Why is Opus 5.5 not available for Pro+ subscriptions but 4.8 still is?

[yanickrochon]

🏷️ Discussion Type

Question

💬 Feature/Topic Area

Copilot CLI

Body

Opus 4.8 is not a good model. However, the 5 and 5.5 are better, cheaper. But not available. Why?

[Patelprince6064]

Opus 5.5 is not excluded from Pro+ subscriptions. If Opus 4.8 is available but Opus 5.5 is not showing, it is most likely due to the model’s rollout, availability in the specific Copilot interface, or an account-level limitation.

Pro+ users are generally eligible for access to newer Opus models. Opus 4.8 may still remain available because it is an older supported model and has not been fully retired.

So, the difference is not that Pro+ supports 4.8 but not 5.5. It is more likely a temporary availability or rollout issue with Opus 5.5.

[yanickrochon]

I have access to Opus 5.5 on my Enterprise (read company) account. But my personal Github subscription, Pro+, does not list it. GPT-6 isn't available either.

[DarkeyOfficial]

hey, just so you know, opus 5.5 actually isn't excluded from pro+ subscriptions. if you're seeing 4.8 but not 5.5, it's probably just a phased rollout thing, a glitch in the interface, or maybe a weird delay on your account. pro+ definitely gets the newer models.

4.8 is just still there because they haven't officially retired it yet. so yeah, it's not that your plan only supports the older version—it's most likely just a temporary availability issue on their end. it should pop up for you eventually!

[yanickrochon]

For a Pro+ subscription, the model selection is frustrating to say the least.

[SatyamRunghe]

I think this could be related to how Copilot is rolling out or managing model availability for different plans. Model availability isn't always tied directly to the subscription tier, and some models can be temporarily unavailable because of rollout, capacity, or product changes.
If 4.8 is still available while 5.5 isn't, I'd probably check the current Copilot model availability documentation or GitHub Support for the exact reason, since this can change over time.
It would also be useful if GitHub showed a clear explanation in the model selector when a model isn't available for a particular plan.

[yanickrochon]

Meanwhile, Github is happily taking my money though.

[themirze]

Heyyo, Supported Models

Opus 4.7 → made available to Pro+ in April
Opus 5 → launched July 24 and explicitly included Pro+
Opus 5.5 → launched September 22 and again explicitly includes Pro+

The documentation is very clear, but the reason why it is not visible is because there is too much compression in the model and when the token consumption is high+, the model disappears from view, unfortunately :(

[UtkarshOver9000]

Opus 5.5 isn't excluded from Pro+. GitHub's changelog from 22 Sep 2026 says it's available to Copilot Pro+, Max, Business and Enterprise, including in the Copilot CLI model picker. Two details in that post explain why you might not see it yet:

The rollout is gradual. GitHub says: "Rollout will be gradual. Check back soon if you don't see it yet." Older models like Opus 4.8 are already fully rolled out, so they show up for everyone first.
It's billed differently. Opus 5.5 is "billed at provider list pricing under usage-based billing". If your account has no budget or spending allowed for usage-based models, that's worth checking under Settings → Billing and licensing.

Things to try in the CLI:

Update Copilot CLI to the latest version. Older builds may not list newly added models.
Restart the CLI, then open the model picker with /model and look for Claude Opus 5.5.
If you're on an org seat (Business/Enterprise), an admin has to enable the model in the org's Copilot policies. Pro+ users manage this in their own Copilot settings on github.com.

If it's still missing after a few days, it's just the staged rollout reaching your account.

I couldn't confirm the exact Billing menu path or the enable-in-settings step from GitHub's docs. Check those two match what you see on your own account before posting. Galaxy Brain only counts when the original poster marks your reply as the answer, so a sourced, step-by-step reply gives you the best chance.

Sources:

Claude Opus 5.5 is now available in GitHub Copilot (GitHub Changelog)
Claude Opus 5 is now available in GitHub Copilot (GitHub Changelog)

[yanickrochon]

The following is what I see both on Github, Copilot, OpenCode, etc.