local project, ask Codex to inspect compatibility and explain required changes first. Sites does not support every framework, database, private network, or background service.

2. 2

   Step 2: Inspect the first version as a visitor

   Review the generated content and behavior. Read every price, date, address, and contact detail against your brief. Follow each menu link and test the main action, such as calling the café.

   Check wide and narrow layouts. Look for headings that overflow, unreadable text, and controls that are hard to use. Report a precise change, such as a contact button that points at the wrong number, then retest it.

3. 3

   Step 3: Save and identify the version to publish

   Ask ChatGPT to save a version without deploying, and confirm which version is ready for review. For a local source project, inspect the source changes and any database migrations before proceeding.

   Saving a version and deploying it are separate stages. Every Sites deployment URL is a production deployment. If you need further review before anything is live, keep working with a saved version and do not request deployment yet.

   If the build fails, ask for the exact error, the required compatibility change, and a repeat of the failed check. Do not treat a saved source folder or a failed build as a successful hosted site.

   Illustrated exampleA reviewed version is the handoff to publishing

   Illustrative project · Harbour Café

   1. BuildVersion 1

      Menu page exists. Opening hours still need correction.

      Needs changes
   2. SaveVersion 2

      Hours corrected. Call link ready to test on a phone.

      Saved for review
   3. ReviewVersion 3

      Menu, hours, navigation, and call link checked.

      Reviewed · still saved

   A separate request names the version and audience

   “Deploy the reviewed Version 3 of Harbour Café for public visitors, if public publishing is available. Return the production URL.”

   Production deployment

   Confirm success, then test the returned URL.

   Keep reviewing a saved version until you are ready for it to go live.

4. 4

   Step 4: Choose the audience and deploy the reviewed version

   Review the Site’s access settings and choose the narrowest audience that meets your purpose. A new Site is limited to its owner and workspace admins until you change access. Available choices depend on the account and workspace.

   When you have accepted the content and behavior, ask ChatGPT to deploy the specific reviewed version and return its URL. Confirm the selected audience as part of that request. If public publishing is unavailable, resolve workspace access or keep the site restricted.

   A site’s visitor access setting is separate from a sign-in feature built into the site. Check both if the project includes sign-in or saved visitor data.

5. 5

   Step 5: Test the deployed link with the intended audience

   Open the deployment URL and repeat your page, link, and main-action checks. For limited sharing, have an intended viewer sign in with the account granted access. For a public site, test a signed-out browser as well.

   If someone cannot open the site, verify the sharing setting and the account they used before changing code. If the deployed behavior is wrong, reopen the Site, request a focused fix, review the new version, and deploy it deliberately.

   Illustrated exampleTest access as the people who will visit

   Use the deployed URL

   Opening it as the owner is only the first check.

   Test accountSelected viewersPublic site

   Site ownerYour usual account

   Selected viewers Opens

   Public site Opens

   Invited viewerThe exact account granted access

   Selected viewers Opens after sign-in

   Public site Opens

   Signed-out visitorA separate signed-out browser

   Selected viewers Access required

   Public site Opens

   Open HomeRead MenuTest Call café

   Cannot open the site? Check the sharing setting and viewer’s account first. Once it opens, repeat the page and main-action checks.

6. 6

   Step 6: Keep a clear update and recovery path

   Return to Sites to reopen and refine the website. Keep track of the version you reviewed and the URL you shared. Ask ChatGPT to list saved versions when you need to identify an earlier candidate.

   If you need to remove visitor access, restrict sharing to yourself or selected people and check that the previous audience can no longer open it. Deleting a Site is permanent, so use access settings when the goal is simply to take it out of circulation.

Use Sites to build a small website.

Business or project: [name and purpose]
Audience: [intended visitors]
Visitor’s main action: [call, read information, or another concrete action]
Pages: [required pages]
Approved content: [paste exact text, contact details, and other facts]
Visual references and files: [references and assets, or none]
Intended audience after publishing: [private, selected viewers, workspace, or public]

First build and save a version without deploying it. Use only my supplied facts; mark missing details clearly. Check navigation, the main action, and wide and narrow layouts. For an existing local project, inspect compatibility first and explain required changes. Return the saved version reference, what I should review, test results, and unresolved issues. I will review it before requesting deployment.