> Markdown copy of https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits (State of free AI credits: how much is on offer, and who can get it | Perq), generated 2026-10-25. Index of every page for agents: https://perq.sh/llms.txt. Search API and MCP server: https://perq.sh/agents.
> $2,362,802 in stated free AI and cloud credits across 61 live offers; median startup program $25,000; 44.8% of offers need no application. Updated 2026-10-25.

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# State of free AI credits

Free AI credits are vendor-funded credits, free tiers and startup programs for AI APIs, GPUs and cloud. Across the 61 live offers on Perq that state one explicit amount, vendors list $2,362,802 in maximum one-time credits; the median startup program states $25,000, and 44.8% of all 174 live offers need no application.

Last updated Oct 25, 2026 from the live dataset (latest source check Oct 25, 2026, 6:05 AM ET). Regenerated on every daily run. Published by [Avatar 8](https://perq.sh/about). Download: [CSV](https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits.csv) · [JSON](https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits.json) · [Methodology](https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits#methodology) · [How to cite](https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits#cite)

**$2.36M** stated one-time USD credit, 61 live offers (sum of maximums)

**$25,000** median startup program (28 of 66 state a USD amount)

**44.8%** of live offers need no application (78 of 174)

**7** offers changed and 3 closed since Oct 17, 2026

## Stated credit by category

Sum of explicitly stated one-time USD maximums among live offers. Categories whose offers are all free tiers or monthly allowances show $0 here even when the free usage is substantial.

| Category | Live offers | No application | With a stated USD amount | Stated USD total | Largest stated offer |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Cloud & GPU](https://perq.sh/category/cloud-gpu) | 41 | 17 | 26 | $1,521,920 | [Google Cloud: Up to $350,000 in Cloud credits over two years](https://perq.sh/offers/gcp-startup-program) · [source](https://cloud.google.com/startup) |
| [Databases & backend](https://perq.sh/category/database-backend) | 15 | 7 | 7 | $321,150 | [Neon / Databricks: Up to $200K in credits for Neon and Databricks (self-funded: up to $1,000 Neon credits)](https://perq.sh/offers/neon-startups) · [source](https://neon.com/startups) |
| [LLM APIs](https://perq.sh/category/llm-api) | 26 | 18 | 8 | $171,017 | [Anthropic (Claude): Up to $100K in additional API credits, claimed through your VC](https://perq.sh/offers/claude-startups-vc-credits) · [source](https://claude.com/programs/startups) |
| [Agents & automation](https://perq.sh/category/agents-automation) | 21 | 13 | 5 | $126,300 | [Daytona: Up to $100k in Daytona credits](https://perq.sh/offers/daytona-startup-grid) · [source](https://www.daytona.io/startups) |
| [Voice & audio](https://perq.sh/category/voice-audio) | 13 | 8 | 6 | $103,315 | [Deepgram: Up to $100,000 in credits over 12 months](https://perq.sh/offers/deepgram-startups) · [source](https://deepgram.com/startup-program) |
| [Observability & analytics](https://perq.sh/category/observability) | 14 | 6 | 2 | $60,000 | [PostHog: $50,000 in PostHog credits for 12 months + $12,000 partner benefits](https://perq.sh/offers/posthog-startups) · [source](https://posthog.com/startups) |
| [Developer tools](https://perq.sh/category/dev-tools) | 17 | 1 | 4 | $55,100 | [Vercel: Up to $30,000 in Flexible Commitment Amount + Enterprise-tier access](https://perq.sh/offers/vercel-startups) · [source](https://vercel.com/startups) |
| [Perk marketplaces](https://perq.sh/category/perk-marketplace) | 9 | 0 | 1 | $2,500 | [Stripe Atlas: $2,500 in Stripe product credits for the first year + over $50,000 in partner discounts](https://perq.sh/offers/stripe-atlas-perks) · [source](https://stripe.com/atlas) |
| [Image & video](https://perq.sh/category/image-video) | 4 | 2 | 2 | $1,500 | [fal: $1,000 in credits to start, growing to $5,000 as your fal usage scales](https://perq.sh/offers/fal-startup-program) · [source](https://fal.ai/startup-program) |
| [Vector databases](https://perq.sh/category/vector-db) | 8 | 6 | 0 | $0 | — |
| [Productivity](https://perq.sh/category/productivity) | 5 | 0 | 0 | $0 | — |
| [Accelerators](https://perq.sh/category/accelerator) | 1 | 0 | 0 | $0 | — |

## By offer type

| Offer type | Live offers | With a stated USD amount | Median stated | Stated USD total |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Startup programs](https://perq.sh/type/startup-program) | 66 | 28 | $25,000 | $2,217,000 |
| [Free tiers](https://perq.sh/type/free-tier) | 47 | 0 | — | $0 |
| [Signup credits](https://perq.sh/type/signup-credit) | 28 | 20 | $100 | $3,032 |
| [Student & education](https://perq.sh/type/student-education) | 18 | 8 | $550 | $36,270 |
| [Marketplace perks](https://perq.sh/type/marketplace-perk) | 9 | 1 | $2,500 | $2,500 |
| [Promo codes](https://perq.sh/type/promo-code) | 3 | 3 | $1,000 | $4,000 |
| [Accelerator / VC perks](https://perq.sh/type/accelerator-perk) | 3 | 1 | $100,000 | $100,000 |

