Google's free 1-year student offer for Google AI Pro (Gemini Advanced) has ended and is no longer available to new students. Update: a new student offer is live. US and Canada students can get Google AI Plus free for one year through Handshake, while the summer window lasts.
How to claim it
- Check the new offer first. US and Canada students can get
Google AI Plus free for 1 year via Handshakewhile the summer offer runs - Know the old offer ended. Google's
student pagestates the previous AI Pro student offer ended and is no longer available, with no signup flow left - Claimed it already? Check your renewal. If you redeemed the free year in time, note your renewal date so the standard price does not surprise you when the 12 months end
- Use Gemini's free tier. Gemini still has a free tier anyone can use at
gemini.google.com, with no student verification needed - Try Claude for students. Anthropic offers students access through participating universities, see our
Claude for university students deal - Try Perplexity Pro for students. Perplexity's education plan is $10/month (50% off) for verified students, see our
Perplexity education deal - Browse more study tools. See current options in our
writing & research deals
Who's eligible
What's included
Google's free 1-year student offer for Google AI Pro (which included Gemini Advanced) has ended. The official student page at gemini.google/students now says the previous student offer ended and is no longer available, with no SheerID signup flow left behind it. Regional windows closed at different times, through late 2025 and early 2026 in most countries, with the US window reported to have ended around late April 2026. If you redeemed the free year while it was open, you keep your remaining 12 months, then the plan renews at the standard rate unless you cancel. Google's current plans (Free, AI Plus, AI Pro, AI Ultra) no longer include a student tier, and Gemini still has a free tier anyone can use. Update August 2026: Google reopened a student offer in a new form. Undergraduate and graduate students in the US and Canada can get Google AI Plus (a different tier than the old AI Pro deal) free for 12 months through Handshake, and the window closes at the end of summer. See our Google AI Plus student deal page for the full terms and how to claim it.
- New: Google AI Plus Free via HandshakeSince summer 2026, US and Canada students can get Google AI Plus free for one year through a Handshake account. It's a different tier than the old AI Pro deal, and the window closes at the end of summer. See the steps below for the link.
- Student Offer EndedThe free 1-year Google AI Pro student offer is closed to new sign-ups. The student page confirms it ended and is no longer available, and no verification flow remains.
- Claimed In Time? You Keep ItStudents who redeemed the free year while it was open keep their remaining months, then renew at the standard price unless they cancel.
- No Student Tier NowGoogle's current plan lineup (Free, AI Plus, AI Pro, AI Ultra) has no student plan. Gemini's free tier is still open to everyone.
- Live Alternatives BelowClaude for students and Perplexity's education plan both have current student deals for research and study. See the steps for direct links.
Fine print & gotchas
- Student offer ended. The free year is closed to new students; no signup or verification flow remains.
- Grandfathering only. Those who claimed it in time keep their remaining 12 months, then renew at the standard price.
- New offer runs via Handshake. Google's plans have no built-in student tier, but US and Canada students can get Google AI Plus free for a year through Handshake while the summer offer lasts.
- Free Gemini tier still open to everyone, but it is not a student-specific deal.