Developer settings

ChatGPT web stores product and workspace preferences in ChatGPT settings. Work conversations run in a managed environment and don’t read local Codex configuration files. Use the controls your workspace exposes in ChatGPT settings; workspace administrators may manage some settings for you.

The general Settings page covers app preferences, including profile, keyboard shortcuts, notifications, appearance, personalization, memories, and archived tasks.

Project and terminal behavior

Choose where files open, how much command output appears in tasks, and where terminal tabs open by default.

Code review

Under Settings > Git, use Review delivery to choose Inline to run /review in the current task when possible or Detached to start a separate review task.

IDE extension sync

When the ChatGPT desktop app and IDE extension are open in the same project, they share active tasks and editor context. Turn on IDE context from the app composer to let Codex use files currently open in your editor. Turn it off when you want the app prompt to exclude that editor context.

You can open an app task from the IDE extension and continue an IDE task in the app. Both surfaces use the same project to determine which tasks and context to share.

Agent configuration

Codex agents in the app inherit the same configuration as the IDE extension and CLI. Use the in-app controls for common settings, or edit config.toml for advanced options. See Agent approvals and security and Config basics for details.

Git

Use Git settings to standardize branch naming and choose whether Codex uses force pushes. You can also set prompts that Codex uses to generate commit messages and pull request descriptions.

Integrations and MCP

Connect external tools through Model Context Protocol (MCP). Enable recommended servers or add your own. If a server requires OAuth, the app starts the authentication flow. These settings also apply to the Codex CLI and IDE extension because MCP configuration lives in config.toml. See Model Context Protocol for details.

Browser developer mode

Under Developer mode, turn on Enable full CDP access to let ChatGPT use the Chrome DevTools Protocol for performance profiling and deeper browser debugging. If your organization has disabled full CDP access, you can’t enable it locally. See Developer mode for setup, risk, approval, and administrator requirements.

Codex CLI reads your personal defaults from ~/.codex/config.toml. Add a .codex/config.toml file to a trusted project or subfolder when you need project-specific overrides. The CLI and IDE extension share these configuration layers.

Inspect your settings

Use these commands to understand the effective settings for the current session:

• Run /status to see the active model, approval policy, writable roots, and token usage.
• Run /debug-config to see the configuration layers in precedence order and the source of managed policy requirements.
• Start Codex with --strict-config to treat unrecognized config.toml keys as errors instead of ignoring them.

See Developer commands for the full interactive command reference.

Change settings for one run

Use a dedicated flag when one exists. Common examples include --model, --sandbox, --ask-for-approval, --profile, and --search. Use -c or --config to override any supported configuration key for one run:

codex --model gpt-5.5
codex --profile deep-review
codex --config model_reasoning_effort='"high"'

Command-line flags and --config values have the highest precedence. For the complete flag list, see Developer commands.

Configuration layers

The CLI applies command-line flags and --config overrides before project, profile, user, system, and built-in settings. Use that precedence to keep shared defaults in configuration files and one-off changes on the command line.

For the complete order and common options, see Config basics.

Change settings in the TUI

The interactive terminal UI provides pickers for common session and display settings:

Some commands apply only to the current session, while some pickers offer to save the choice. Set the related configuration key when you want a default for future sessions. For the terminal theme, editor, completions, and shortcut workflows, see CLI customization.

Settings references

• Advanced configuration covers profiles, one-off overrides, and other advanced workflows.
• Configuration reference lists the available keys and values.
• Sample configuration provides a complete example file.
• Environment variables documents variables used by the CLI and installer.

The Codex IDE extension has two settings layers:

• Codex settings control agent behavior shared with Codex CLI, including the model, reasoning effort, permissions, sandbox, MCP servers, and personalization. Codex reads these settings from config.toml.
• Editor settings control how the extension behaves inside VS Code and compatible editors. These settings use chatgpt.* keys in the editor’s settings system.

Open Codex settings

Select the gear icon in the Codex sidebar, then select Codex Settings. Use the settings panel for common agent controls, or select Open config.toml to edit the active configuration layer directly.

For the configuration layer order and common keys, see Config basics. For every supported config.toml key, see the Configuration reference.

Change an editor setting

To change a setting, follow these steps:

1. Open your editor settings.
2. Search for @ext:openai.chatgpt, Codex, or the setting name.
3. Update the value.

The extension also honors VS Code’s built-in chat font settings for Codex conversation surfaces.

Editor settings reference

The chatgpt.* keys above belong to the IDE extension and don’t go in config.toml. For shared agent settings, use Config basics, Advanced configuration, and the Configuration reference.