--- title: "Free Claude Code Alternatives" slug: "free-claude-code-alternatives" description: "Free alternatives to Claude Code: terminal and IDE coding agents with free models, next to the small Claude API credit for new accounts." verifiedAt: "2026-10-12" options: 6 canonical: "https://aifree.dev/compare/free-claude-code-alternatives" --- # Free Claude Code Alternatives > Free alternatives to Claude Code: terminal and IDE coding agents with free models, next to the small Claude API credit for new accounts. Claude Code has no free plan of its own: it runs on a paid Claude subscription or on Claude API credit, and the only free part is the small, unpublished API credit Anthropic gives new Console accounts. The alternatives below are coding agents - most of them in the terminal, like Claude Code - that come with free models: some ad-funded, some sponsor-funded, some on rotating promotions or a small monthly credit. Every row is a verified offer from the same data as the [free AI coding tools directory](https://aifree.dev/free-ai-coding-tools); for an editor rather than an agent, see [free Cursor alternatives](https://aifree.dev/compare/free-cursor-alternatives), and to bring your own model through a free API, see [free LLM APIs](https://aifree.dev/compare/free-llm-apis). ## Side by side | Offer | What is free | Card | Status | The catch | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Claude API New User Credits](https://aifree.dev/offer/claude-api-new-user-credits) (baseline) | Free credits | no card | verified 2026-10-12 | Anthropic publishes no amount; it is a one-time small grant that expires (one year after issue unless stated otherwise), then standard paid pricing applies. | | [Freebuff Free Coding Agents](https://aifree.dev/offer/freebuff-free-coding-agents) | 30 hours/day | no card | verified 2026-10-12 | Full access is limited to 25 countries - elsewhere (and on VPNs) you get limited mode with 4 models. Ad-funded: prompts may be analyzed to personalize ads, and some models train on your data. | | [Evot Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/evot-free-models) | Free tier | no card | verified 2026-10-12 | Which models are free changes over time, and access is sponsor-funded (Databend Cloud names may appear in ad spaces inside the tool). | | [OpenCode Zen Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/opencode-zen-free-models) | Free tier | card | verified 2026-10-12 | All free models are limited-time and you must add billing details and credits; Big Pickle, LL Alpha, Exo and MiMo data may be used to improve the models, and NVIDIA trial endpoints log use. | | [Cline Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/cline-free-models) | Free credits | no card | verified 2026-10-12 | Rotating, limited-time promotions with a usage quota; after the quota ends you need ClinePass ($9.99/mo), usage billing, or your own API key. | | [Alysis Code Free Tier](https://aifree.dev/offer/alysis-code-free-credits) | 50 credits/month | no card | verified 2026-10-12 | Unused credits do not carry over between 30-day periods; the free tier now spans multiple providers (DeepSeek, GLM, GPT-6 Luna, Claude Sonnet) and is subject to fair-use limits. | ## The 6 options, in detail ### [Claude API New User Credits](https://aifree.dev/offer/claude-api-new-user-credits.md) A small free Claude API credit for new Console accounts - One-time grant for new users, not a recurring allotment - Amount not published - Promotional credits expire at the stated time, or one calendar year after issue - Non-refundable, non-transferable, lost if the account is closed **Catch:** Anthropic publishes no amount; it is a one-time small grant that expires (one year after issue unless stated otherwise), then standard paid pricing applies. ### [Freebuff Free Coding Agents](https://aifree.dev/offer/freebuff-free-coding-agents.md) Free coding agents across CLI, desktop, web, cloud, and chat, funded by ads - Usage is measured in hours; models other than MiMo v2.6 Flash Slow carry a multiplier (an hour on a 3x model uses three) - Free plan: 30 hours refilled daily, reset at midnight in your local timezone; unused daily hours do not roll over - Where the app shows sessions: limited mode includes 6 one-hour sessions per day, earnable up to 7 - Muse Spark 1.3 is rate limited and shared by all users; it queues when busy **Catch:** Full access is limited to 25 countries - elsewhere (and on VPNs) you get limited mode with 4 models. Ad-funded: prompts may be analyzed to personalize ads, and some models train on your data. ### [Evot Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/evot-free-models.md) Free models with unlimited tokens in the Evot terminal coding agent - Catalog of free and low-cost models; which models are free changes over time - Unlimited tokens on the free models - No API key required to start; macOS and Linux - Free access sponsor-funded (Databend Cloud); sponsor names may appear in ad spaces **Catch:** Which models are free changes over time, and access is sponsor-funded (Databend Cloud names may appear in ad spaces inside the tool). ### [OpenCode Zen Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/opencode-zen-free-models.md) Free coding LLMs including Big Pickle, MiMo, DeepSeek, and Nemotron - Limited time — every free model is marked 'available on OpenCode for a limited time' - Free models: Big Pickle, GLM-5.3-Flash, DeepSeek V4.1 Flash, MiniMax M3.1 Flash, Beam, LL Alpha, LongCat 2.5 Preview, Exo, MiMo-V2.6-Flash, MiMo-V2.5, Nemotron 3 Ultra, Nemotron 3.5 Lightning, Nemotron 3.5 Super VL, Jev 1.13 (all "Free" variants) - Sign in to the OpenCode Console, add billing details and credits, and copy an API key to use the models - Free models carry data-retention exceptions to the zero-retention policy **Catch:** All free models are limited-time and you must add billing details and credits; Big Pickle, LL Alpha, Exo and MiMo data may be used to improve the models, and NVIDIA trial endpoints log use. ### [Cline Free Models](https://aifree.dev/offer/cline-free-models.md) Try select models free in Cline via rotating promotions with a usage quota - Rotating, limited-time free model promotions - Limited usage quota per promotion (amount not published) - Requires a Cline account - Free models work only in the IDE extension and CLI, not the Cline API **Catch:** Rotating, limited-time promotions with a usage quota; after the quota ends you need ClinePass ($9.99/mo), usage billing, or your own API key. ### [Alysis Code Free Tier](https://aifree.dev/offer/alysis-code-free-credits.md) 50 free credits every 30 days for hosted coding models, no card - 50 credits every 30 days; unused credits do not carry over - 100 credits equal $1 of usage - Free tier covers hosted DeepSeek, GLM, GPT-6 Luna and Claude Sonnet models - Can also use your own API key **Catch:** Unused credits do not carry over between 30-day periods; the free tier now spans multiple providers (DeepSeek, GLM, GPT-6 Luna, Claude Sonnet) and is subject to fair-use limits. ## Frequently asked questions ### Is Claude Code free? No. Claude Code needs a paid Claude plan or Claude API credit. New Claude Console accounts get a small free API credit to test with; Anthropic does not publish the amount, and promotional credits expire one year after issue unless stated otherwise. It is in the table as the baseline. ### What is the best free alternative to Claude Code? For a terminal agent with no API key and no card, Evot (open source, sponsor-funded free models) and Freebuff (ad-funded, 30 hours of usage refilled daily) are the closest matches. OpenCode gives a longer list of free coding models but asks for billing details, and Cline’s free models come in rotating, limited-time promotions. ### Can I use Claude models for free in a coding agent? Only in small amounts. Freebuff’s daily allowance covers about 2 hours of Claude Haiku 5.5, and the Claude API starter credit is a one-time grant. The other free tiers here run open or stealth models instead. ### Do these free coding agents need a credit card? Most do not. OpenCode asks for billing details before you can use its free models; the others start without a card. Each row in the table states the requirement. HTML page: https://aifree.dev/compare/free-claude-code-alternatives