# ChatGPT Shared Project vs Shared Chat Link: Which to Use > A shared chat link shows one conversation; a shared project gives people your chats, files and instructions. See what each reveals before you send it. Source: https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog/chatgpt-shared-project-vs-shared-chat-link · Updated 2026-10-16 · Free from Stepthrough (https://learn.ynteractive.com) Quick answer **Short answer:** [share a chat](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/shared-link) link when you want someone to read one conversation. Share a project only when you want a teammate to work in your files, chats and instructions. A shared chat link shows just that conversation. A shared project shows its chats, its files and its member list, and members can create new chats in it. The free [ChatGPT Projects lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice) shows what a Project holds before you decide to share one. Last updated October 16, 2026 [Take the free module →](https://learn.ynteractive.com/courses/chatgpt-for-everyday-work/7)Module 7 of the free [ChatGPT for Everyday Work](https://learn.ynteractive.com/courses/chatgpt-for-everyday-work) course, about 9 minutes. No account needed. By [Robert Breen](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/about) · Published October 16, 2026 · Updated October 16, 2026 · 4 min read ChatGPT · Projects · Privacy This guide is for owners and office managers who want a teammate to see ChatGPT work without handing over more than they meant to. Facts below come from [OpenAI](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/openai)'s Help Center as of October 2026. Sharing options vary by plan and workspace settings. ## What does a shared chat link show? A single conversation. From a private project, OpenAI says you can share one chat, and people with the link can view only that chat, not the project's other chats, files, instructions or history. For personal accounts, the link includes the content available when the link was created or updated. OpenAI also notes that your [custom instructions](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/custom-instructions) aren't shared with shared-link viewers, and that Memory Sources are not included. If you share a chat from a shared project, the recipient can't see that chat until they join the project. ## What does a shared project show? Much more. OpenAI says project members can view the project's chats, files and member list, and all members can view and download files added to the project. Members can create new chats and branch existing ones. You pick the access level for each person: - **Chat access:** see and use the project's chats, files and instructions, but not invite others. - **Edit access:** update instructions, upload or remove files and invite others (but not remove existing members). In a shared project, deleting a file removes it for everyone, though it can be added again later. ## How do I share a project, and who can join? Select **Share** in the project. Depending on your plan, you can invite people individually or share a link. On personal plans you can choose **Only those invited** or **Anyone with a link**. With **Anyone with a link**, any logged-in ChatGPT user who has the link can join, so use it with care. Business, Enterprise and Edu workspaces can also invite groups and share a workspace link. Collaboration limits depend on your plan, per OpenAI: Free is up to 5 files and 5 collaborators, Plus and Go up to 25 files and 10 collaborators, and Pro up to 40 files and 100 collaborators. ## What happens to memory and custom instructions? Shared projects automatically use project-only memory and can't be switched back. They don't have access to an individual member's memories, custom instructions or context from outside the project. That keeps your personal details out, but it also means the project's own instructions matter. Learn how to write them in [Turn a Great Prompt into Reusable Instructions](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/turn-chatgpt-prompt-into-project-instructions), and compare the settings in [ChatGPT memory vs custom instructions](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog/chatgpt-memory-vs-custom-instructions). ## Which should I use? - **A recap for your boss:** a shared chat link. - **A teammate who will keep adding to the work:** a shared project, with chat access unless they need to edit. - **A client:** neither, unless you have checked what is in the files, chats and instructions. Remove anything private first. Before sharing anything, read what the chat or project contains and leave out what the task doesn't need: card numbers, account numbers and health details. The [ChatGPT Data Controls lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-data-controls-protect-client-data) covers the privacy settings. ## Try it free, step by step **ChatGPT Projects: Keep Your Brand Voice, Files and Instructions in One Place**. Set up a ChatGPT Project with your brand voice instructions, your price list and your style guide, so every new chat already knows your business. You do every step yourself in a practice copy of ChatGPT, it checks your work as you go, and “Do it for me” finishes any step you get stuck on. Free, and nothing touches your real accounts. [Start the free lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice) [Or read the full step-by-step guide](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice) ## Key takeaways - A shared chat link shows one conversation only. - A shared project shows chats, files and members, and lets people add chats. - "Anyone with a link" lets any logged-in ChatGPT user join, so prefer invite-only. - Shared projects use project-only memory and ignore members' personal memories. - Check the contents before you share either one. ## Frequently asked questions **Can someone see my other chats if I share one chat link?