Guide · updated Oct 27, 2026

How to publish a Codex or ChatGPT plugin (2026)

You've built a plugin. There are three ways to get it in front of people: submit it to OpenAI's Plugins Directory, publish it from your own GitHub repo as a marketplace, and list it in the community directories. Most makers do all three. Checked Nov 2, 2026.

1. The official Plugins Directory (OpenAI review)

ChatGPT and Codex share one public plugin directory. On July 9, 2026 OpenAI moved the old ChatGPT app directory into it, so "submit a ChatGPT app" now means submitting a plugin. A plugin can be skills only, an MCP-backed app, or both.

You submit through the plugin submission portal on the OpenAI Platform. Per OpenAI's submit guide and upload and submit docs:

• Upload the built package as a ZIP and fix any required setup or validation errors the automated checks find.
• If it connects to an MCP server, include five positive test cases, three negative test cases, a video walkthrough and release notes. If sign-in is needed, give reviewers a test account that works without MFA or email codes.
• Fill in the listing details (name, logo, description, company and privacy policy URLs) and the policy attestations, then submit for review.
• OpenAI says review timelines vary. Once you're approved, you choose when to publish, and then it shows up in the directory in both ChatGPT and Codex.

2. Your own GitHub repo marketplace (no review, works today)

You don't need OpenAI's approval to share a plugin. Put a .agents/plugins/marketplace.json in your repo that lists the plugin, and anyone can install it:

codex plugin marketplace add owner/repo
codex plugin add plugin-name@marketplace-name

Put those two lines at the top of your README. Workspace admins can also import and sync a GitHub marketplace for their team. Before you push, run your manifest through our plugin.json validator, and test the install from a clean machine with the steps in how to install a Codex plugin.

3. Community directories (free listings)

• PickAPlugin (us). Listing is free: send the repo on the submit page. If you're already in a list we read, you show up automatically. Listed makers can add a "Listed on PickAPlugin" badge to their README.
• awesome-codex-plugins (hashgraph-online on GitHub). An awesome list that's also an installable marketplace. It requires a scanner score to get in.
• HOL Plugins (hol.org/plugins). A free directory with trust scores, from the same team.
• CodexStacks, Codex Harness, Codex Marketplace. Independent catalogs. Some pick up public repos on their own, and Codex Marketplace has a submit flow. See how the directories compare.

If your plugin bundles an MCP server, list the server too. Here's every place to submit an MCP server.

What helps people actually install it

• One plain sentence at the top of the README saying what it does and who it's for.
• A copy-paste install line. Most directories, ours included, lift it straight from the README.
• A license file. Without one, a lot of people won't touch it.
• Recent commits. Directories show the last update date, and stale repos get skipped.
• Say what it can read and write. If it runs hooks or shell commands, say so up front. That's the first thing careful users check (here's what they look for).

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