The Decoder reported on 1 November that OpenAI is limiting how many paid ChatGPT accounts can share one payment card or one device. The change is part of its security measures. Past the limit, a user cannot start another subscription. On a device, they see "Device limit reached" and the account stops working there. Go, Plus and the three Pro tiers (100, 200, 500) count. Free, Business, Enterprise and Edu accounts do not. OpenAI's support page says logging out does not automatically free a spot.
The report gives no start date, no exact caps and no detail on how cards or devices are matched. The Decoder expects the limits to hit people who switched between paid accounts on one device to get more use from cheap flat-rate plans. OpenAI suggests credits or usage resets instead. The outlet says those tend to cost more than a second plan. Our inference: because logging out frees no spot, the count follows accounts tied to a device, not who is signed in.
Our reading is that a flat price per account leaks when one person can hold several, so OpenAI ties accounts to cards and devices. For buyers who sign for AI tools, heavy users may cost more once stacking stops. The report does not say business plans are affected.