I subscribed to ChatGPT Plus for a simple reason: ChatGPT is the AI tool I use more than anything else. I turn to it for research, to make sense of things that completely go over my head, and even to create images. But surprisingly, the feature I use most has almost nothing to do with chatting with an AI.
And that’s where things get a little strange. I’m not a web developer. I’ve never wanted to become one, and I certainly didn’t expect ChatGPT to change that. Yet somehow, one ChatGPT feature has me building things I never thought I could, and it has basically turned me into a web developer without me even trying.
Apparently, I’m a web developer now
I just describe what I want, and it builds it
ChatGPT Sites is basically what made me realize I don’t need to know the first thing about web development to actually build something useful. It lets me create, host, refine, and eventually share interactive websites, lightweight web apps, and dashboards, all by describing what I want in normal, everyday language. There’s no staring at a blank code editor wondering where to begin, and I don’t need to understand HTML, CSS, JavaScript, or whatever else is usually involved.
Instead, I can start with something as simple as, “Build me a website for tracking all the phones I’m currently testing,” or ask for a dashboard where I can track story ideas, deadlines, and progress. I could even describe a small tool I wish existed, explain how I’d use it, and let ChatGPT figure out how to turn that idea into something I can actually click around and use.
What I particularly like is that I don’t even need to arrive with a perfectly thought-out prompt. I can give ChatGPT Sites a rough idea, and it starts filling in the gaps by asking me questions. What should the site look like? What information needs to be on the homepage? Do I want a sidebar or tabs? Should there be buttons, filters, charts, or forms? Is there anything I specifically don’t want? It almost feels like talking through an idea with a developer, except I don’t have to translate what’s in my head into a technical language first.
Once those decisions are out of the way, it starts putting everything together. And yes, building a site can take some time, especially if I’ve asked for something more complicated. But I’m perfectly fine with that. I’d rather spend a little time answering questions and refining what I want than spend days learning how to build the same thing from scratch.
My workday now runs on 25-minute sprints
One of the first things I built with ChatGPT Sites was something I genuinely needed: a motivational productivity website designed entirely around the way I work. I have a terrible habit of doomscrolling when I’m supposed to be working, and because I work from home, it doesn’t take much to distract me. One minute I’m checking Instagram during a break, and 20 minutes later, I’m somehow watching a completely random video that has absolutely nothing to do with what I was supposed to be doing.
So, instead of downloading yet another productivity app and trying to fit my routine around it, I asked ChatGPT Sites to build something around my routine. The main feature I wanted was a Pomodoro timer, similar to Windows’ Focus Sessions. When I’m ready to work, I start a 25-minute timer and concentrate on one task without jumping between tabs, checking social media, or convincing myself that I need to watch something. When the timer ends, I get a five-minute break. After four sessions, I can finally take a longer 20-minute break before starting again.
But I didn’t want this to be just another timer sitting in a browser tab. That’s where building the website myself became much more useful. I added a to-do list so I can see exactly what I need to finish that day, my schedule so I know what’s coming up next, and the Pomodoro timer right alongside everything else. I can open one page on my Mac in the morning and immediately see what I’m working on, what I need to get through, and how much focused time I’ve actually put in.
And because I built it with Sites, I could keep tweaking it around my routine. I could change how the timer worked, add new sections, or remove anything that felt distracting. Instead of adapting my workday to someone else’s productivity app, I was building one around how I actually work.
That’s probably what surprised me most. I started with a fairly simple idea to keep myself away from distractions, but ended up with a productivity hub I actually enjoy keeping open throughout my workday. And considering I didn’t have to write a single line of code to make it, it’s also the kind of thing I never would have thought I could build myself.
My random ideas are now buildable
That’s really what keeps me coming back to Sites. I’ve been using it to build things that solve problems in my workflow and make everyday life a little easier. Not everything I create needs to be groundbreaking, either. Sometimes, it’s just a simple tool that does exactly what I need. And I’m still discovering what Sites can actually do. Whenever I have an idea that could make something easier, I can build it, experiment with it, and keep refining it until it works for me. That freedom to turn a random idea into something I can actually use is exactly why Sites has become one of my favorite features of ChatGPT.