Two deadlines matter most right now. Most scholarship applications on the National Scholarship Portal close on 31 October 2026, and Google’s student AI offer closes on 31 December 2026. Do those first, then pick through the rest.
Most of us can’t pay full price for every tool college expects us to use, and a lot of them are free or heavily discounted if you have a student ID. This guide covers free AI tools (ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, Perplexity, Cursor and Codex), free GPUs, scholarships, free stationery, and student deals on gadgets, software and subscriptions.
Offers change fast, so I’ve marked what is free, what is a limited-time deal, and what Indian students can’t get. Keep your college ID or enrolment letter ready, since most offers ask for proof.
Quick guide (October 2026)
| Offer | What you get | Status for Indian students |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Plus | Free for 12 months | Claim by 31 Dec 2026 |
| Google AI Pro | ₹489 a month for up to 4 years | Claim by 31 Dec 2026 |
| ChatGPT Free | Free plan with Study Mode | Always available |
| ChatGPT Go | Free for 12 months | Ends early Nov 2026 for those who claimed it |
| Claude Free | Free plan | No student discount |
| Perplexity | Free plan, Education Pro trial | Airtel free year has ended |
| Cursor Pro | 12 months free | Many Indian students can’t verify |
| Codex credits | $100 | US and Canada only |
| Free GPU | Colab, Kaggle, IndiaAI Compute | Available |
| Scholarships | Free money through NSP | Most close 31 Oct 2026 |
Free AI tools for students in India
Here is what’s actually free in 2026, and what isn’t.
ChatGPT
ChatGPT has a free plan, and it includes Study Mode, which walks you through a topic step by step instead of just handing over the answer. India is one of its biggest student markets.
OpenAI also made ChatGPT Go, normally ₹399 a month, free for 12 months for users in India from 4 November 2025. If you signed up, your free year runs out in early November 2026, and then you either pay or go back to the free plan.
There’s no official student discount. OpenAI did announce 5 lakh free licences for students and teachers through the Ministry of Education, AICTE and partner schools, so ask your college whether it’s part of that.
Gemini
Google has the strongest student offer right now, and if you only claim one thing from this post, I’d make it this one. According to a Business Today report from September 2026, university students in India who are 18 or older can get:
- Google AI Plus free for 12 months. It has higher Gemini limits than the free plan, 400GB of storage, Gemini in Gmail and Gemini Notebook for research.
- Google AI Pro for ₹489 a month for up to four years. It has four times the usage limits of the free plan, the Pro model, Deep Research, 5TB of storage, Gemini in Docs, Sheets and Slides, and 200 Colab compute units a month.
You verify through SheerID, use a personal Google account and add a payment method. Redeem before 31 December 2026. When the free year ends, AI Plus can roll into the paid price on its own, so set a reminder to cancel if you don’t want it. You can claim the student offer here.
Claude
Claude has a free plan, and students can use it like anyone else. Anthropic doesn’t offer an individual student discount on Pro or Max, and there is no India-specific student deal. What you can do:
- Ask your college whether it has Claude for Education. Some universities give students free access that way.
- Take Anthropic’s free AI Fluency course for students.
- If you’re building a project, apply for Anthropic’s student-builder API credits.
If a site promises a free Claude Pro code or charges you for “verification”, it’s a scam.
Perplexity
Perplexity‘s free plan is good for research because it shows sources next to its answers. The Airtel offer of a free year of Pro closed in January 2026, so ignore any page that says you can still claim it. Perplexity also has an Education Pro plan for verified students, which has come with a free first month and a discounted price after. Terms change, so read the current ones on Perplexity’s site before you sign up.
Cursor
Cursor, the AI code editor, gives verified students 12 months of Pro for free. The catch is that many Indian students say India is missing from the country list or their college email isn’t accepted. Try it, and if it fails, Gemini’s coding tools in Google AI Pro, Colab and the free plans of other coding assistants cover most student projects.
Codex
Codex is OpenAI’s coding agent, and it comes with your ChatGPT account, including the free plan. OpenAI’s $100 Codex credits for students are only for verified students in the US and Canada, so Indian students can’t claim them. You can still use Codex within the limits of your ChatGPT plan.
Free GPU for students
You don’t need to buy a GPU to train or fine tune a model.
- Google Colab gives free T4 GPU sessions, enough for learning and small projects. Google AI Pro students get 200 compute units a month on top.
- Kaggle Notebooks give about 30 free GPU hours a week, which works better than Colab for longer training runs.
- Lightning AI has a monthly allowance of free GPU hours.
- The IndiaAI Compute portal offers subsidised GPUs, often under ₹100 an hour. Students may need a faculty endorsement and an APAAR ID, so check eligibility before you plan a project around it.
- Azure for Students and AWS Educate come with student cloud credits.
Free sessions time out, so save checkpoints often.
Free money for students: scholarships
When students search “free money”, scholarships are the real answer. The National Scholarship Portal (NSP) hosts central and state schemes in one place. Applications for 2026-27 opened on 1 June, and for most schemes the last date is 31 October 2026. Some state and post-matric schemes run to 30 November, so check yours.
