I’m unable to sign in to the ChatGPT Windows Desktop application because the authentication flow requires me to provide a mobile phone number, even though the same ChatGPT account works normally on the web.
I do not have a mobile phone number, so this completely prevents me from accessing ChatGPT Desktop.
After nearly two weeks of troubleshooting with OpenAI Support, the issue has now been escalated for further technical review, but it remains unresolved.
The problem
I can use ChatGPT Web normally with my existing Google-linked ChatGPT account.
However, I cannot sign in to the ChatGPT Windows Desktop application.
When I click Sign in, the Desktop app opens my browser and redirects me directly to:
“Phone number required”
The page contains an empty phone-number field and requires me to provide a mobile number and complete verification through:
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SMS
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WhatsApp
There is no existing phone number displayed.
There is no old, inaccessible, or incorrect number that I need to recover.
The page simply requires me to enter a new mobile phone number.
I do not have active cellular service or a mobile phone number, so there is no way for me to complete this authentication flow.
As a result, I am completely unable to access the Windows Desktop application.
Environment
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Canada / Québec
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Windows 11, fully updated
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ChatGPT Plus account
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ChatGPT Desktop installed through the Microsoft Store
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Desktop version when reproduced: 26.730.8199.0
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Google Chrome
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No VPN
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No proxy
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Videotron / Helix home Internet
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ChatGPT Web works normally with the same account
Authentication behavior changed after a Desktop update
The behavior also changed following a recent Desktop update.
Previously:
Desktop → Continue with Google → Google authentication → Phone number required
After the update:
Desktop → Sign in → Phone number required
Even Sign up now redirects directly to the same generic phone-verification page.
The phone-verification requirement therefore appears before I can even select or authenticate an account normally through the Desktop application.
OpenAI documentation appears inconsistent with this behavior
OpenAI’s current Help Center documentation states:
“Phone verification is no longer required for new OpenAI account creation or ChatGPT usage.”
I understand that OpenAI may require additional verification in certain circumstances.
But my issue is not:
“How do I receive an SMS verification code?”
I already understand that SMS/WhatsApp verification requires a supported mobile number.
The actual issue is:
Why is possession of a mobile phone number functioning as an absolute requirement for accessing ChatGPT Desktop on my account when ChatGPT Web works normally without it?
Support investigation
I have now had two OpenAI Support cases and have interacted with several support agents.
At their request, I provided:
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multiple complete screen recordings;
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a HAR capture of the authentication flow;
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a Chrome NetLog capture;
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ChatGPT Desktop version information;
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Windows information;
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browser and network information;
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ISP information;
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multiple reinstalls;
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Windows restarts;
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Wi-Fi and Ethernet testing;
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confirmation that no VPN or proxy is being used.
One OpenAI Support agent explicitly acknowledged:
“We also recognize that you have already completed extensive troubleshooting and provided a screen recording, HAR file, and Chrome NetLog, so we will not ask you to repeat those steps.”
Unfortunately, the next agent then asked me to provide:
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a HAR file;
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a screen recording;
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a Chrome NetLog.
Those were exactly the three diagnostic files the previous agent had already confirmed receiving.
I was later asked whether the phone number displayed on the verification screen was “old, inaccessible, or unexpected.”
Again, there is no phone number displayed at all.
After providing yet another short screen recording showing the complete Desktop sign-in flow and explicitly confirming that the phone-number field is empty, OpenAI Support finally acknowledged the actual issue:
“Since the issue remains specific to the Windows Desktop authentication flow while your existing account remains accessible through the web, the information you’ve provided will need further technical review to determine why the Desktop sign-in flow is requiring phone verification for your account.”
They also confirmed:
“We’ve documented the issue and the new recording for escalation under the applicable bug-review process.”
So the issue is now apparently under further technical review.
Current support case: #12722670
Similar reports
I found another recent report with almost the same core behavior:
That user can authenticate normally through ChatGPT Web using Google SSO, but Desktop/Codex redirects to “Phone number required.”
OpenAI Support responded in that thread that because Web works while Desktop/Codex presents phone verification, the user’s account and authentication flow require closer review.
There is also a much larger thread involving paid users being unexpectedly forced into phone verification during Codex/Desktop authentication:
That discussion contains well over 100 posts and eventually resulted in OpenAI reviewing cases individually.
Importantly, some users reported the same distinction relevant to my case: the problem was not an old or inaccessible phone number. The authentication system was requiring them to provide a phone number in order to proceed.
OpenAI has also publicly stated in another related case that it had applied an account-level mitigation for a Codex phone-verification loop:
This suggests that at least some Desktop/Codex phone-verification problems have required investigation or mitigation beyond normal end-user troubleshooting.
What I’m trying to determine
I would appreciate input from OpenAI staff or anyone familiar with the Desktop authentication system.
In particular:
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Has anyone else experienced ChatGPT Web working normally while Windows Desktop requires a new mobile phone number?
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Has anyone had this resolved without adding a mobile number?
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Could this be related to an account/authentication state that incorrectly routes Desktop users into the phone-verification flow?
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Are there other Windows users seeing this behavior after recent Desktop updates?
My goal is simple:
I want to be able to sign in to ChatGPT Desktop using my existing ChatGPT Plus account without being blocked by a requirement to provide a mobile phone number that I do not have.
I am happy to provide technical diagnostics privately to OpenAI, but I will not post HAR or NetLog files publicly because they may contain sensitive authentication or network information.
If anyone from OpenAI is reviewing related Desktop authentication issues, case #12722670 contains the diagnostic material and screen recordings for this particular case.