# HB Code and the ChatGPT desktop app > HB Code next to the ChatGPT desktop app, OpenAI's own app with a Codex mode: price, platforms, agents, sign-in, and phone access, with sources. The ChatGPT desktop app is OpenAI's own app, and Codex is a mode in it. You choose ChatGPT or Codex when you start. HB Code is a separate app by another company, helpful bits GmbH. It runs Codex on your ChatGPT sign-in and Claude Code on your Claude account, on your own Mac or Windows PC. ## The main difference The ChatGPT desktop app is the maker's own product for Codex. Its docs say that Codex runs tasks in the cloud or on a connected computer. They also say that worktrees let it run independent chats in one project. HB Code is made by another company. OpenAI didn't make HB Code and doesn't endorse it. HB Code runs Codex in your project folders on your own computer only. HB Code also runs Claude Code. Both agents work in one app, and a Codex session can send a message to a Claude Code session. HB Code runs its own build of OpenAI's open-source Codex app-server, which comes inside the app. You get a newer Codex with an HB Code update. ## Side by side | Topic | HB Code | ChatGPT desktop app | | --- | --- | --- | | License and source | Not open source. The source isn't public. | The Codex CLI is a separate product with a public repository under the Apache-2.0 license. The sources below name no license for the desktop app. | | Price | The desktop app needs no payment. A phone gets a 10-day connected preview and then needs HB Code Pro from the App Store or Google Play. | Included in the ChatGPT plans. The pricing page lists Free at $0, Go at $8, and Plus at $20 per month, and Pro plans from $100 per month. | | Desktop | macOS 12 or later on Apple silicon, and Windows 10 version 1809 or later on x64. No Linux app. | macOS and Windows. The Linux app is in preview, with packages for x64 and ARM64. | | Phone and web | iPhone with iOS 18 or later and Android 8.0 or later. No web app. | The ChatGPT mobile app on iOS and Android, with Cloud or a connected Mac or Windows PC. The maker states that availability depends on rollout and workspace settings. | | Coding agents | Claude Code and Codex. | Codex, OpenAI's own agent. | | Agent sign-in and billing | Claude Code is the unchanged executable of Anthropic's Claude Agent SDK. Codex is HB Code's own build of OpenAI's open-source Codex app-server. Both run on your own Claude and ChatGPT sign-in, and HB Code includes neither plan. | You sign in with ChatGPT for subscription access, or with an API key for usage-based access. | | Account with the maker | None for work on the desktop. Remote access and the phone apps need an HB Code account. | A ChatGPT account. The phone signs in to the same ChatGPT account and workspace. | | Where the agent works | In your project folders on your own computer. HB Code creates no worktrees and lists the ones that the repository has. No cloud. | In the cloud or on a connected computer, with git worktrees for independent chats in one project. On Windows it runs natively or in WSL2. | | How the phone reaches the desktop | Through HB Code's relay server over TLS. The connection isn't end-to-end encrypted. The server passes the content and doesn't store it. | Through what the maker calls a secure relay layer, with the same ChatGPT account on the phone. Remote hosts run the ChatGPT desktop app on macOS or Windows. | | Accounts and usage limits | Several Claude accounts and ChatGPT subscriptions. Settings › Agents lists each one with its limit windows, and the phone apps show the same windows. | A usage dashboard on the web shows your current limits, and /status shows the remaining limits in a Codex CLI session. | | Usage analytics in the app | No analytics or crash-report SDK in the desktop app or the phone apps. The desktop app sends one daily usage signal, with a random ID not linked to your account, only if you allow it. With remote access on, the server keeps device status data. | Not described in the sources below. | ## ChatGPT desktop app: when it fits better - You want the maker's own app for Codex. - You want Codex to run tasks in the cloud. - You want worktrees for independent chats in one project. - You work on Linux, or you use ChatGPT Voice, Computer Use, plugins, or scheduled tasks. ## HB Code: when it fits better - You use Claude Code as well as Codex and want both in one app. - You have more than one ChatGPT subscription and want each listed with its limit windows. - You want a Codex session and a Claude Code session to send messages to each other, for example for a review. ## Sources - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/app - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/pricing - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/auth - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/mobile - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/remote-connections - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/environments/git-worktrees - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/linux/linux-app - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/windows/windows-app - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/features/voice - https://learn.chatgpt.com/docs/enterprise/chatgpt-work-local-security - https://learn.chatgpt.com/llms.txt - https://github.com/openai/codex We read these pages on October 9, 2026. Prices and features can change after that date. If a statement on this page is wrong or out of date, tell us and we'll correct it. [Write to support](https://www.hbcode.ai/support) ## More comparisons - [Compare HB Code and T3 Code](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/t3-code.md) - [Compare HB Code and Paseo](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/paseo.md) - [Compare HB Code and Conductor](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/conductor.md) - [Compare HB Code and Happy](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/happy.md) - [Compare HB Code and Nimbalyst](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/nimbalyst.md) - [Compare HB Code and Claude Desktop](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives/claude-desktop.md) - [All comparisons](https://www.hbcode.ai/alternatives.md) ## Guides - [How to check usage limits and use more than one account](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-usage-limits.md) - [How to check what Claude Code or Codex did](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-ui.md) - [How to run several Claude Code and Codex sessions](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-sessions.md) - [How to use Claude Code or Codex on your phone](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-mobile.md) - [How to see what the subagents of Claude Code do](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-subagents.md) - [How to try Claude Code and Codex on the same task](https://www.hbcode.ai/claude-code-vs-codex.md) - [How to run Codex in a desktop app on Mac and Windows](https://www.hbcode.ai/codex-desktop-app.md) - [Download HB Code](https://www.hbcode.ai/downloads)