Startup Credits
Startup Credits & Programs
Free and heavily discounted credits for early-stage startups — distinct from coupon deals. Cloud computing, AI APIs, and SaaS tools across AWS, GCP, Azure, IBM, Anthropic, OpenAI, HubSpot, Mixpanel, GitHub, and more.
268+ programs across cloud, AI, and SaaS. Credit amounts, eligibility requirements, application links, and honest verdicts on which programs are worth your time — including 29+ accessible without a VC. Updated May 2026.
Cloud Provider Credits
Free cloud infrastructure credits from AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle and more for early-stage startups.
AI Platform Credits
API credits and free access to leading AI models -- Anthropic, OpenAI, Mistral, Together AI and more for startups building with AI.
SaaS Startup Programs
Discounted and free access to top SaaS tools -- CRM, support, analytics, and infrastructure -- through official startup programs.
The bootstrapped startup credits stack
Over $230K in cloud credits and $125K+ in AI credits accessible without any investor or accelerator affiliation. IBM Cloud ($120K), Cloudflare (BOOTSTRAPPED code), Oracle, Vultr, Anthropic, PostHog, GitHub for Startups, and more.
All startup credit programs (268)
Notion for Startups
Notion for Startups provides 6 months free Notion Plus — team wikis, project tracking, OKRs, meeting notes and docs in one workspace that replaces Confluence and a project management tool.
Supabase Startup Program
Supabase for Startups provides 6 months free Pro plan plus $300 in credits — PostgreSQL-native database with built-in auth, realtime, storage and edge functions for full-stack builders.
MongoDB Atlas Startup Program
MongoDB Atlas for Startups provides $10K in cloud database credits — document model, vector search and multi-cloud deployment with no VC requirement for direct application.
Airtable Startup Program
Airtable for Startups provides $1K–$2K in credits for early-stage teams — the flexible database-spreadsheet hybrid that powers no-code internal tools, CRMs and operations databases.
Twilio for Startups
Twilio for Startups provides $5K in communications API credits — SMS, voice calls, WhatsApp messaging, email via SendGrid and programmable video from a single platform.
Twilio Segment Startup Stack
Twilio Segment for Startups provides $50K in Customer Data Platform credits — collect, unify and activate customer data across your entire stack from a single source of truth.
Vercel for Startups
Vercel for Startups provides $30K in Pro plan credits for frontend teams — edge deployment for Next.js, React, Svelte and more with global CDN, preview deployments and analytics.
Zendesk for Startups
Zendesk for Startups provides 6 months free access to Zendesk Suite — ticketing, live chat, help centre, voice and AI-powered automations for early-stage customer support teams.
Intercom Early Stage
Intercom Early Stage gives qualifying startups 93% off in Year 1 — the deepest discount on any tier-1 customer messaging platform, covering AI chat, inbox, product tours and lifecycle campaigns.
HubSpot for Startups
HubSpot for Startups offers 90% off in Year 1 and 50% off in Year 2 — the most generous CRM, marketing and sales hub discount available for qualifying early-stage companies.
Hugging Face for Startups
Hugging Face for Startups provides 6 months of free Pro plan access plus Inference Endpoint credits — the model hub powering most of the open-source AI ecosystem.
Groq for Startups
Groq for Startups provides approximately $10K in LPU inference credits — Llama, Mixtral and Gemma models at 300+ tokens/second throughput for latency-critical AI product experiences.
Cohere for Startups
Cohere for Startups provides 25% off API pricing and grants for enterprise-grade NLP and RAG applications — Command, Embed and Rerank models optimised for business data and retrieval.
Perplexity for Startups
Perplexity for Startups provides $5K in Perplexity API credits for AI startups building search-augmented applications — real-time web-grounded LLM answers in a single API call.
Mistral Mistralship
Mistral Mistralship provides €30K in Mistral API credits for European AI startups — efficient frontier models (Mistral Large, Codestral, Mixtral) built in France for EU data compliance.
Together AI for Startups
Together.ai Startup Program provides $50K in fast open-source model inference credits — Llama, Mistral, Qwen, DBRX and more at throughputs that outperform self-hosted infrastructure.
