Free LLM APIs for Developers
LLM API providers with recurring free tiers, free model routes or limited developer credits, with the limits spelled out.
Free LLM APIs fall into two very different groups: providers with a recurring free quota that resets, and providers that hand out one-time trial credits that disappear. Only the first kind is safe to build on. This collection lists the recurring free tiers, states the published limits, and links the official key pages so you can check the current terms before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
Which LLM APIs have a permanent free tier?
The recurring free tiers tracked here are Groq, Google AI Studio with the Gemini free tier, OpenRouter free model routes, Hugging Face Inference Providers credits, Together AI startup credits and Pollinations endpoints. Limits are set by each provider and change without notice.
Is a free tier the same as free credits?
No. A recurring free tier resets on a schedule and can be relied on for prototyping. Trial credits are one-time, expire quickly and often require a payment method, so they are listed separately and never counted as a free tier.
Do I need a credit card to sign up?
Most of the providers listed offer a key without a credit card. Cohere, for example, issues a free trial key with 1,000 API calls per month for non-commercial use, and Google AI Studio issues Gemini keys with free-tier quotas without a card.
Are these APIs OpenAI SDK compatible?
Most of them are, which is why the same client code can be pointed at a different provider by changing the base URL. A few expose their own request format, so check the provider page linked on each card.