- AICTE Pragati (girl students), Saksham (specially abled students) and Swanath: last date 31 October 2026 for fresh and renewal applications.
- The Central Sector Scheme of Scholarship for College and University Students, post-matric scholarships (SC, ST, OBC, minority and disabled students) and merit-cum-means scholarships are on NSP too.
- Your state’s own scholarship portal may have more.
To apply:
- Register on NSP with a One-Time Registration (OTR).
- Keep your Aadhaar, bank details, income certificate and marksheets ready. Aadhaar seeding is needed for the money to reach you.
- Submit the form, then follow up with your college, since your institute and then district or state officers have to verify it.
A real scholarship never asks you to pay a fee. Stay away from “free money” apps and Telegram groups.
Free stationery for students
Free stationery mostly comes from state schemes for government school students and from NGOs. For college students it’s more about discounts and free digital material.
- Several states give free notebooks, stationery and geometry boxes to government and government aided school students. Telangana hands out school kits, Puducherry supplies stationery from LKG to Class XII, and Tamil Nadu has a free notebooks scheme for Classes 1 to 10. Schemes and eligibility change every year, so ask your school.
- NGOs such as Shrimad Rajchandra Love and Care sell notebooks and stationery about 35% below market price through 125+ centres, mostly around June.
- NPTEL and SWAYAM have free course notes and videos, so you print less and buy fewer notebooks.
Discounts on gadgets
You can usually apply a student discount with your college ID or student email.
- Apple Education Store
- Lenovo student offers
- Samsung student discount
- Dell student laptop discount
- HP: check the education offers on HP India’s online store.
Festive sales in October and November sometimes beat the student price, so compare both before you pay.
Amazon
Amazon India has offered Prime for young adults and students, usually a free trial and then a reduced price. Check the current trial length and discount on Amazon.in before you sign up. If you want to learn cloud skills, AWS Educate is worth a look too.
Entertainment
You need breaks too. These are the cheapest student plans, but you have to verify your student status, and prices change often.
- Spotify Premium Student: ₹69 a month after a cut from ₹99 in May 2026, for up to four years.
- YouTube Premium Student: ₹89 a month.
- Apple Music student plan: check the current offer.
- More student deals
Software and tools
- Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- Microsoft Azure for Students
- Adobe Creative Cloud
- Canva for Education
- Notion for Education
- Figma for Education
- GitHub Student Developer Pack
- Autodesk Education
- Intel developer tools
- Altair Student Edition
- Kickresume for resumes
- Basecamp for project management
Free certificate courses
Read the fine print on what’s actually free. On Coursera you can usually learn for free by auditing a course, but the certificate often costs money unless you get financial aid.
- Google certificates on Coursera: Data Analytics, IT Support, UX Design, Project Management, Cybersecurity and Digital Marketing & E-commerce
- From Indian platforms: NPTEL, SWAYAM, TCS iON and Infosys Springboard
- Microsoft Learn
- Anthropic’s AI Fluency course
Free books and study material
- National Digital Library of India: e-books, e-newspapers and study material in many Indian languages, sponsored by the Ministry of Education and built by IIT Kharagpur.
- Internet Archive: books, audiobooks, software and music.
- Your college library’s online access, which often includes paid journals.
Conclusion
Start with the two deadlines: scholarships by 31 October and the Google offer by 31 December. After that, pick one AI assistant, use free GPU time for projects, and add software only when you need it. And skip anything that asks you to pay for a student code.
FAQs
Is ChatGPT free for students in India? The free plan is open to everyone and includes Study Mode. OpenAI also gave Indian users ChatGPT Go free for a year starting November 2025, and that ends in early November 2026 for people who claimed it. There’s no separate student discount.
Is Gemini free for students in India? Yes. Eligible university students can get Google AI Plus free for 12 months, or Google AI Pro at a reduced price for up to four years. Redeem by 31 December 2026.
Is Claude free for students in India? Claude has a free plan for everyone. There’s no individual student discount, but your college may offer Claude through Claude for Education.
Is Perplexity Pro free for students in India? Not anymore. The Airtel free year ended in January 2026. The free plan is still there, and Education Pro has offered verified students a free first month, so check the current terms.
Can Indian students get Cursor or Codex for free? Cursor gives verified students a free year of Pro, but many Indian students can’t complete verification. Codex’s $100 student credits are only for students in the US and Canada.
Where can I get a free GPU as a student? Google Colab and Kaggle Notebooks both give free GPU time. You can also apply for subsidised GPUs on the IndiaAI Compute portal.
What is the last date for scholarships in 2026-27? For most schemes on the National Scholarship Portal it’s 31 October 2026. Some state and post-matric schemes run until 30 November 2026.
How do I prove I’m a student? Keep a valid college ID, fee receipt or enrolment letter handy. Many platforms verify students through SheerID.
How do I find the latest offers? Go to each company’s official student page, since student deals change often. Avoid sites that sell student verification or free codes.