Free AI coding tools for students in 2026: what you really get

The offers at a glance

We checked each row on the provider's own page on 2026-10-30. Anything we couldn't confirm is in the "Couldn't verify" section below.

GitHub Copilot Student: free, but with limits

• What you get: Copilot Student is free for verified students. GitHub's plans doc says it has an allowance of AI credits (it doesn't say how many) and Auto model selection only. The plans table notes it excludes third-party agents. For comparison, Copilot Pro is $10/mo with $15 of credits.
• Who qualifies: verified GitHub Education students. GitHub's student page says that means students aged 13+ enrolled in a degree or diploma-granting course, with a school-issued email and/or dated proof of enrollment.
• How to verify: apply to GitHub Education at github.com/settings/education/benefits, then activate Copilot Student.
• How long: GitHub re-evaluates your eligibility every month.
• Catches: activation can take several days after approval. In the meantime your account may show Copilot Free or a paid checkout. GitHub says not to buy anything in that case. GitHub's FAQ says it may use Copilot interaction data from individual plans (Free, Pro, Pro+) to train models unless you opt out in your Copilot settings. It doesn't name the Student plan, so check that setting anyway.

Kiro Students: 1,000 credits a month

• What you get: 1,000 credits a month free for one year. Kiro Free gives 50 credits, and Kiro Pro is $20/mo.
• Who qualifies: students aged 18+ at the universities Kiro lists on its student page. The list is long but not every school is on it. Kiro says it will add more.
• How to verify: create a Kiro account with Google, GitHub or AWS Builder ID, using your university email. Then click the verify banner on your usage page and complete a SheerID check (name, date of birth, university, and sometimes a student ID or enrollment letter). The "Your organization" sign-in isn't supported.
• How long: one year, then your account drops to Kiro Free. Your code stays with you.
• Catches: credits don't roll over, and add-on credits aren't available, so when you hit 1,000 you wait for the monthly reset. Kiro says you can opt out of your content being used for model training.

Zed Student: a free editor plan with AI credits

• What you get: all Zed Pro features free for 12 months, $10/month in AI token credits and unlimited edit predictions. Zed Pro is normally $10/mo.
• Who qualifies: currently enrolled university students aged 18+, worldwide.
• How to verify: sign in with a GitHub account older than 30 days, then share a current university email. Zed checks it against a public list of university domains.
• How long: one year from your application, then Zed Free.
• Catches: the plan excludes Claude Fable, Claude Opus, GPT-6 Astra, GPT-5.5 Pro and GPT-5.4 Pro. You can't set a spend limit, so usage stops at $10 a month.

Google AI Pro for US college students

• What you get: one year of Google AI Pro free, normally $19.99/mo. Google lists higher Antigravity quotas as an AI Pro benefit. We couldn't confirm that the student offer gets the same Antigravity quotas, so treat that part as unverified.
• Who qualifies: students aged 18+ at a higher education institution, with a personal Google account. Google's gemini.google student page says the free AI Pro plan is for eligible US college students. Outside the US the plan in the offer depends on your country, and we didn't check what it includes.
• How to verify: SheerID, then a payment method at sign-up.
• How long: 12 months from the day you redeem. You must redeem by Dec 31, 2026.
• Catches: it renews at $19.99/month unless you cancel before the offer period ends. Family-group members and some third-party subscribers don't qualify.

Lovable for students: half price, not free

• What you get: 50% off Lovable Pro with 100 credits a month, billed monthly: $12.50/mo instead of $25. The free plan gives 5 build credits a day, up to 30 a month.
• Who qualifies: verified students and teachers.
• How to verify: Lovable checks the domain of your account's email against a list of schools. You must have a school email, and your workspace must be on the Free plan.
• How long: up to 12 months from the start of your subscription. Verification stays valid for 12 months, so subscribe in that time.
• Catches: it only applies to Pro at 100 credits, billed monthly, not to annual billing, higher tiers or other plans. If you cancel, you lose it and can't get it back. Top-ups cost full price. It's once per person.

Base44 academic discount

• What you get: 50% off a Base44 Starter or Builder plan.
• Who qualifies: students, teachers and staff at accredited schools, colleges and universities, on the free plan.
• How to verify: enter a school email Base44 recognizes, then the 6-digit code it sends. You can keep a personal email on your account.
• How long: up to 12 months on monthly billing, or the first year on annual billing.
• Catches: one-time, on your first paid plan only. Upgrading to a higher plan or cancelling ends the discount. It can't be combined with a promo code.

Replit and Mistral: lower prices

• Replit: Replit's student page says 50% off Core with your .edu email. The page text we could read doesn't give the length of the discount or the verification steps, so check them before you pay.
• Mistral Education: Mistral Pro for $5.99/month instead of $14.99, for verified students and teachers. You must verify an institutional email. Personal emails, student IDs and enrollment letters are not accepted. It lasts up to 12 months, and only if you haven't used Vibe or Le Chat before.

No student deal (yet)

• Cursor: no standing student discount. Its student page says anyone can start free, and to look out for promotions at campus and online events.
• Claude: we found no individual student plan. Claude for Education is university-sponsored, so it depends on whether your school has signed up. Claude Pro is $20/mo, or $17/mo billed annually.
• OpenAI Codex: the pricing page lists no student offer. Codex is on the Free plan (GPT-6 Luna in the desktop app, subject to rollout) and the $8/mo Go plan.
• Bolt: Bolt's billing help page lists a 10% annual-billing discount and no student plan. Bolt Free gives 1M tokens a month.

Couldn't verify

• Windsurf (now Devin Desktop): devin.ai/pricing lists no student discount. Windsurf's old student terms (last updated January 2025) describe a discounted Pro plan, but we found no current sign-up page, so we don't count it.
• v0: v0.app/students lists the schools in its student program, but the page doesn't say what students get. Not verified.
• JetBrains: students can get the free Student Pack with all JetBrains IDEs, for non-commercial use only. JetBrains AI Free gives 3 AI credits per 30 days. We couldn't read the Student Pack page, so what AI quota a student licence includes is unverified.

What to do

Start with Copilot Student if you can get verified on GitHub Education, because it's free and works inside your editor. Add Kiro Students if your school is on its list, and Zed if you like its editor. Use Lovable or Base44 only when you need an app builder, and remember they're discounts, not free plans. For free tools anyone can use, see our free tiers page and free alternatives to Claude Code and Cursor. Student offers we track live on Deals.

FAQ

All prices come from official pricing pages and match our live tracker. Some links are affiliate links (disclosure).