Back to feed

Web search is now enabled by default

Jan 28, 2026
OpenAI/Codex CLICLI

Codex now enables web search for local tasks in the Codex CLI and IDE Extension. By default, Codex uses a web search cache, which is an OpenAI-maintained index of web results. Cached mode returns pre-indexed results instead of fetching live pages, while live mode fetches the most recent data from the web. If you are using --yolo or another full access sandbox setting, web search defaults to live results. To disable this behavior or switch modes, use the web_search configuration option:

  • web_search = "cached" (default; serves results from the web search cache)
  • web_search = "live" (fetches the most recent data from the web; same as --search)
  • web_search = "disabled" to remove the tool

To learn more, check out the configuration documentation.