Free AI Tools for Students in 2026: Active vs. Expired Offers

The phrase free AI tools for students covers three very different kinds of access. A free tier is open to almost anyone and normally has usage limits. A student offer requires current enrollment verification. An institution plan exists only when a school or university purchases and provisions access for its members. Mixing these categories is why so many “free trial” guides become inaccurate.

This page separates those categories and links directly to vendor help, pricing, and terms pages. Prices and promotions can vary by country, age, billing channel, and account history, so check the official claim screen before entering payment details. We record both the offer status and the date we verified it, making future changes easier to spot.

Verified AI student offers and free tiers

Information gain: the most valuable genuinely student-specific AI benefit in this list is not a ChatGPT Plus trial. It is GitHub Copilot Student for verified learners, plus OpenAI’s separate Codex credit offer for eligible U.S. and Canadian university students. That distinction matters because the products, limits, and activation routes are different.

How to activate the offers that are actually available

1. ChatGPT Free and the $100 Codex student credit offer

Anyone in a supported country can begin with the standard ChatGPT Free plan. OpenAI’s current student-specific promotion is for 2,500 ChatGPT credits, valued at $100, to extend Codex usage. It is available to current students at degree-granting universities in the United States or Canada who are also residing in one of those countries when they claim it.

1. Sign in to the personal ChatGPT account you intend to keep using. Free, Go, Plus, and Pro accounts can be eligible.
2. Open the official Codex for students claim page.
3. Complete SheerID verification with accurate university and enrollment information.
4. After approval, confirm the credits appear in the personal workspace’s usage page. They expire 12 months after grant and are not transferable.

These credits do not upgrade the account to ChatGPT Plus and are not OpenAI API credits. If you see a page promising “free Plus with any .edu address,” treat it as outdated unless it links to a current OpenAI claim page with terms.

2. Gemini Free

Go to Gemini, sign in with a supported Google Account, and use the free service within its published limits. Google’s student page currently says the previous student offer ended; the displayed date can differ by country. The default/U.S. page says March 11, 2026, while Google’s Pakistan student page lists December 9, 2025.

If Google launches a new promotion, the official student page should show a claim button, eligible countries, age requirements, deadline, renewal terms, and whether a payment method is needed. A screenshot from an old campaign is not enough evidence that a trial still works.

3. Grok Free

Visit grok.com or use Grok through X where available. xAI’s pricing page lists a free $0 plan with limits, so students do not need an education address to start. SuperGrok provides higher limits and additional features for a subscription; xAI currently publishes no general student rate.

4. Claude Free or campus-provided Claude for Education

Create a Claude account in a supported region to use the free individual plan. For Claude for Education, ask your university IT desk or learning technology team whether the institution has an agreement. If it does, follow the campus invitation, SSO, or workspace instructions. If it does not, a school email cannot self-provision the institutional plan.

5. GitHub Copilot Student

GitHub’s offer is the clearest true student plan in this comparison. Applicants must be at least 13 and enrolled in a degree- or diploma-granting program. GitHub may request an academic email, a dated school ID, class schedule, transcript, or enrollment letter.

1. Use a personal GitHub account and open Settings, then Education benefits.
2. Select “Start an application” and submit the current enrollment evidence GitHub requests.
3. Wait for approval; do not create repeat applications with inconsistent identity details.
4. Return to Education benefits, choose the Copilot Student benefit, and follow the activation prompts.

The current student plan is called Copilot Student, not “free Copilot Pro.” GitHub reevaluates eligibility and can change model or usage allowances, so use its current plan comparison rather than an old benefit list.

6. Perplexity Education Pro

Perplexity’s standard plan remains free. Its Education Pro plan is a discount, not a free year: the current official help pages list $10 per month. In the app, choose Upgrade, select Education, start student verification, and complete SheerID. Review the subscription renewal screen before paying.

7. Notion, Figma, Canva, and Microsoft

Notion Education Plus requires a qualifying institutional email and is intended for a one-member workspace. Figma uses its own education verification and provides different entitlements by education level. Canva’s no-cost education product is mainly K–12; students usually enter through a verified teacher, while universities require Canva for Campus. Microsoft’s current U.S. higher-education offer is a paid 50% discount on Microsoft 365 Personal, not the expired free-year promotion.

Does an EDU email unlock AI student plans?

Sometimes a vendor asks for a school-issued email as one piece of evidence. That does not mean every address ending in an education-looking domain qualifies. Vendors may also check the institution, enrollment date, student identity, country of residence, age, account history, payment method, or campus SSO membership.

A temporary email is useful for low-risk privacy tasks such as testing an app’s email flow, receiving a one-time newsletter download, or separating promotional mail from a personal inbox. It is a poor choice for a paid AI subscription or any account you need to recover later. For those, use a durable personal or institution-managed address and enable multifactor authentication.

Popular AI student promotions that have expired

ChatGPT Plus for college students

The widely shared “two months free” student promotion referred to a limited 2025 claim window. OpenAI’s former terms page is no longer active, and the current student route does not present a general Plus giveaway. The active 2026 student benefit is the separate Codex credits offer described above.

Google AI Pro student year

Google previously promoted extended AI Pro access to eligible students. Google’s own student pages now say the earlier offer has ended, with dates varying by locale. Students can still use Gemini’s free tier or check whether their university provides Workspace access.

Grok student promotion claims

Articles often repeat a 2025 “SuperGrok for students” claim, but xAI does not currently publish a student redemption page or current terms for it. The accurate 2026 answer is that Grok has a general free tier and paid SuperGrok plans; no current student plan is listed.

When evaluating any new trial, check five items before trusting it: the official vendor domain, a current claim button, specific eligibility, an end date, and renewal/cancellation terms. Affiliate posts without these details should not be treated as the source of record.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best free AI tool for students?

There is no single best tool for every course. ChatGPT, Gemini, Grok, Claude, and Perplexity all have free access with different limits. For coding students, GitHub Copilot Student is especially valuable because it is a verified education benefit rather than a temporary general trial.

Can I get ChatGPT Plus free with an EDU email?

No current general ChatGPT Plus student offer is published. Eligible U.S. and Canadian university students can instead verify for the current Codex credits offer. An education-looking address by itself does not qualify an account.

Is Gemini Advanced still free for students?

The previous Google AI Pro student offer has ended in the official locales checked. Gemini’s standard free tier remains available, and institutions may separately provide Google services.

Is Grok free for students?

Grok’s $0 tier is available generally within limits; it is not a student-only plan. xAI currently lists no student discount for SuperGrok.

Do student trials require a credit card?

It depends on the offer. Free tiers often do not, while discounted subscriptions and some promotional trials require a payment method and may renew automatically. Read the checkout screen and set a reminder before any renewal date.

Can a temporary email be used for a free trial?

A service may accept or block disposable addresses under its own rules. Never use one to evade eligibility, account limits, or payment terms. For an account you need long term, use a recoverable address instead.