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codex - 💡(How to fix) Fix GPT-5.4 Fast mode often feels no faster than Standard, but still consumes credits at 2x

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What version of the Codex App are you using (From “About Codex” dialog)?

Version 26.415.40636 (1799)

What subscription do you have?

Pro

What platform is your computer?

macOS

What issue are you seeing?

I’m using Codex with GPT-5.4 and I have Fast mode turned on, but in practice it often feels very slow and sometimes not meaningfully faster than Standard at all.

The current UI says Fast mode is about 1.5x faster while consuming credits at 2x, but my real-world experience lately is that the speed difference is often negligible. That makes the pricing feel unfair during periods of apparent server congestion or degraded Fast-mode capacity.

Screenshot showing Fast mode selected:

<img width="924" height="480" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/4fd15bfb-9ef3-4ae6-a738-fad4bd9831d7" />

What steps can reproduce the bug?

  1. Open Codex App.
  2. Select GPT-5.4.
  3. Enable Fast mode from the speed menu.
  4. Use Codex normally across multiple prompts/tasks.
  5. Compare the perceived latency with Standard mode.

In my case, Fast mode often does not feel close to the advertised improvement, while still charging at the higher 2x usage rate.

What is the expected behavior?

If Fast mode is charging 2x credits, it should consistently provide a clearly noticeable speed benefit over Standard.

If the backend is congested and Fast mode cannot provide something close to its normal performance, then I think one of these should happen instead:

  • temporarily do not charge the full 2x rate, or
  • show a clear indicator that Fast capacity is currently degraded, or
  • automatically fall back to a lower billing multiplier when the speed benefit is not actually being delivered.

Additional information

I also want to ask whether other Pro users are seeing the same thing recently.

This seems related to Fast-mode billing / visibility discussions, but my main complaint here is specifically about the combination of:

  • very little real speed improvement,
  • GPT-5.4 feeling slow even with Fast enabled, and
  • still being charged at the higher 2x Fast-mode rate.

From a user perspective, paying 2x while not actually receiving the expected speedup feels pretty bad.

I also believe OpenAI has a responsibility to refund all Codex usage consumed by Pro and Plus users during periods when Fast mode performance is abnormally degraded.

extent analysis

TL;DR

The user may need to wait for an update or fix from the Codex App team to address the inconsistent Fast mode performance and billing issues.

Guidance

  • Verify that the issue persists across different tasks and prompts to rule out any task-specific performance variations.
  • Check the Codex App's official channels or community forums to see if other Pro users are experiencing similar issues with Fast mode performance and billing.
  • Consider providing more detailed feedback to the Codex App team, including specific examples of when the issue occurs and any relevant system or network conditions.
  • If the issue is confirmed to be related to server congestion or degraded Fast-mode capacity, the user may want to explore alternative modes or workarounds until the issue is resolved.

Notes

The issue seems to be related to the Codex App's backend performance and billing system, which may require an update or fix from the development team. The user's suggestion to refund affected users or provide a clear indicator of degraded Fast mode performance is a reasonable request.

Recommendation

Apply workaround: The user may need to temporarily switch to Standard mode or explore alternative modes until the Fast mode performance and billing issues are resolved. This is because the current Fast mode is not providing the expected speed benefit while still charging at the higher 2x rate.

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