TRANSPARENCY INDEX · FROZEN 2026-08-27
OPENAI
Right of reply
Contacted 2026-08-28 via help.openai.com support chat, then email [email protected] (routed there by their own support). Replied.
Case 13935228, reply 2026-08-29 from [email protected]. Reviewed all seven disputed criteria (A3, C5, D1, D2, D4, D5, E2) and submitted no correction: no additional public evidence to change any classification. Explicitly endorsed the NOT VERIFIABLE reading on D4 and E2. Confirmed that from invoices issued 2026-04-01, detailed API costs are no longer on Enterprise invoices. Scope limited to published documentation.
Methodology and the 14-day process: the frozen RFC.
PRICING CLARITY
List prices per 1M tokens (input/output) published on an official page without login.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingCaptured 2026-08-28
Price unit is unambiguous (per 1M tokens; input vs output separated).
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingCaptured 2026-08-28
Page states an effective/updated date (attributable to a snapshot).
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingWe searched both the rendered HTML and the .md source of the pricing page and found no effective date, last-updated stamp or version marker. Your changelog dates individual model changes but leaves models that have not changed recently undated, so the table as a whole cannot be attributed to a date.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
Cached/batch/discount tiers (where offered) published officially.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingCaptured 2026-08-28
Promotional pricing labeled as promotional (with end date if time-limited).
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingCaptured 2026-08-28
BILLING PREDICTABILITY
How usage is metered is documented (tokenizer, counting rules, rounding).
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/token-countingCaptured 2026-08-28
Cached/prefix behavior is documented (automatic vs opt-in).
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/prompt-cachingCaptured 2026-08-28
A tool/formula to estimate request cost before sending is published.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/token-countingCaptured 2026-08-28
Known billing surprises (TTLs, write premiums, minimums) disclosed in docs.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingCaptured 2026-08-28
Historical prices are discoverable or retrievable on request.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/changelogCaptured 2026-08-28
SPEND OBSERVABILITY
Usage available per model in console/API (not only aggregated).
https://developers.openai.com/api/reference/resources/admin/subresources/organization/subresources/usage/methods/costsCaptured 2026-08-28
Token counts (input/output) reported alongside spend.
https://developers.openai.com/api/reference/resources/admin/subresources/organization/subresources/usage/methods/costsCaptured 2026-08-28
Per-request or per-API-key breakdown available.
https://developers.openai.com/api/reference/resources/admin/subresources/organization/subresources/usage/methods/costsCaptured 2026-08-28
Usage/cost export exists (CSV/API) without premium tier.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001072-how-do-i-export-monthly-usage-details-from-the-api-usage-dashboardCaptured 2026-08-28
Near-real-time spend tracking (sub-hour refresh) exists.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10478918-reviewing-api-usage-and-costsYour costs endpoint supports only daily buckets, and the one place your documentation addresses one-minute granularity states that it applies to usage data and not billing data. We took that as a positive statement rather than an absence.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
BILLING / INVOICE QUALITY
Invoices line-item by service/model.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001072-how-do-i-export-monthly-usage-details-from-the-api-usage-dashboardYour own help centre states that for Enterprise customers, starting with invoices issued on 1 April 2026, detailed API costs are no longer provided on invoices, and that this is replaced by the export flow. We recorded this as a documented change rather than as an absence, and we intend to describe it that way.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
Invoice shows unit quantities and rates, not only totals.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001072-how-do-i-export-monthly-usage-details-from-the-api-usage-dashboardThe same April 2026 change removed unit quantities along with the rest of the detail, and rates were not on the invoice before it. The usage export is now the only documented route to unit-level data.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
Usage CSV/API and invoice are reconcilable without manual mapping.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/20001072-how-do-i-export-monthly-usage-details-from-the-api-usage-dashboardCaptured 2026-08-28
Invoice/notification includes readable date range and currency.
https://help.openai.com/en/articles/6640792-api-billing-and-invoice-timingCaptured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
Billing docs/invoices available via API for automation.
https://developers.openai.com/api/referenceWe searched the full Admin API reference, including its resource sidebar, for the word invoice and found no occurrences and no invoices resource. Your costs data is automatable; the invoice document appears to be console-download only.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
DISCLOSURE
Data-use-for-training policy is clearly published.
https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/your-dataCaptured 2026-08-28
Energy/environmental information is clearly published (yes/no — never a grade).
https://openai.com/index/stargate-community/We found official, dated environmental content on infrastructure and siting, but no energy information attributable to API usage and no sustainability report we could locate. We did not score this NOT MET, because official material does exist and we could not establish the absence of a report from public sources.
Captured 2026-08-28 · re-verified against the live page 2026-09-13
Pricing/support changes are communicated before taking effect.
https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/Captured 2026-08-28
Terms specify billing, refund and cancellation terms unambiguously.
https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/Captured 2026-08-28