AI promo codes that actually work (August 2026): all 15 we track, what they get you, and the catches
Coupon sites list hundreds of AI promo codes, and most of what they list is dead, fake, or '10% off' applied to a price that was raised 10% first. We track promo and referral codes as structured data in our provider catalog: 15 codes across 13 providers, every one marked active and re-verified in June 2026. Here is what each program actually gets you, including the parts the landing pages underplay.
The full list, with the fine print
| Provider | What you get | The honest limits |
|---|---|---|
| Perplexity | STUDENT50: 50% off Pro for verified students and educators ($10/mo), or 75% off with the Comet browser ($4.99/mo) | You must actually be a student or educator and pass verification |
| Perplexity referrals | $15 cash per successful referral | The cash goes to the referrer; your friend gets no discount |
| Alibaba Coding Plan | Referral sign-ups get Alibaba Cloud credits and Coding Plan benefits; new Model Studio accounts also get 70M+ free tokens | Campaign-based; the 'World First' coupon is an extra consideration, not a guaranteed amount |
| Hyperbolic | $6 in credits for you and $6 for the person who invited you | Credit, not cash; the plain signup bonus without a code is only $1 |
| Synthetic | $5 in credits for the invitee and $5 for the referrer | A small credit on a small platform; treat it as a trial |
| LLM Gateway | Referral credits, plus $5 free to get started | Pay-per-token with a 5% fee applies once the free credit is gone |
| Kilo Code | Kilo Pass referral: 50% bonus credits for 2 months; the standard offer is 1 month | The bonus applies to the Kilo Pass credit subscription, not to BYOK usage |
| OpenCode | OpenCode Go referral: $5 for your first month | Then $10/month; only the first month is discounted |
| Z.AI GLM | 10% off the GLM Coding Plan plus Builder benefits | A discount on a paid plan; the open GLM model in their consumer chat is already free |
| MiniMax | 10% off the Token Plan plus Builder benefits | Same shape as Z.AI: a subscription discount, not free tokens |
| BytePlus ModelArk | Campaign rewards for joining the ModelArk coding plan | The reward amount is not specified in our data; the 500K free tokens per model are the real baseline |
| Venice | Venice credits via referral link | The credit amount is not specified in our data |
| Mimo | $2 in API credits for both sides plus 10% off your first plan | Credits expire in 40 days, the shortest fuse on this list |
| RunPod | $5 to $500 randomized credit for both sides | Randomized mostly means $5; the kickbacks (3% on Pod spend, 5% on Serverless, first 6 months) are the real program |
Why so many of these are referral codes
Look at that table and a pattern jumps out: 13 of the 15 entries are referral or invite programs rather than classic coupons. And full disclosure, because it matters: 13 of the 15 codes are dracon-owned, meaning they are ours. This article deliberately prints no code strings and no outbound referral links, because an editorial page quietly seeding its own referral codes is exactly the coupon-site behavior we complained about in the first paragraph. The codes themselves live in the catalog behind the providers directory, and our affiliate programs page lists every program we participate in. What we can tell you editorially: referral credits are real money on small platforms (Hyperbolic's $6 is meaningful against its prices, and Kilo's second month of 50% bonus credits beats anything a coupon ever gave), while 'randomized' credits and unspecified 'campaign rewards' are lottery tickets.
The ones actually worth your time
- Best real discount: Perplexity's STUDENT50, if you qualify. Half off is the largest verified percentage we track, and the Comet browser variant takes it to $4.99/mo.
- Best signup stack: Alibaba's 70M+ free tokens for new Model Studio accounts, before any referral credit. Nothing else on the list comes close in raw volume.
- Fastest free credit: Hyperbolic ($6), Synthetic ($5), and LLM Gateway ($5) all land without a purchase.
- Shortest fuse: Mimo's credits expire in 40 days. Claim them when you have a project ready, not before.
Two warnings we repeat straight from the data. Every code here was verified in mid-June 2026, and promo programs die without notice, so treat the providers directory, not this article, as the live state. And none of these replace the free tiers on the free AI hub: a promo code is a one-shot bonus, while a free tier is a recurring allowance. The pricing page tracks the recurring kind.