---
id: "openai-reasoning-best-practices"
title: "Reasoning best practices"
creator: "OpenAI"
creator_url: "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/reasoning-best-practices"
url: "https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/reasoning-best-practices"
level: "intermediate"
level_max: null
category: "prompting"
subcategory: "reasoning-and-structured-output"
region: "West"
license: "closed"
license_scope: "linked-resource"
models: ["openai-reasoning-models"]
source_date: null
date_added: "2026-10-18"
---

[Prompting](/prompting/index.md)

# Reasoning best practices

by [OpenAI](https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/reasoning-best-practices)

[Read the original →](https://developers.openai.com/api/docs/guides/reasoning-best-practices)

When to pick a reasoning model and how prompting them differs from chat models.

OpenAI explains situations where reasoning models are useful and how to give them suitable tasks. It is a helpful comparison point before reusing a prompt designed for a different model family.

Level: [Intermediate](/levels/index.md#intermediate)
Models: openai-reasoning-models
Category: [Prompting](/prompting/index.md)
Tags: [reasoning](/tags/reasoning/index.md)
Source date: date not stated
Added: 2026-10-18
Last verified: 2026-10-18
Status: ok
Prerequisites: Assumes basic LLM familiarity or the ability to read examples and configure a workflow.
Subcategory: [reasoning and structured output](/prompting/reasoning-and-structured-output/index.md)
Region: West
Original language: en
Access: free
Resource reuse: closed: No general open-reuse grant established from the inspected page. Closed is the conservative index bucket, not a legal finding; the resource is publicly readable. [Facet definitions](/about/index.md#facets)

Summary in our own words. Rights remain with the original creator. [Credit and correction policy](/about/index.md#credit-policy).

[Plain-text Markdown copy](/prompting/reasoning-and-structured-output/openai-reasoning-best-practices/index.md)