Best Free AI APIs for Developers 2026
AI APIs are essential for modern development. Here are the best free AI API deals — from frontier models like GPT-4 and Claude to open-source LLMs running on cutting-edge hardware.
Free Access to Frontier LLMs
GitHub Models gives free rate-limited access to 40+ models including GPT-4o and GPT-5 with just a GitHub account. Google AI Studio offers 1.5M free tokens/day on Gemini Flash with no credit card (a Google account is required, and new Google accounts need a phone number). Cloudflare Workers AI provides 10,000 free neurons/day across 50+ models. OpenRouter gives free access to 30+ models at 20 RPM.
Startup Credits for AI APIs
OpenAI Startup Credits offer $5,000-$50,000 for qualifying startups. Anthropic Claude for Startups provides up to $25,000 in API credits. Both programs require an application but are worth it for AI-native companies. Microsoft for Startups includes OpenAI API credits through Azure.
Free LLM Inference on Specialized Hardware
Groq offers 14,400 free requests/day at 240 tok/s on custom LPU hardware. Cerebras gives 1M free tokens/day at 2,100 tok/s. SambaNova provides $5 credits + ongoing free tier at ~200K tok/day. Together AI gives $5 free credits covering millions of tokens across 50+ models.
Free Audio, Speech & Multimodal AI
Deepgram offers $200 free credits for speech-to-text and TTS APIs. AssemblyAI gives $50 free credits for transcription. ElevenLabs provides 10K free characters/month for TTS. Google AI Studio supports multimodal inputs with free tier access (Google account required).
Want the same providers ranked by how fast you actually get a key — no credit card, no KYC paths flagged? See our LLM Providers directory, which ranks 168 providers by signup friction.
Relevant Deals
Anthropic Claude for Startups
AI & LLM$25K Claude API credits — open to all early-stage startups, priority rate limits included
Anthropic Startup Program offers up to $25,000 in Claude API credits for early-stage startups. Open to any startup with or without VC backing. Provides priority rate limits, community access, and resources. VC-backed companies or accelerator alumni may qualify for additional benefits.
AssemblyAI
AI & LLM$50 free speech-to-text credits — transcribe ~185 hours of audio for free
Speech-to-text API with high accuracy, speaker diarization, and content moderation. $50 free credits on signup.
Cerebras Inference
AI & LLM1M free tokens/day at 2,100 tok/s — fastest LLM inference available on cutting-edge hardware
Cerebras provides ultra-fast LLM inference using Wafer-Scale Engine hardware. Free tier includes 1 million tokens per day at 2,100 tokens/second speed. Access to cutting-edge models optimized for Cerebras hardware. No credit card required.
Cloudflare Workers AI
AI & LLM10K free neurons/day on Cloudflare's global edge — ~200 LLM requests daily with no credit card
Global edge inference platform with 10,000 free neurons per day (resets daily — ~200 LLM requests). 50+ open-source models including Llama 3.3, Mistral Small, Qwen, Stable Diffusion XL, Whisper. No credit card needed. Runs on 300+ global data centers.
Deepgram
AI & LLM$200 free credits for speech AI — real-time transcription and TTS without upfront cost
Real-time speech-to-text, text-to-speech, and audio intelligence API with $200 free credits.
GitHub Models
AI & LLMFree frontier model APIs with just a GitHub account — GPT-4o, DeepSeek-R1, Llama 3.3 at zero cost
Free rate-limited API access to 40+ frontier models including GPT-4o, GPT-5, DeepSeek-R1, Llama 3.3 70B, and Mistral. Requires only a GitHub account. OpenAI-compatible endpoint at https://models.github.ai. Prototyping only per ToS.
Google AI Studio
AI & LLM1.5M free tokens/day on Gemini Flash — no credit card, perfect for prototyping
Google AI Studio provides free access to Gemini Flash models with 1.5 million free tokens per day. No credit card required. Includes access to various Gemini models with generous daily limits. Perfect for development, testing, and prototyping.
Groq
AI & LLMFastest LLM inference at 30 RPM free — no credit card, 240 tok/s on Llama 3
Ultra-fast LLM inference API with free tier supporting 30 requests/min and 14,400 requests/day. No credit card required.
OpenAI Startup Credits
AI & LLM$5K-$50K OpenAI API credits — access GPT-4/5 for qualifying startups through application
OpenAI offers startup credits ranging from $5,000 to $50,000+ for qualifying startups. Access to GPT-4, GPT-5, and other cutting-edge models. Requires application and typically targets venture-backed or high-potential startups. Credits can be used for API access and model experimentation.
OpenRouter
AI & LLMFree access to 30+ LLMs via one API — compare GPT-4, Claude, Gemini from a single endpoint
Unified API for 30+ LLMs including free models with 20 requests per minute rate limit.
SambaNova Cloud
AI & LLM$5 credits + permanent free tier at ~200K tok/day — fastest inference on open models, no CC required
Fastest inference for open models using custom RDU hardware. $5 free credits (~30M tokens on Llama 8B) plus an ongoing rate-limited free tier (~200K tokens/day, ~40 requests/day) that continues after credits expire. No credit card needed. Models include DeepSeek V3.1, Llama 3.3 70B, MiniMax M2.7, Gemma 4.
Together AI
AI & LLM$5 free credits = several million tokens — access 50+ open models including Llama 3.3 70B
Together AI offers $5 in free credits on signup. Access to 50+ open-source models including Llama 3.3 70B, Mixtral 8x7B, and many others. At Together AI's pricing, $5 covers several million tokens. No credit card required for the free credits.