How to Get a Qwen API Key for Free
Updated 27 October 2026.
In short: Alibaba Cloud's Qwen API (Model Studio) gives a new account a one-off free quota, then bills. For daily free use, Qwen3.8-27B is on Groq's free plan (1,000 requests a day, no credit card), and OVHcloud runs Qwen3.8-27B and Qwen3.5-397B with no account and no key.
Alibaba's Qwen API: a one-off quota, then billing
Alibaba Cloud's Model Studio gives new accounts a one-off free quota, about 1,000,000 tokens per model in the Singapore region, valid for 90 days after the account information is completed. When it runs out, billing starts automatically unless Free Quota Only is switched on first, and a new account does not get a second quota.
Where Qwen models are free
| Where | Qwen model | Free allowance | What it needs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groq | qwen/qwen3.8-27b | 1,000 requests a day | A free account |
| OVHcloud AI Endpoints | Qwen3.8-27B, Qwen3.5-397B-A17B | 2 requests a minute per model, per IP address | Nothing: no account and no API key |
The full list of free AI APIs, with each limit and source, is on how to get AI API keys for free.
Use a free Qwen model in an app made for OpenAI
In the app, enter the service's key, its base URL and its Qwen model name:
| Service | Base URL | Model name |
|---|---|---|
| Groq | https://api.groq.com/openai/v1 | qwen/qwen3.8-27b |
| OVHcloud AI Endpoints | https://oai.endpoints.kepler.ai.cloud.ovh.net/v1 | Qwen3.8-27B |
To put several free keys behind one address on your own computer, the open-source OmniRoute gateway switches to the next key when one runs out.
Words to know
- API key: the password an app uses to call a model. See what is an API key.
- Qwen: Alibaba's model family; Qwen3.8-27B is a 27-billion-parameter model that also reads images.
- Base URL: the address an app sends its requests to.
- Token: a piece of a word; the unit models read and write. See tokens and context windows.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Qwen API free?+
Only at the start: Alibaba Cloud Model Studio gives new accounts a one-off quota of about 1,000,000 tokens per model for 90 days, then bills unless Free Quota Only is switched on.
Where can I use Qwen for free every day?+
On Groq's free plan: qwen/qwen3.8-27b with 1,000 requests a day and 30 a minute, with no credit card.
What is the Groq base URL for Qwen?+
https://api.groq.com/openai/v1 with the model name qwen/qwen3.8-27b and a free Groq API key.
More free API key tutorials
- How to get a Gemini API key for free
- How to get a Groq API key for free
- How to get a Cloudflare Workers AI API key for free
- How to get a Cohere API key for free
- How to get an OpenRouter API key for free
- How to get an Experimental Labs API key for free (with the $1 verification)
- How to get a Requesty API key for free
- How to use Kilo Code free models (no API key)
- How to get an LLM7 API key for free
- How to use a free AI API without an API key
- How to get an Ollama API key for free
- How to get a Gonka AI API key for free
- How to get a Perplexity API key for free
- Where Mistral models are free
- The Grok API, checked on a new account
- Where DeepSeek models are free
- Where GLM models are free
- Where OpenAI models are free
- Every free AI API and its daily limit
By model: DeepSeek · OpenAI (GPT) · Claude · Grok · Perplexity · Mistral · Kimi · GLM · MiniMax · Llama · Nemotron · Gemma · gpt-oss
Want to use these APIs in a desktop app? OpenCode is a free, open-source AI coding app for Windows, Mac and Linux. How to add free API keys to OpenCode and pick a model.