Abstract Ionic driving forces provide the net electromotive force for ion movement across receptors, channels, and transporters, and are a fundamental property of all cells. In the nervous system, fast synaptic inhibition is mediated by chloride permeable GABA A and glycine receptors, and single-cell intracellular recordings have been the only method for estimating driving forces across these receptors (DF GABAA ). Here we present a tool for quantifying inhibitory receptor driving force named ORCHID: all-Optical Reporting of CHloride Ion Driving force. We demonstrate ORCHID’s ability to provide accurate, high-throughput measurements of resting and dynamic DF GABAA from genetically targeted cell types over multiple timescales. ORCHID confirms theoretical predictions about the biophysical mechanisms that establish DF GABAA , reveals differences in DF GABAA between neurons and astrocytes, and affords the first in vivo measurements of intact DF GABAA . This work extends our understanding of inhibitory synaptic transmission and demonstrates the potential for all-optical methods to assess ionic driving forces.