# Codex with more than one ChatGPT account > Add each ChatGPT sign-in you own as a source. When one reaches its Codex limit, Shuriken moves your Codex chats to the next and they carry on. Source: https://shuriken.sh/blog/codex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts Add each ChatGPT sign-in you own as a source. When one reaches its Codex limit, Shuriken moves your Codex chats to the next and they carry on. Update By Shuriken Updated 27 October 2026 4 min read **Contents** Codex all day on a ChatGPT plan ends the same way sooner or later: the limit message, a stopped chat, and the ritual. codex logout, codex login as your other ChatGPT account, codex resume to find the session, then remind it where it was. Shuriken has done the opposite for Claude Code since day one. This post is about Codex, which gets the same treatment, with one honest difference we explain below. ## The short version # Add every ChatGPT sign-in you own as a source. Shuriken reads how much each one has left. When the one in use reaches your switch point, or OpenAI reports a limit, your Codex chats move to the account with the most room and keep going. You don't log out of anything. ## How Codex handles accounts on its own # The Codex CLI is signed in to one account at a time. It caches that sign-in in ~/.codex/auth.json (the CODEX_HOME variable moves the folder) or in your system's credential store ([OpenAI's auth docs](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/auth)). So the manual way to run two accounts is codex logout and codex login again, or a home folder per account and a habit of starting Codex with the right one ([a shell function per account, with the sessions folder linked so codex resume sees every chat](https://shuriken.sh/guides/codex-cli-switch-account)). That works. It just isn't automatic: Codex has no idea your second folder exists, and a chat that hits a limit stays stopped until you start over somewhere else. ## Add each ChatGPT sign-in as a source # In Shuriken, open Sources, add a Codex source and sign in with your ChatGPT account. Then do it again for the next account. Each sign-in is kept apart, so their tokens never mix, and Shuriken shows each account's use side by side. A source can also be an OpenAI API key. Turn on Switch to API keys (it's off by default) and keys take chats only once every subscription is out. A spend cap per fallback run, $25 by default, covers the whole run across every OpenAI key it uses, not each key on its own. There is more on how this works in [what a source is](https://shuriken.sh/blog/what-is-a-source). The Free plan holds two sources. Pro holds as many as you add. ## When it switches # The same rules as everywhere else in [source switching](https://shuriken.sh/features/source-switching): - At your switch point. 99% of what the app shows by default, and you can set it anywhere from 50% to 100%. - At a limit. If OpenAI reports a limit before your switch point, the chat moves at that moment. - Where to. The account with the most room left, on every device at once. - You see it. A "Switched to …" card in the chat says which account took over and why. If you would rather spread the work out, set How to Spread the work (our Distribute mode) and Shuriken moves to the account with the most left every 15 to 60 minutes. Switch now does it by hand. Shuriken moves a running chat to another of your own accounts when one reaches its limit, on every device. [Try Shuriken](https://shuriken.sh/) ## Codex moves when the turn ends # Here is the difference, said plainly. A Claude Code chat moves on its next request. Shuriken handles Claude Code's requests one at a time, so when the switch point is reached in the middle of a long task, the very next request goes out on the new account, subagents and workflows included. The task never notices. Codex chats move when the current turn ends. The turn that crossed your switch point finishes on its old account; the next turn starts on the new one, in the same chat. If OpenAI cuts the turn off with a limit before that, the chat moves right then. So with the default 99% switch point, a long Codex turn that starts at 98% can hit the limit before it finishes, and the chat moves when OpenAI stops it. If your Codex turns run long and you'd rather they never get cut off, set the switch point lower, say 90%. ## Codex limits move around # We are not going to print Codex limit numbers in a blog post. OpenAI's own help article says limits depend on your plan and on the size of the task, and points to its pricing pages for current figures ([OpenAI Help Center](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/11369540)). They also change from time to time. We keep a dated page instead: [Codex usage limits explained](https://shuriken.sh/guides/codex-usage-limits), with the source and the day we read it. If you are weighing Codex against Claude Code in general, [Claude Code vs Codex](https://shuriken.sh/compare/claude-code-vs-codex) is the fair comparison, and [Shuriken vs the Codex app](https://shuriken.sh/compare/codex-app) covers what OpenAI's own app does. ## Accounts you own # Source switching only uses the plans and keys you add. Add accounts you own and are entitled to use, for example a personal plan and the work seat you use for that work. Don't add someone else's login. OpenAI's terms say you may not share your account credentials or make your account available to anyone else ([Terms of Use](https://openai.com/policies/terms-of-use/)). Sharing a sign-in can put the account at risk. Where you need more room for a team, an API key is the cleaner route. The rest of what OpenAI says, from phone-number limits to Business workspaces, is quoted with its sources in [can you use two ChatGPT accounts with Codex](https://shuriken.sh/guides/chatgpt-multiple-accounts-codex-rules). ## Try it # Add a second ChatGPT sign-in, start a long Codex task, and watch the card appear when it's needed. [Try Shuriken](https://shuriken.sh/) on macOS, Windows or Linux. Try the free tool: [Codex limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/codex) Share [X](https://x.com/intent/post?