Free AI & LLM APIs you can actually use
Searches for “free AI API” and “free LLM API” have been climbing fast. Here’s the honest rundown: which providers give you real free access, which only give a trial credit, and how to wire either into an agent.
“Free” means different things at different providers. Some give you an ongoing free tier with rate limits that never expires. Others give new accounts a one-time trial credit that runs out and then requires a card. Confusing the two is the most common mistake — and it's probably why interest in "OpenAI free tier" specifically has been fading: OpenAI's free access is the trial-credit kind, not the ongoing kind.
Providers with real, ongoing free access
Of the 13 BYOK model providers VibeOpenClaw supports, these are the ones known for offering some form of free access beyond a one-time trial credit. Free-tier terms and rate limits change without much notice — verify current details on each provider's own pricing page before you depend on one.
Google (Gemini via AI Studio)
Google AI Studio has consistently offered a genuinely usable free tier for Gemini models with rate limits rather than an expiring trial. Best starting point if you want a real free tier, not just credit.
Groq
Groq has offered free developer access to its LPU-hosted open models with generous rate limits, prized for very low latency. Good for a snappy free agent, with paid tiers for higher throughput.
OpenRouter
OpenRouter aggregates many providers behind one key, and several of its listed models are tagged free with no cost per token (rate-limited). A good place to try multiple models before picking one to pay for.
NVIDIA (build.nvidia.com)
NVIDIA’s API catalog has offered free introductory credits to try its hosted model catalog before you move to paid usage.
Cohere
Cohere has offered a free trial API key for its Command and Embed models, rate-limited but usable for testing retrieval-heavy agent workflows.
Mistral
Mistral has offered a free tier on La Plateforme with rate limits, useful for testing before scaling to a paid plan.
OpenAI and Anthropic: trial credit, not a lasting free tier
OpenAI and Anthropic are both excellent, widely-supported providers — but neither currently offers an ongoing free API tier the way Google or Groq do. New accounts typically get a small amount of trial credit that expires, after which you need billing set up to keep calling the API. If your priority is genuinely free, start with one of the providers above instead; if you want the broadest skill/tool-calling compatibility once you're paying, OpenAI and Anthropic remain strong defaults.
Using a free API key with an OpenClaw or Hermes agent
- Sign up with the provider (for example Google AI Studio or the Groq Console) and generate an API key.
- On VibeOpenClaw, add that key on the API Keys page — there's a "Test" button that fires a small probe so you know it works before wiring it to an agent.
- Create or edit an OpenClaw or Hermes agent and pick that provider and model.
- Your agent now runs on that provider's free tier — you pay the provider directly, and VibeOpenClaw never marks up inference on any provider.
Want the fuller picture on any specific provider? Browse Google, Groq, or OpenRouter on the OpenClaw hosting page, which lists all 13.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free AI API I can use?+
Yes — several major providers offer either a genuine free tier or free introductory credits. Google (Gemini via AI Studio), Groq, OpenRouter (on models tagged free), NVIDIA, Cohere, and Mistral have all offered some form of no-cost access at various rate limits. Terms and limits change often, so check the provider's current pricing page before you rely on it.
Does OpenAI have a free API tier?+
Not an ongoing one. OpenAI typically gives new accounts a small amount of trial credit that expires, rather than a lasting free tier — which is different from providers like Google or Groq that offer continuous free access at lower rate limits. If you want $0-to-start access, those are the better first stop.
What is the best free AI model?+
There isn't one universal answer — it depends on the task. For fast responses, Groq's free tier on open-weight models is hard to beat on latency. For general reasoning with a big context window, Google's Gemini free tier is a strong pick. For trying several models before committing, OpenRouter's free-tagged models let you compare without new sign-ups each time.
Is there a list of free APIs for AI agents?+
The most useful list is the one scoped to providers your agent framework actually supports. VibeOpenClaw is BYOK across 13 providers — Google, Groq, OpenRouter, NVIDIA, Cohere, and Mistral are the ones among them known for real free access; see the comparison above for what each offers.
Can I run OpenClaw or Hermes for free?+
The agent software itself is free and open source either way. Hosting it has a cost (self-hosting a VPS, or a managed platform), but the model inference can be genuinely free if you use a provider with a real free tier, like Google or Groq, instead of a paid-only provider.
How do I use a free API key with my agent?+
Sign up with the provider (for example Google AI Studio or Groq Console) and generate an API key from their dashboard. On VibeOpenClaw, add that key on the API Keys page, then pick that provider and model when you create or edit an OpenClaw or Hermes agent — no code required.
Bring your own key — free or paid
BYOK across 13 providers, no inference markup ever. Deploy OpenClaw or Hermes in ~30 seconds, from $24/mo.