## Largest stated offers

| Vendor | Vendor wording | Counted | Type | Source | Verified |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Google Cloud](https://perq.sh/offers/gcp-startup-program) | Up to $350,000 in Cloud credits over two years | $350,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://cloud.google.com/startup) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Google Cloud](https://perq.sh/offers/gcp-startup-ai-tier) | Up to $350,000 Google Cloud credits over 2 years (AI-first: 100% up to $250,000 in Year 1) | $350,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://cloud.google.com/startup/ai) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Cloudflare](https://perq.sh/offers/cloudflare-startups) | Up to $350k in credits (tiers $10k / $100k / $350k; Workers AI up to $50,000) | $350,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://www.cloudflare.com/startups/) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [AWS](https://perq.sh/offers/aws-activate-credits) | Up to $200,000 in AWS Activate Credits (additional credits for AI startups) | $200,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://aws.amazon.com/startups/credits/) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Neon / Databricks](https://perq.sh/offers/neon-startups) | Up to $200K in credits for Neon and Databricks (self-funded: up to $1,000 Neon credits) | $200,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://neon.com/startups) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Microsoft](https://perq.sh/offers/ms-for-startups) | Up to $150,000 in credits | $150,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/startups) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Anthropic (Claude)](https://perq.sh/offers/claude-startups-vc-credits) | Up to $100K in additional API credits, claimed through your VC | $100,000 | accelerator perk | [source ↗](https://claude.com/programs/startups) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Daytona](https://perq.sh/offers/daytona-startup-grid) | Up to $100k in Daytona credits | $100,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://www.daytona.io/startups) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [Deepgram](https://perq.sh/offers/deepgram-startups) | Up to $100,000 in credits over 12 months | $100,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://deepgram.com/startup-program) | Oct 25, 2026 |
| [PingCAP (TiDB Cloud)](https://perq.sh/offers/tidb-ai-startup-program) | Up to $100,000 in TiDB Cloud credits | $100,000 | startup program | [source ↗](https://www.pingcap.com/tidb-ai-startup-program/) | Oct 25, 2026 |

## What changed in the last 30 days

Perq began tracking on Oct 17, 2026, inside this 30-day window, so every offer counts as first listed in the window. Since the first day’s baseline, 43 offers were added, 7 changed their terms or status, and 3 closed.

| Offer | What changed | Status now | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [Algolia: $10,000 in Algolia credits valid 12 months](https://perq.sh/offers/algolia-startups) | eligibility | live | [source ↗](https://www.algolia.com/industries/startups) |
| [Anthropic (Claude): Discounts and credits worth up to $45,000 from partner companies (+ Claude API credit for members)](https://perq.sh/offers/claude-startups-partner-perks) | how to claim, status | closed Oct 21, 2026 | [source ↗](https://claude.com/programs/startups) |
| [Secret (JoinSecret): 360 deals available free (283 more with Premium)](https://perq.sh/offers/joinsecret-marketplace) | credit value | live | [source ↗](https://www.joinsecret.com/openai) |
| [Mem0: 3 months free access to the Pro plan ($1000 of value) + priority support](https://perq.sh/offers/mem0-startup-program) | how to claim, status | closed Oct 24, 2026 | [source ↗](https://mem0.ai/startup-program) |
| [Notion: Up to 6 months free Business plan with Notion AI (up to $12,000 for 100 employees)](https://perq.sh/offers/notion-startups) | credit value | live | [source ↗](https://www.notion.com/startups) |
| [Stripe Atlas: $2,500 in Stripe product credits for the first year + over $50,000 in partner discounts](https://perq.sh/offers/stripe-atlas-perks) | credit value | live | [source ↗](https://stripe.com/atlas) |
| [Together AI: Muse Spark Open free for limited time (promo until 10/18/2026)](https://perq.sh/offers/together-promo-model) | status | closed Oct 18, 2026 | [source ↗](https://www.together.ai/pricing) |

## Methodology

-   **Data:** the 177 offers in the public Perq dataset (174 live, 3 closed, 135 vendors). Each offer quotes the vendor’s own page and is re-fetched daily; see [how offers are verified](https://perq.sh/about). Embargoed offers that subscribers see first are not included until they’re public.
-   **USD totals:** An offer counts toward a USD total only when its credit\_value (the vendor wording) leads with one explicit one-time USD amount ("$X", "Up to $X", "One-time $X", "US$X", "USD X"). Recurring allowances (/month, per day), discounts, "value"/"worth" claims, open-ended "$X+", non-USD amounts, unstated amounts and closed offers are excluded. Totals are sums of maximums across different programs, not what one company can receive.
-   **No application:** Offer types "free tier", "signup credit" and "promo code" need no application; startup programs, student/education, marketplace and accelerator perks do.
-   **Changes:** An offer counts as changed when credit\_value, eligibility, how\_to\_claim, claim\_url, code or status differs between daily snapshots of the public dataset (git history), when it was first listed in the window, or when it closed in the window. History starts Oct 17, 2026.
-   **Medians** are taken over offers with a countable amount only.

## How to cite

Avatar 8, “State of free AI credits,” Perq, updated Oct 25, 2026, https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits. Data: [https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits.csv](https://perq.sh/state-of-free-ai-credits.csv).

## Frequently asked questions

### How much free AI credit is available?

The 61 live offers that state one explicit one-time USD amount add up to $2,362,802 in stated maximums (as of 2026-10-25). It is a sum of maximums across programs, not what one team can get.

### What is the median startup credit?

$25,000, across 28 of 66 live startup programs that state one explicit USD amount. The largest stated program is $350,000.

### What share of AI credit offers need no application?

44.8% (78 of 174 live offers) are free tiers, signup credits or promo codes. Their median stated credit is $200.

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Published by Avatar 8 (Avatar 8 LLC), ops@avatar33.com. Data: https://perq.sh/api/offers.json · OpenAPI: https://perq.sh/openapi.json