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fblog%2Fcodex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts&text=Codex%20with%20more%20than%20one%20ChatGPT%20account)[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fblog%2Fcodex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts)[Hacker News](https://news.ycombinator.com/submitlink?u=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fblog%2Fcodex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts&t=Codex%20with%20more%20than%20one%20ChatGPT%20account)[Reddit](https://www.reddit.com/submit?url=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fblog%2Fcodex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts&title=Codex%20with%20more%20than%20one%20ChatGPT%20account)[E-mail](mailto:?subject=Codex%20with%20more%20than%20one%20ChatGPT%20account&body=https%3A%2F%2Fshuriken.sh%2Fblog%2Fcodex-multiple-chatgpt-accounts) ## Sources - [OpenAI: Codex authentication](https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/auth) (accessed 22 October 2026) - [OpenAI Help Center: Codex and ChatGPT plan usage limits](https://help.openai.com/en/articles/11369540) (accessed 22 October 2026) - [OpenAI Terms of Use](https://openai.com/policies/terms-of-use/) (accessed 22 October 2026) ## Frequently asked questions **Can the Codex CLI use more than one ChatGPT account on its own?** One at a time. The sign-in is cached in ~/.codex/auth.json (or under CODEX_HOME) or in your system's credential store. codex logout and codex login switch it by hand between sessions; Codex won't move a running chat to another account for you. **What happens to a Codex chat when its account runs out?** It moves to the ChatGPT account with the most room and carries on. A Switched to card in the chat names the account that took over and why. **Why does Claude Code switch mid-task but Codex only between turns?** Shuriken handles Claude Code's requests one by one, so the next request can go out on another account. Codex chats change account when the current turn ends, or at once when OpenAI reports a limit. **Can an OpenAI API key take over when every ChatGPT plan is out?** Yes. Add the key as a source and turn on Switch to API keys, which is off by default. Keys then take chats only once every subscription is out, and a spend cap per fallback run ($25 by default) stops the run. **Is it allowed to use several ChatGPT accounts this way?** Only add accounts you own and are entitled to use, and check OpenAI's terms. They say you may not share your account credentials or make your account available to anyone else. Source switching One account runs dry. The next one takes over. Add the Claude, Codex and Gemini accounts you own. At your switch point, your chats move to another of them and keep going. [Try Shuriken](https://shuriken.sh/) [How it works](https://shuriken.sh/features/source-switching) ## Keep reading - [Hot swapping: chats that move when an account runs out: Story 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Hot swapping AI accounts, the way Shuriken does it: your running chats move to another of your accounts when one nears its limit. What happens at 99%.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/hot-swapping-accounts) - [How Shuriken picks the next account: Story 27 Oct 2026 5 min read At your switch point (99% by default) or a limit, Shuriken moves your chats to the source with the most room. Expiring capacity goes first, API keys last.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/how-switching-picks-the-next-account) - [Distribute: spread work across accounts on a clock: Update 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Two modes: Rotation moves your chats only when an account runs out; Distribute moves them every 15 to 60 minutes to the one with the most left.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/distribute-mode) - [We were tired of logging in and out of Claude: Story 27 Oct 2026 3 min read Limit reached, /logout, /login, paste the context back. We did it so often we built Shuriken: chats move to an account with room by themselves.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/why-we-built-shuriken) - [The 5-hour clock starts when you do. So we start it.: Story 27 Oct 2026 4 min read Claude's 5-hour window only starts when you use an account, so an idle one wastes time. Shuriken starts its clock with one tiny background request.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/the-5-hour-clock-starts-when-you-do) - [Bring your own plans: we never bill model usage: Story 27 Oct 2026 3 min read Shuriken runs Claude Code, Codex and other agents with your own subscriptions and keys. We never resell tokens or add a margin.](https://shuriken.sh/blog/we-dont-bill-model-usage) - [Codex account switchers compared (2026): Comparison 27 Oct 2026 9 min read Codex Switcher, swapdex, cxs, codex-multi-auth and Shuriken compared: when each Codex account switch lands, what happens to your open chat, which devices.](https://shuriken.sh/compare/codex-account-switchers) ## Free tools - [Claude limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/claude) - [Codex limit reset tracker](https://shuriken.sh/tools/limit-resets/codex)