# Free LLM APIs: free tiers, free models and trial credits, measured

Updated November 07, 2026. Terms checked on 2026-11-07 on each provider's own page. Latency and uptime measured by llmlatency.dev from 4 regions.

As of November 07, 2026, of the 41 LLM APIs whose terms we checked, 7 have a free tier or free models with no end date (OpenRouter, Gemini API, Cohere, Novita AI, GroqCloud, Z.AI and SenseNova Token Plan) and 15 give new accounts a one-time credit; 9 have no free access. None of the free options is unlimited: each comes with rate limits, a daily cap or an expiry. Of the free tiers, OpenRouter answered fastest in our probes: 68 ms median time to first byte, averaged over 4 regions.

| Provider | Kind | What is free | Limits | Average TTFB | Fastest from | Host uptime 90 d | Terms |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| OpenRouter | Free models | model variants whose ID ends in `:free` | 20 requests a minute; 50 a day, or 1,000 a day once you have bought at least 10 credits | 68 ms | Tokyo 54 ms | 100% | https://openrouter.ai/docs/api_reference/limits |
| Gemini API | Free tier | free input and output tokens on a limited set of Gemini models | rate-limited; content sent on the free tier is used to improve Google's products; apps for users in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK must use paid services (terms: https://aistudio.google.com/docs/terms) | 83 ms | US Central 40 ms | 100% | https://aistudio.google.com/docs/pricing |
| Cohere | Free tier | free evaluation (trial) API keys | 1,000 API calls a month; meant for testing, production needs a paid key | 134 ms | US Central 63 ms | 99.9% | https://docs.cohere.com/docs/rate-limits |
| Novita AI | Free models | one model priced at $0 for input and output: Apodex 1.1 Mini | rate limits and how long it stays free are not stated | 179 ms | US Central 93 ms | 99.9% | https://novita.ai/pricing |
| GroqCloud | Free tier | a Free plan; a payment method is needed only to move up to the Developer tier | per-model rate limits, published on Groq's rate-limits page | 183 ms | US Central 127 ms | 100% | https://console.groq.com/docs/billing-faqs |
| Z.AI | Free models | GLM-4.7-Flash, GLM-4.5-Flash and GLM-4.6V-Flash: input and output both free | rate limits not published in the docs; the other GLM models are paid | 268 ms | Tokyo 94 ms | 99.9% | https://docs.z.ai/guides/overview/pricing |
| SenseNova Token Plan | Free tier | a Token Plan at ¥0 a month during the public beta, listed with SenseNova 6.8 Flash Lite and SenseNova U1 Fast | free only while the public beta lasts, which has no announced end, and paid tiers are announced as coming soon; usage capped per rolling 5-hour and weekly window (API docs: https://platform.sensenova.cn/docs); up to 20 API keys; mainland China platform | 458 ms | Europe 359 ms | 99.7% | https://www.sensenova.cn/token-plan |
| Fireworks AI | Trial credit | a $1 starter credit | eligibility and expiry not stated | 79 ms | Europe 16 ms | 100% | https://docs.fireworks.ai/faq-new/billing-pricing/what-happens-when-i-finish-my-1-dollar-credit |
| Baseten | Trial credit | credits for new workspaces | amount not stated; Baseten has no free tier or perpetual free plan | 121 ms | US Central 47 ms | 99.9% | https://docs.baseten.co/organization/billing |
| Cerebras | Trial credit | a one-time $5 promotional credit | you must add a payment method (not charged); expires 30 days after activation; no free tier that renews | 165 ms | US Central 73 ms | 99.9% | https://www.cerebras.ai/pricing |
| Perplexity API | Trial credit | a one-time $10 signup credit for some new accounts | not every account gets it; it expires 60 days after it is added | 176 ms | US Central 84 ms | 99.9% | https://www.perplexity.ai/help-center/en/articles/10354847-api-payment-and-billing |
| Anthropic API | Trial credit | a small amount of free credit for new users | amount and expiry not published | 178 ms | US Central 95 ms | 100% | https://platform.claude.com/docs/en/about-claude/pricing |
| Replicate | Trial credit | free runs of select models for a while | how much, for how long and which models is not stated; then billing must be set up | 218 ms | US Central 95 ms | 100% | https://replicate.com/docs/topics/billing |
| Baichuan AI | Trial credit | ¥80 of free credit for new accounts | valid 3 months from registration; the offer is dated May 2024 on the price page | 230 ms | Tokyo 142 ms | 99.6% | https://platform.baichuan-ai.com/prices |
| SiliconFlow | Trial credit | $1 in free credits | conditions not stated; the free models on siliconflow.cn belong to the separate China platform | 247 ms | US Central 82 ms | 99.8% | https://www.siliconflow.com/pricing |
| Nebius Token Factory | Trial credit | $25 in Token Factory credits for joining the free Nebius Builder Program | sign-up by form and email check, with sanctions screening; one per verified email; the credits expire 90 days after they are issued | 264 ms | Europe 33 ms | 99.9% | https://nebius.com/builders-terms-and-conditions |
| AI21 Studio | Trial credit | $10 credit for new accounts, no credit card needed | expiry given as 7 days on the pricing page and as three months in the docs | 301 ms | US Central 232 ms | 100% | https://www.ai21.com/pricing/ |
| Upstage | Trial credit | $10 in free credit on signup | expiry not stated; pay as you go after that | 404 ms | Tokyo 58 ms | 99.9% | https://console.upstage.ai/docs/getting-started |
| Sarvam AI | Trial credit | ₹100 in free credits on signup | one balance for all Sarvam APIs, chat included; prepaid after that | 407 ms | Tokyo 249 ms | 99.9% | https://www.sarvam.ai/api-pricing |
| Alibaba Cloud Model Studio | Trial credit | a free quota of typically 1,000,000 tokens per model for new users | valid 90 days; only the Singapore region with International deployment scope | 411 ms | Tokyo 167 ms | 99.9% | https://www.alibabacloud.com/help/en/model-studio/new-free-quota |
| Volcano Engine Ark (Doubao) | Trial credit | a free inference quota of 500,000 tokens per model for new users | counted per model and shared across the account; validity not stated; mainland China platform | 502 ms | Europe 351 ms | 99.3% | https://docs.volcengine.com/docs/ark/free-tokens-only-mode?lang=zh |
| Hyperbolic | Trial credit | a $1 credit for verifying a phone number | a Free Tier account needs the verified phone to use the API at all; a number already verified on another Hyperbolic account does not count; billed per token after that | 563 ms | US Central 250 ms | 100% | https://www.hyperbolic.ai/docs/inference/overview |

