Cloud credits for students exist at the big providers, but in very different forms. Microsoft Azure gives students a starting credit, AWS mainly offers free learning environments, and Google issues credits for labs and courses. If you want to use cloud services for your studies, a thesis or projects, read the conditions carefully, because credits expire and different rules apply afterwards. This guide explains what the offers included in October 2026 contain and what to check before you sign up.
Kurz beantwortet: Last updated: October 2026, offers change often. Azure for Students gives 100 US dollars of credit for 12 months, without a credit card, using your university email address. AWS Educate offers free labs, but no credit amount is stated. Google Skills issues 200 credits for labs, which expire after one year.
The most important points in brief
- Microsoft Azure: 100 US dollars of credit, usable for 12 months. You register with your university email address, and according to the Azure page no credit card is needed (last updated October 2026).
- GitHub Student Developer Pack: includes Azure offers, among them 200 US dollars of credit in the first month for Azure services over one year (last updated October 2026).
- AWS Educate: free labs and online training on storage, compute, networking and databases. The AWS page names no credits and no amounts (last updated October 2026).
- Google Skills: 200 credits for labs, skill badges and courses. The credits expire one year after they are issued (last updated October 2026).
- Once the Azure credit is used up, you decide whether to switch to pay-as-you-go billing. If you decline, the subscription and included products are deactivated.
- Do not rely on figures from forums: all values here come from provider pages, last updated October 2026.
Which cloud offers exist for students?
The table below summarises the offers we found on the provider pages. Prices appear only where the provider states them. Terms are given in German on the German provider pages.
| Provider | Benefit | Price for students | Duration | Verification |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Azure for Students | 100 US dollars of credit and free services | free (credit) | credit for 12 months | university email, no credit card needed |
| Azure in the GitHub Student Developer Pack | Azure services with 200 US dollars of credit in the first month | free (credit) | Azure services 1 year | GitHub Student Developer Pack |
| AWS Educate | Free labs on storage, compute, networking, databases and online training | free, no credit amount stated | not stated | registration with email, no credit card |
| Google Skills for students | 200 credits for labs, skill badges and courses | free (credits) | credits expire after 1 year | application form |
| Heroku in the GitHub Pack | 13 US dollars of platform credit per month | free (credit) | 24 months per GitHub page | GitHub Student Developer Pack |
Last updated: October 2026. Sources are the provider pages and the GitHub Student Developer Pack. Offers change often, so check the conditions before you sign up.
How do you activate the Azure credit?
Registering for students with Azure takes only a few steps. Read the conditions yourself before you confirm anything.
- Open the Azure for Students page and start the student registration.
- Sign in with your university email address. According to the Azure page, you do not need a credit card for this.
- Complete the identity check and create an account with a strong password and two-factor authentication.
- Set up a budget alert in cost management so you see early how fast the credit shrinks.
- Delete test resources after each exercise. Services running in the background use up credit even when you are not actively using them.
How far does a cloud credit go?
The answer depends on the service, the region and your usage. A rough calculation still helps with planning.
Calculation example. Assumption: a test environment costs 25 US dollars per month. Then a credit of 100 US dollars covers four months on paper (100 divided by 25). Whether your environment costs more or less becomes visible in the provider cost overview after the first few days. Without your concrete architecture, no reliable lump sum for a semester project can be named.
What happens to cloud offers after your studies?
The providers differ in how clearly they describe this. Azure explains what happens after the credit is used up. It does not describe what happens to your account when your student status ends. However, Azure names more than 65 services that stay free permanently and are not tied to the credit. The Azure page lists which ones.
For many offers in the GitHub Student Developer Pack, the conditions say they apply while you are a student. Plan to back up projects and data in time, and move them to an account of your own before your studies end.
May I use cloud credits for AI projects and research data?
Many students use cloud credits for AI experiments or data analysis. Three rules apply. The examination regulations and the rules of your university come first. Do not enter personal or unpublished research data into services whose data processing you have not checked. Check AI output before you use it, whichever account produced it.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a credit card for the Azure student account?
According to the Azure page, no credit card is required. You register with the email address of your university. The page does not say whether an additional identity check is required. The registration process shows you which steps are needed at that point.
Is there an AWS credit for students?
The AWS Educate page says that access is free. The page does not name specific credits or amounts. The free labs are the documented part of the offer. For larger usage, clarify the conditions directly with the provider or through your university.
Is the Google offer the same as the new customer credit?
No. The 200 credits for students are meant for labs, skill badges and courses, and they expire after one year. The larger new customer credit that Google offers generally is not a student-specific offer. Whether it applies to you and in which amount is stated on the Google page.
Does the GitHub Student Developer Pack also apply in Germany?
The Pack page names no list of countries, and we did not find an explicit confirmation for Germany there. What counts is your student status, which GitHub checks during verification. Whether your university and your course qualify becomes clear in the verification process.
How much credit do I need for a semester project?
That depends on the project. Calculate with the services you really use and check the provider cost overview. A flat sum cannot be named reliably. The 100 dollar credit is enough for exercises and small tests, but not for systems that run permanently.
What to do now
- First ask your university or department whether they provide a cloud account before you create your own.
- Register for the offer that fits your project with your university email address.
- Set up budget alerts and delete test resources after each exercise.
- Back up projects and data before your student status ends, and clarify the switch to regular billing.
Related guides
- Software for computer science studies: GitHub Pack, IDEs and cloud
- Student status verification explained: SheerID, UNiDAYS, Student Beans and university email
- University email after deregistration: what happens to accounts and licences
- AI tools for students 2026: which offers exist with student status
- Student discounts for software and apps 2026: the overview
Sources: Microsoft: Azure for Students (last updated October 2026), GitHub: Student Developer Pack (last updated October 2026), AWS: AWS Educate (last updated October 2026), Google Cloud: offers for students (last updated October 2026).
Last updated: October 2026. This guide is general information, not individual advice.
