API KEYS · GUIDE 5 OF 7
How to get a free Cerebras API key
Extremely fast inference — but check whether a card is now required.
- You need
- Email. Independent trackers reported in autumn 2026 that new accounts may need a payment method before API access; check when you sign up.
- Free allowance
- Historically about 1 million free tokens per day on a small set of models with low per-minute limits. Recent reports differ — treat the console as the source of truth.
- Best for
- Speed experiments once you already have Groq or Gemini working.
- Region notes
- If card verification is required and your card is not accepted, skip Cerebras — Groq offers similar open models free.
- Key looks like
csk-…
Step by step
- Go to cloud.cerebras.ai and sign up.
- Follow any verification steps. If a card is requested and you do not want that, stop here and use Groq.
- Open “API Keys” and create a key (starts with csk-).
- On Open Practice, choose Cerebras in Key settings, paste and press “Test key”.
Use it on Open Practice
Paste the key into Key settings and press Test key. Then open any free tool and choose “Draft with my AI key”. The key stays in your browser.
If something goes wrong
| 403 | API access not activated for this account. |
|---|---|
| 429 | Per-minute or daily token limit reached. |
Keep your key safe
- Treat a key like a password: never post it in chats, screenshots, GitHub or website code.
- Create one key per project so you can delete just that one if it leaks.
- If a key leaks, delete it in the provider console immediately and create a new one.
- Prefer free-only keys (for example, OpenRouter with a $0 credit limit) so a leak cannot cost money.
- On a shared or public computer, do not tick “remember on this device”, and press “Forget all keys” when you finish.
Other free keys
GUIDEGroqThe easiest first key: email signup, no card, very fast open models.GUIDEGoogle Gemini (AI Studio)Generous free tier on Gemini Flash models with a Google account.GUIDEOpenRouterOne key for many models, including a rotating set of free ones.GUIDEMistralFree “Experiment” plan covering Mistral’s model line-up, with phone verification.GUIDECloudflare Workers AIFree daily AI allowance inside the same account that hosts your Workers and bots.GUIDEHugging FaceThe home of open models. Great for discovery; hosted inference now needs credits.
Questions people ask
Is Cerebras free?
Historically about 1 million free tokens per day on a small set of models with low per-minute limits. Recent reports differ — treat the console as the source of truth.
Do I need a credit card for Cerebras?
Email. Independent trackers reported in autumn 2026 that new accounts may need a payment method before API access; check when you sign up.
Is Cerebras available in my country?
If card verification is required and your card is not accepted, skip Cerebras — Groq offers similar open models free.