Claude API free trial: credits, limits and CAK access
Creating a CAK account is free. API usage needs funded credits, an active eligible plan, or access explicitly granted to your account. Registration alone does not include an automatic free-token allowance.
Reviewed 2026-10-26 · Claude API documentation
Check the access actually on your account
The earlier public $5 new-account promotion is no longer available. Do not rely on old search snippets, screenshots or a third-party coupon page. Your dashboard and the active terms of a specific offer determine whether access has been granted.
Any trial or creator access is manually reviewed and may be limited or unavailable. An application or conversation with support is not itself an active API entitlement. Check the access group and expiry shown in your account before sending requests.
A short paid session
The current shortest public CAK plan is Unlimited 1 Hour for $1. This is a paid plan, not a free trial. You can compare all periods on the Plans page. Configure your client first, then confirm the order and activation dates so you can make use of the period.
For a key with active access, start by listing available models, followed by a short message. The starter examples explain both steps. Model listing does not prove that every generation feature is available.
CAK and other Claude products are separate
A free Claude.ai account, a Claude.ai subscription, an Anthropic Console balance and a CAK gateway plan are different products. An offer from one does not automatically fund another. Check the provider named on the offer and the destination URL used by your client.
For CAK, the gateway is https://claudeapikey.dev. Keep API keys private and avoid pages asking you to paste credentials to check whether you qualify for a promotion.
When a new key cannot send a request
Check the selected group, account verification and active access before troubleshooting the client. A $0 balance without an applicable grant does not buy model usage. Authentication and funding are separate checks, so a syntactically valid key is not enough on its own.
Claude API is an independent gateway and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Anthropic. Claude and Anthropic are trademarks of their respective owners.