No free access found on the provider's own pages:

- OpenAI API — paying organizations that opt in to share API traffic with OpenAI may get daily complimentary tokens (https://help.openai.com/en/articles/10306912-sharing-feedback-evaluation-and-fine-tuning-data-and-api-inputs-and-outputs-with-openai)
- Mistral AI — its free mode covers Vibe and Studio, not the API (https://docs.mistral.ai/admin/billing-usage/usage-limits)
- xAI API (https://docs.x.ai/console/billing)
- Together AI — the first purchase must be at least $15 (https://docs.together.ai/docs/billing-credits)
- SambaNova Cloud (https://cloud.sambanova.ai/plans)
- Featherless AI (https://featherless.ai/docs/faq)
- FriendliAI (https://friendli.ai/docs/guides/suite/billing-payments)
- Reka (https://docs.reka.ai/resources/faqs)
- Moonshot AI (Kimi) (https://platform.kimi.ai/docs/pricing/limits)

Not confirmed either way from official pages: DeepSeek, MiniMax, StepFun, iFlytek Spark, Baidu Qianfan, DeepInfra, inference.net, Nscale, Writer, Aleph Alpha.

## Which LLM APIs have a free tier?

As of November 07, 2026, of the 41 LLM APIs whose terms we checked, OpenRouter, Gemini API, Cohere, Novita AI, GroqCloud, Z.AI and SenseNova Token Plan have a free tier or free models with no end date, and Fireworks AI, Baseten, Cerebras, Perplexity API, Anthropic API, Replicate, Baichuan AI, SiliconFlow, Nebius Token Factory, AI21 Studio, Upstage, Sarvam AI, Alibaba Cloud Model Studio, Volcano Engine Ark (Doubao) and Hyperbolic give new accounts a one-time credit. Terms were checked on 2026-11-07 on each provider's own page.

## Is there a free unlimited LLM API?

No. Every free option we found on the providers' own pages is limited: by requests per minute or per day, by tokens, or by an expiry date. Free tiers suit testing and light personal use, not steady production traffic.

## What is the fastest free LLM API?

Of the free tiers, OpenRouter answered fastest in our probes as of November 07, 2026: 68 ms median time to first byte averaged over 4 regions; by region, Gemini API is fastest from Europe (90 ms) and US Central (40 ms), OpenRouter from Tokyo (54 ms) and São Paulo (62 ms). That is network and edge time, measured directly from rented VPSes; it is not the model's generation speed.

## Is OpenRouter free to use?

Partly: model variants whose ID ends in :free (20 requests a minute; 50 a day, or 1,000 a day once you have bought at least 10 credits). Source: https://openrouter.ai/docs/api_reference/limits

## Is the Gemini API free?

Partly: free input and output tokens on a limited set of Gemini models (rate-limited; content sent on the free tier is used to improve Google's products; apps for users in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK must use paid services (terms: https://aistudio.google.com/docs/terms)). Source: https://aistudio.google.com/docs/pricing

## Is Cohere free to use?

Partly: free evaluation (trial) API keys (1,000 API calls a month; meant for testing, production needs a paid key). Source: https://docs.cohere.com/docs/rate-limits

## Is Novita AI free to use?

Partly: one model priced at $0 for input and output: Apodex 1.1 Mini (rate limits and how long it stays free are not stated). Source: https://novita.ai/pricing

## Is GroqCloud free to use?

Partly: a Free plan; a payment method is needed only to move up to the Developer tier (per-model rate limits, published on Groq's rate-limits page). Source: https://console.groq.com/docs/billing-faqs

## Is Z.AI free to use?

Partly: GLM-4.7-Flash, GLM-4.5-Flash and GLM-4.6V-Flash: input and output both free (rate limits not published in the docs; the other GLM models are paid). Source: https://docs.z.ai/guides/overview/pricing

## Is SenseNova Token Plan free to use?

Partly: a Token Plan at ¥0 a month during the public beta, listed with SenseNova 6.8 Flash Lite and SenseNova U1 Fast (free only while the public beta lasts, which has no announced end, and paid tiers are announced as coming soon; usage capped per rolling 5-hour and weekly window (API docs: https://platform.sensenova.cn/docs); up to 20 API keys; mainland China platform). Source: https://www.sensenova.cn/token-plan

Source: https://llmlatency.dev/free-llm-api · CC BY 4.0