Claude API New User Credits

A small free Claude API credit for new Console accounts

The 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.

Source announcement

Claude for Startups Offers $1,000 API Credits and a Free Year of Claude Team

Overview

Anthropic gives new Claude Console accounts free API credits for evaluation. Anthropic's official pricing documentation states: "New users receive a small amount of free credits to test the API." The exact amount, duration, and eligibility conditions are not published on any official Anthropic page.

What You Get

A small amount of free usage credit on a new Claude Console organization.
Access to the first-party Claude API, including current models such as Claude Opus 5.5, Claude Sonnet 5.5, and Claude Haiku 5.5.
The credit can be consumed by direct API calls and the Console Workbench playground.
No official figure is documented for the credit value, how long it lasts, or how it is granted.

Billing Notes

Claude API usage runs on prepaid usage credits, not post-pay billing. Developers buy credits from the Console under Settings > Billing, and only successful API calls are charged. Purchased credits expire one year from the purchase date and are non-refundable; expired credits appear in the invoice history. Because the free allowance is undocumented, treat it as a limited evaluation budget rather than a recurring free tier.

How to Get Started

Create an account at platform.claude.com.
Verify your email address.
Generate an API key under Settings, then call POST https://api.anthropic.com/v1/messages.

For larger or extended evaluation needs, Anthropic's docs direct organizations to contact sales.

API credits

Before you claim

Region: Available in AD, AE, AG, AL, AM, AO, AR, AT, AU, AZ, BA, BB, BD, BE, BF, BG, BH, BI, BJ, BN, BO, BR, BS, BT, BW, BZ, CA, CD, CF, CG, CH, CI, CL, CM, CO, CR, CV, CY, CZ, DE, DJ, DK, DM, DO, DZ, EC, EE, EG, ER, ES, ET, FI, FJ, FM, FR, GA, GB, GD, GE, GH, GM, GN, GQ, GR, GT, GW, GY, HN, HR, HT, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IQ, IS, IT, JM, JO, JP, KE, KG, KH, KI, KM, KN, KR, KW, KZ, LA, LB, LC, LI, LK, LR, LS, LT, LU, LV, LY, MA, MC, MD, ME, MG, MH, MK, ML, MN, MR, MT, MU, MV, MW, MX, MY, MZ, NA, NE, NG, NI, NL, NO, NP, NR, NZ, OM, PA, PE, PG, PH, PK, PL, PS, PT, PW, PY, QA, RO, RS, RW, SA, SB, SC, SD, SE, SG, SI, SK, SL, SM, SN, SO, SR, SS, ST, SV, SZ, TD, TG, TH, TJ, TL, TM, TN, TO, TR, TT, TV, TW, TZ, UA, UG, US, UY, UZ, VA, VC, VN, VU, WS, ZA, ZM, ZW.
Payment card: Not needed.
Account: Sign up with the provider.

Key limits

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
Rate limits vary by usage tier; new organizations may start in a lower Evaluation tier
Standard API pricing applies once credits are used

As the provider states it on the date shown above. The provider decides who qualifies.

Models served free

Limits as the provider publishes them; a dash means none is published.

Model	Context	RPM	RPD	TPM	Tools	Vision
Claude Opus 5.5New orgs may start in the Evaluation tier with unpublished limits	1,000k	—	—	—	yes	yes
Claude Sonnet 5.5Limits follow the org tier	1,000k	—	—	—	yes	yes
Claude Haiku 5.5Limits follow the org tier	1,000k	—	—	—	yes	yes

History

Verified by a person on Oct 12, 2026 · last automated check Oct 29, 2026: the page could not be read automatically. Automated findings never change this page until a person confirms them (how we verify).

Oct 12, 2026Verifiedby a person
Sep 12, 2026Listedby a person

Full history with screenshots · How we verified this offer · Sitewide changelog

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