** No. OpenAI says a shared conversation link gives recipients that conversation only, not the rest of the project or your history. **Can people edit a shared ChatGPT project?** Only if you give them edit access. Chat access lets members use the project's chats, files and instructions without inviting others. Edit access lets them update instructions and files. **Does a shared project use my personal memory?** No. OpenAI says shared projects use project-only memory and can't access an individual member's memories or custom instructions from outside the project. **Can a Free account share a project?** OpenAI lists project sharing on Free, Go, Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Edu, with limits that depend on your plan. ## Free lessons in this post - [ChatGPT Projects: Keep Your Brand Voice, Files and Instructions in One Place](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice): Set up a ChatGPT Project with your brand voice instructions, your price list and your style guide, so every new chat already knows your business. - [Turn a Great Prompt into Reusable Instructions](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/turn-chatgpt-prompt-into-project-instructions): Take a prompt you paste every week, sort it into permanent rules and fill-in blanks, put the rules in a ChatGPT Project, and test it with a one-line request. - [ChatGPT: Keep Client Data Safe, Set Up Your Team's Data Controls in 10 Minutes](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-data-controls-protect-client-data): A client asks if their files go into ChatGPT. Answer with confidence: set the data controls, memory, Temporary Chat and shared links, then hand your team a one-page AI… ## Watch it in a free lesson: ChatGPT Projects: Keep Your Brand Voice, Files and Instructions in One Place ### ChatGPT Projects: Your Brand Voice in One Place: video walkthrough Full walkthrough · 3:29 · with captions Set up a ChatGPT Project with your brand voice instructions, your price list and your style guide, so every new chat already knows your business. The whole lesson narrated step by step, recorded in Stepthrough’s simulated practice environment. [Watch it with chapters and the full transcript](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice#watch) From the free lesson [ChatGPT Projects: Keep Your Brand Voice, Files and Instructions in One Place](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-projects-brand-voice) ## Related terms Plain-English definitions, each with an example from a free lesson. [Shared link](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/shared-link) · [OpenAI](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/openai) · [Custom instructions (ChatGPT)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/custom-instructions) · [AI incident response](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/ai-incident-response) · [AI vendor risk assessment](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/ai-vendor-risk-assessment) · [Chat export](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/chat-export) · [Persistent agent](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/persistent-agent) · [Project instructions](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/project-instructions) [The full AI glossary](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) ## Visual guides The same ideas as quick visual guides: swipe through the slides, or read each one as text. - [Myth: A New ChatGPT Chat Is a Private Chat](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/visual/myth-new-chat-means-private): Myth vs fact: a new ChatGPT chat is saved like any other and memory can carry details. For a sensitive job, use Temporary Chat and remove names first. - [ChatGPT Data Controls for Client Data in 5 Steps](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/visual/ladder-chatgpt-data-controls): A step-ladder guide: turn off training, review shared links, decide on memory, use Temporary Chat and write the one-page rule, in 5 steps. [All visual guides](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/visual) ## Keep reading - [ChatGPT Projects vs Chats: Which to Use for Work](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog/chatgpt-projects-vs-chats): ChatGPT Projects vs regular chats: use a chat for one-off tasks and a Project for work you repeat, with instructions, files and memory kept together. - [ChatGPT Memory vs Custom Instructions: What's the Difference](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog/chatgpt-memory-vs-custom-instructions): Custom instructions are rules you write; memory is what ChatGPT picks up from your chats. See how each works, where to find them and which to use for work. - [ChatGPT Projects vs Custom GPTs: Which One Should You Use](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog/chatgpt-projects-vs-custom-gpts): ChatGPT Projects keep chats, files and instructions together; a custom GPT is a single-purpose assistant. Compare them and see which to build on. [All blog posts](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/blog) · [All free tutorials](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content)