Codex Users Report Runaway Quota Burn, Blame New Astra Model
From September 16 to 18, OpenAI Codex users flooded channels with complaints about abnormally fast quota consumption, pointing to the new Astra model and a suspected tightening of rate limits; OpenAI has made no public response.
Confirmed
- On September 16, Plus user crunchy-rabbit ran a controlled test: the first task of the day — asking Sol Medium to look up a single name — burned 8% of the 5-hour quota and 1% of the weekly quota, whereas a week earlier the same query could run dozens of times without hitting limits.
- Pro user dontshootog said the 5-hour limit returned after Astra's launch, with usage running at 2.5x Sol's, losing 2% quota every 5 minutes; he judged Astra less than 10% more efficient than Sol, making it a bad deal.
- Reddit user seasonedatheist reported the $100 Codex plan's weekly quota drained in about 3 hours on Astra, and found Anthropic's (which they called Fable) limits noticeably better.
- Developer altryne measured over 80% of the weekly quota consumed in a single day after reset, using medium non-fast mode, questioning the "for everyone" marketing.
- Hugging Face engineer NielsRogge publicly complained Codex had become unusable — generating just two paragraphs triggered the usage limit again — and tagged Codex lead Thib.
- Developer ElitzaVasileva (relayed by Jason Kneen) reported 7% quota left with 3 days to reset, no spare resets, and the 20x tier paused for purchase amid a large code migration; Reddit user Junra described the same squeeze: consumption spiked after reset, an added 5x pack drained at 5-10x weekly speed, and even buying another 20x was blocked by OpenAI.
- Another user joked that the $200 subscription's 7-day Astra allowance could fit in a small bag.
Unconfirmed
- The exact cause of faster burn (billing coefficient changes, tighter quotas, or Astra's inherent consumption) remains user speculation; OpenAI has not explained.
Why it matters
- The issue spans all paying tiers from Plus to $200, with high tiers both rate-limited and blocked from purchasing more, directly hurting heavy workflows; several users are already comparing Anthropic's limits favorably, which could drive subscription churn.
2026-09-16 ~ 2026-09-18 · 8 related posts
- Episode 1: OpenAI Codex Active Users Exceed 15 Million with Reset Quotas(2026-08-12, 4 posts)
- Episode 2: OpenAI Codex Users Report Quotas Drained Rapidly, Quality Complaints Mount(2026-08-19, 4 posts)
- Episode 3: OpenAI Codex Hits 20 Million Active Users, Resets Usage Credits(2026-08-21, 4 posts)
- Episode 4: OpenAI Admits Codex Cache Hit Rate Dropped After Users Report Quota Anomalies, Promises Compensation(2026-08-22, 7 posts)
- Episode 5: OpenAI Users Complain of Frequent Usage Limits Without Reset(2026-08-22, 2 posts)
- Episode 6: OpenAI Admits Three Codex Bugs, Resets All Paid Usage(2026-08-23, 6 posts)
- Episode 7: OpenAI Restores 5-Hour Codex and Work Usage Limits for ChatGPT Plus(2026-08-25, 4 posts)
- Episode 8: OpenAI Codex Users Report Quotas Draining Abnormally Fast(2026-09-05, 5 posts)
- Episode 9: Codex Users Report Runaway Quota Burn, Blame New Astra Model(2026-09-16, 8 posts)
- Episode 10: Users Flee $200 Codex Plan as Credits Burn in Days, Claiming Claude Offers 5x Value(2026-09-27, 3 posts)
Primary sources
- [source] Codex users report suddenly tighter usage limits: one simple query burns 8% of 5-hour quota — crunchy-rabbit · 2026-09-16
- [source] OpenAI Pro users hit 5-hour limits again as Astra burns quota 2.5x faster than Sol — dontshootog · 2026-09-16
- Codex power users stuck: 7% quota left, 3-day wait, 20x plan paused — jasonkneen · 2026-09-16
- [source] OpenAI's Astra burns through Codex $100 plan weekly quota in 3 hours — seasonedatheist · 2026-09-17
- Heavy user burns through Astra quota in about a day, questions the 'for everyone' pitch — altryne · 2026-09-17
- Codex hits usage limit after just two paragraphs, engineer complains — NielsRogge · 2026-09-17
- Codex $200 tier's 7-day Astra usage limits mocked as tiny enough to fit in a bag — CtrlAltDwayne · 2026-09-17
- Codex Pro User Says Usage Limits Got 5-10x Worse, Can't Even Buy Another Plan — Junra · 2026-09-18