OpenAI for Startups
OpenAI for Startups provides $2,500 in API credits on self-serve application, with $25K–$100K+ available through accelerator and VC partner tracks — access to GPT-4o, o1, DALL-E and Whisper.
Anthropic for Startups
Anthropic for Startups provides up to $100K in Claude API credits for qualifying startups building AI products — apply via an Anthropic VC or accelerator partner for higher credit tiers.
How to stack startup credits in 2026
- 01
Apply to cloud credits first — highest dollar value
Cloud credits have the highest dollar value ($100K–$350K) and compound longest. Apply to AWS Activate Founders ($1K, instant, no VC) and GCP startup credits on day one. Then add Microsoft Founders Hub, IBM Cloud, Oracle, and Cloudflare (BOOTSTRAPPED code) for bootstrapped teams. - 02
Unlock AI credits through your accelerator for maximum amounts
Anthropic ($25K–$100K) and OpenAI ($2.5K–$100K) credits scale with your accelerator or VC affiliation. Apply through your program benefits dashboard for the top tier. Without a partner, apply directly for the base tier — both accept direct applications. - 03
GitHub for Startups — most founders never apply
GitHub for Startups offers $10K in platform credits plus up to $40K in non-dilutive cash. Direct application — under 5 years old and under $1M raised. Apply immediately at github.com/solutions/startups. Most qualifying founders have never heard of this program. - 04
Check the bootstrapped track before assuming you need a VC
Over $230K in cloud credits is accessible without any investor affiliation: IBM Cloud ($120K), Vultr ($100K), Cloudflare (code BOOTSTRAPPED, up to $250K), Oracle ($10K), and AWS Activate Founders ($1K instant). Plus $125K+ in AI credits with direct apply. - 05
Model credit expiry before activating
Credits with 12-month validity (Oracle, GCP, IBM) should not be activated until you have real infrastructure usage. AWS Activate credits are valid 24 months — the safest to activate early. Activate close to your launch date to maximise value. - 06
Stack programs — they are not exclusive
There is no rule against holding credits from multiple providers simultaneously. Most funded startups run AWS + GCP + Azure + Anthropic + OpenAI + Datadog credits at the same time. Apply to all programs you qualify for — the applications are independent.
Startup credits — frequently asked questions
What are startup credits? +
Startup credits are free cloud, AI, and SaaS access programs offered by software companies to early-stage startups. They typically provide $1K–$350K in credits toward cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, Azure), AI APIs (Anthropic, OpenAI), and SaaS tools (HubSpot, Intercom, Mixpanel). The goal is to lower your infrastructure costs during development and early revenue stages.
How much can a startup get in total credits in 2026? +
A startup that qualifies for all major programs can access over $1M in total credits across cloud, AI, and SaaS. Realistically, most funded startups access $200K–$500K. Bootstrapped startups without VC affiliation can access $230K+ in cloud credits and $125K+ in AI credits through direct-apply programs.
Do I need to be VC-backed to get startup credits? +
No. Many high-value programs accept direct applications with no investor or accelerator affiliation: IBM Cloud for Startups ($120K), Cloudflare for Startups (BOOTSTRAPPED code, up to $250K), Oracle for Startups ($10K), Vultr ($100K), AWS Activate Founders ($1K instant), Anthropic for Startups ($25K), Together AI ($50K), PostHog ($50K), and GitHub for Startups ($50K + $40K cash).
Which startup credit programs are easiest to get? +
AWS Activate Founders approves automatically the same day with no partner required. NVIDIA Inception is free with instant access. Twilio for Startups ($5K) approves same-day with direct application. IBM Cloud, Oracle, and Anthropic direct-apply tiers typically approve in 3–10 business days.
Can I stack startup credits from multiple providers? +
Yes — startup credit programs are independent and non-exclusive. There is no rule preventing you from holding credits from AWS, GCP, Azure, IBM, Anthropic, OpenAI, and Mixpanel simultaneously. Most funded startups do exactly this. Apply to every program you qualify for.
How do I apply for startup credits? +
Each program has its own application. For instant programs: apply directly at the provider website (AWS, Twilio, NVIDIA). For partner-gated programs: log into your accelerator or VC benefits portal (Y Combinator Bookface, a16z portfolio hub, etc.) and access the credit links there. For direct-apply programs: apply at the provider website with your company details.