Subscribe to ChatGPT Plus at a Lower Price with a Türkiye Apple ID: Tested iPhone Workflow

ChatGPT Plus is priced differently across regional App Stores. In Türkiye, for example, the monthly price for ChatGPT Plus is 500 Turkish lira (TL). Based on the exchange rate and fees at the time of payment, that works out to under RMB 80. Compared with the U.S. price of USD 20 per month (about RMB 145), the cost is significantly lower.

This article outlines a tested subscription process using an iPhone + Türkiye-region Apple ID + App Store gift card. It is intended for users who want to subscribe to ChatGPT Plus with an App Store balance. This guide is based only on testing with an iPhone; Android has not been tested.

Note: Cross-region subscriptions may be affected by the rules of Apple, OpenAI, and gift card platforms. Prices, payment success rates, and availability may all change. Please assess the account, payment, and after-sales risks yourself, and try to buy gift cards through legitimate channels.

Core Idea

The process is not complicated:

1. Register a Türkiye-region Apple ID;
2. Log in to that account in the App Store on your iPhone;
3. Buy a 500 TL Türkiye App Store gift card;
4. Redeem the gift card to the Türkiye-region Apple ID;
5. Download ChatGPT from the Türkiye App Store and subscribe to ChatGPT Plus using the App Store balance.

In testing, when purchasing a 500 TL gift card, the actual charge was 514.95 TL, including an approximately 3% service fee. Based on the exchange rate at the time, the total cost was roughly under RMB 78.

Preparation

Before starting, it is recommended to prepare the following:

• An email address that has not been used to register an Apple ID;
• An iPhone;
• A domestic Visa card;
• A domestic mobile number that can receive SMS messages, preferably one that has not previously been linked to an Apple ID;
• A Türkiye virtual address and phone number for billing information.

The “cleaner” the email address and phone number are, the higher the chance of successful registration. If the phone number has previously been linked to another Apple ID, you may encounter account creation failures.

Step 1: Register a Türkiye-Region Apple ID

Open the following in your browser:

Using an incognito window is recommended to reduce interference from cache, existing login sessions, and other factors.

After entering the page, click Create Apple Account in the upper-right corner, then fill in the registration information:

• Name: you can enter an English name;
• Country/region: choose Türkiye;
• Email: enter the new email address prepared in advance;
• Phone number: enter your domestic mobile number in the format +86 followed by the number.

If the page says that the account cannot be created at this time, a common reason is that the phone number or email address has previously been associated with an Apple ID. Try switching to an unused phone number or email address.

After registration is complete, Apple will send a verification email. It may end up in the spam folder, so check both your inbox and spam folder.

Step 2: Log In to the Türkiye Account in the App Store

Open the App Store on your iPhone:

1. Tap the profile icon in the upper-right corner;
2. Scroll to the bottom of the page and sign out of the current account;
3. Log in with the Türkiye-region Apple ID you just registered.

After the first login, the system may ask you to complete payment information and a billing address.

For the payment method, you can choose None. The billing address needs to be a Türkiye address; fill in the street, city, postal code, and other information as required by the page. For the phone number, you can enter your own domestic mobile number.

If the App Store is still not set to Türkiye after logging in—for example, if prices are not shown in TL—go to the Apple account management page and confirm whether the country or region is shown as Türkiye. If not, adjust it manually.

Step 3: Buy a 500 TL App Store Gift Card

Open the gift card platform:

Find the gift card section in the top navigation of the website and select the 500 TL App Store gift card.

The purchase process is as follows:

1. Click SEPETE EKLE to add it to the cart;
2. Go to the checkout page;
3. Fill in the billing information:
   • Name: English name;
   • Email: enter your own email address;
   • Phone: select the Türkiye flag and enter a local Türkiye mobile number. Do not add 0 before the number.
4. Pay with a domestic Visa card.

After entering your bank card information during payment, the page may load briefly. Wait a few seconds. It will usually then redirect to the bank verification page, where you can enter the SMS verification code received on your phone to complete the payment.

In testing, the payment amount was 514.95 TL, about a 3% service fee above 500 TL. After payment succeeds, the gift card redemption code will be sent to the email address you entered.

Step 4: Redeem the App Store Gift Card

Make sure the iPhone is currently logged in to the Türkiye-region Apple ID, then open the App Store:

1. Tap the profile icon in the upper-right corner;
2. Select Redeem Gift Card or Code;
3. Manually enter the redemption code received by email;
4. Confirm that the account balance shows 500 TL.

After this is complete, the balance can be used for in-app purchases in the Türkiye App Store.

Step 5: Subscribe to ChatGPT Plus

To avoid issues caused by region settings or app cache, it is recommended to first uninstall any existing ChatGPT app from your phone, then search for and download it again from the Türkiye App Store.

After opening ChatGPT, log in with your original OpenAI account. There is no need to register a new OpenAI account.

In the app:

1. Open Settings;
2. Find the entry point for upgrading to Plus;
3. Confirm that the price is shown as 500 TL/month;
4. Tap to subscribe.

The system will automatically deduct the fee from the App Store balance you just topped up, and the subscription is usually activated immediately.

If you see an invalid address prompt during subscription, go back to the Apple ID payment information page, re-enter a Türkiye billing address, and try again.

After the subscription is complete, you can switch the App Store back to your main everyday account. There is no noticeable difference in the ChatGPT Plus experience.

Notes After Subscribing

After completing the subscription, there are a few more things worth handling:

• Subscriptions paid with a gift card balance may not always renew automatically: you may need to buy and redeem another gift card next month;
• Check subscription management: if you do not want the system to keep trying to charge you, you can turn off auto-renewal;
• Choose reputable platforms for gift cards whenever possible: individual sellers may be cheaper, but the risk is higher, and invalid codes or after-sales issues are harder to resolve;
• Prices can change: exchange rates, fees, platform policies, and subscription prices may all be adjusted. The actual amount is subject to the payment page.

Summary

The key to the whole process lies in two steps: registering a Türkiye-region Apple ID, and buying and redeeming a 500 TL App Store gift card. The remaining steps are basically standard App Store login, top-up, and in-app subscription operations.

Based on the tested payment amount, the monthly cost of subscribing to ChatGPT Plus through the Türkiye region is around RMB 80 or less, significantly lower than the U.S. price of USD 20 per month. However, cross-region subscriptions always carry uncertainties such as rule changes, payment failures, and after-sales issues. This method is best suited for users who are willing to bear the operational cost and risks themselves.