How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
How to Use ChatGPT: Everything You
Need to Know
A complete user-friendly guide to working with the ChatGPT AI
Co-authored by Rain Kengly
Reviewed by Luigi Oppido
Last Updated: June 13, 2025 Fact Checked
Creating an Account | Entering a Prompt | Deleting Your Chat History | Q&A
Are you curious about ChatGPT? As a popular AI tool, ChatGPT can be used to
generate answers to prompts and requests, engage in conversation, and more. You
don't need to create an account to try out and access ChatGPT, though some
features like GPT-4o are only for users who have subscribed to the Premium version
of Chat-GPT. This wikiHow will show you how to get started using ChatGPT by
creating an account, entering prompts, and managing your account history.
Things You Should Know
You'll need an email address to create an OpenAI account.
Once logged in, click the new chat button on top-right of sidebar. Enter a
descriptive prompt and press "Enter" to send it.
To delete your history, click the profile avatar → "Settings" → "Delete all".
Part
1 Creating an Account
Go to https://chatgpt.com/auth/login in a web browser. You can use
1 a desktop or mobile browser. If you aren't logged into an existing
account, you'll see Log in or Sign up.[1]
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How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
You must have an email address to sign up for an account.
Click Sign up . This is the right button.
2
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Enter your email address and click Continue . You can also sign up
3 using your Google, Microsoft, or Apple account. To do so, click the
corresponding button.
If you register with a Google, Microsoft, or Apple account, skip to Step 6
once you're signed in.[2]
Create a password and click Continue . Your password must be at
4 least 8 characters long. Be sure to create a secure password.
Verify your email. OpenAI will send an email to your inbox that contains
5 a verification number. Open the message from OpenAI, then copy the
number into the field to verify your email address. If you don't see it, check
your spam or junk folder.
If you didn't receive the email, click Resend email.
Enter your full name and date of birth, and click Continue . You
6 can use a nickname if desired.
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Part
2 Entering a Prompt
Understand the limitations and risks. ChatGPT can be used to create
1 resumes and cover letters, solve formulas, and more.[3] While it learns
and updates frequently, the system isn't perfect. It's possible to receive false
information or answers that seem right but don't make sense. Be sure to
fact-check if you're using the answers as a reference.
If you want to use ChatGPT to write an essay for school, be aware that
there are many ways to detect AI influence in written works. If you simply
copy and paste from ChatGPT, it's very likely you'll be caught.
Always follow ChatGPT's usage policies; if you don't, your account may
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How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
be suspended or terminated.
EXPERT TIP
TYRONE SHOWERS
Technologist
Pay close attention to the content ChatGPT generates. If you use
ChatGPT often, you'll start noticing its patterns, like its tendency to
begin articles with phrases like "in today's digital world." Once you spot
patterns, you can refine your prompts to steer ChatGPT in a better
direction and avoid repetitive content.
Open https://chatgpt.com/ in a web browser. If this is your first
2 prompt, you'll see the prompt field on the home page. Otherwise, click
new chat icon in the top-right of sidebar.[4]
You can use ChatGPT without being logged in, though features are
limited.[5]
Enter a prompt or question. The AI relies on well-written prompts to
3 answer appropriately and correctly. Be as clear and informative as
possible; broad prompts usually lead to irrelevant answers. Better prompts
will lead to better answers.[6] Here are some popular examples—edit them
as needed:
Write an outline:[7]
"Write an outline for an essay about positive uses of AI chatbots in
schools."
"Create an outline for a short 2-page essay on disinformation in the
2016 election."
Write an essay:
"Write a 2000-word college essay that covers different approaches
to gun violence prevention in the United States. Include facts about
gun laws and give ideas on how to improve them."[8]
"Write a 4-page personal high school essay about the Israel-
Palestine conflict, showing that I feel conflicted and want a peaceful
solution."[9]
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How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
Write code:
"Write a Python function that reverses a string using a slice."
Paste a code and enter "What's wrong with this code?" [10]
Write a resume or cover letter:
"Create a professional resume template for a lawyer."
"Write me a cover letter that includes [your job experience]."
Click the arrow icon to send your prompt. You can also press Enter
4 on your keyboard. The AI will begin generating your response
immediately. If the prompt is too complex, you may need to break it into
parts to avoid hitting the word limit. This can cause the AI to stop mid-
sentence.
Enter additional information if needed. If ChatGPT needs more
5 information, you'll be asked to provide it. This may happen on prompts
with extensive requests, such as essays or cover letters. Input any other
details for your prompt to help ChatGPT generate a proper response.
EXPERT TIP
TYRONE SHOWERS
Technologist
Create clear prompts for chatGPT. ChatGPT might stop mid-
sentence due to temporary server overload from high traffic, or your
request requires extra analysis.[11] Try again after a few moments,
preferably with a clearer prompt. ChatGPT is constantly learning, and
these pauses are becoming less frequent.
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Part
3 Deleting Your Chat History
Hover a chat. You can see a list of all active or past chats in the left
1 panel. Hover the chat you want to delete to see a three-dot button and
click that.
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How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
Click the Delete button. This will be the bottom of dropdown menu.
2
Click the Delete button in popup. This will confirm your action to
3 delete the chat. If you want to cancel the action, click the Cancel
button instead.
The chat will be removed from your history.
Clear all history (optional). If you have a lot of chats you want to clear
4 all at once, you'll need to do so from your settings.
Click the profile avatar at the top-right corner.
Click Settings.
Click Delete all next to Delete all chats.
Click Confirm deletion to confirm.
If you want to turn off chat history completely, click the Data controls
tab and toggle off Improve the model for everyone.
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Community Q&A
Question
Is GPT-4 connected to the internet so that it's up to date on current
events?
Community Answer
Yes, if you toggle the "Search" button, it searches the web for current
events.
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How to Use ChatGPT: A Simple Guide for Beginners 30/08/25, 20:41
Question
Can ChatGPT generate images?
Community Answer
Yes, if you enter /image followed by a prompt into the textarea, this will
generate images.
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Tips
References
1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
5. https://open.uts.edu.au/insights/professional-development/chat-gpt/
6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
7. https://open.uts.edu.au/insights/professional-development/chat-gpt/
8. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
10. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFMVT3bcrJo
11. https://open.uts.edu.au/insights/professional-development/chat-gpt/
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