GitHub Copilot Free for Students (2026): Copilot Student Plan Explained

Short answer: yes. If GitHub Education verifies you as a student, you can activate the free Copilot Student plan. It gives you unlimited code completions, 200 GitHub AI Credits a month for chat and agents, and access to the cloud agent and code review, all with no time limit while you stay verified. The catch is that you can't choose models: everything goes through Auto model selection, and 200 credits ($2.00 of usage) runs out quickly with heavy agent use.

What the Copilot Student plan includes

GitHub created a separate Student plan on March 12-13, 2026. Before that, verified students got Copilot Pro for free. GitHub Docs now lists Copilot Student as its own column in the plans table, next to Free, Pro, Pro+, Max, Business and Enterprise.

According to GitHub Docs, Student also includes repository and personal custom instructions, prompt files, Copilot pull request summaries, Copilot CLI, the Copilot app and the option to block suggestions that match public code. It does not include third-party agents, GitHub Spark, or organization-level features such as organization custom instructions, content exclusion and audit logs. For every tier and price, see our GitHub Copilot pricing page.

How AI Credits work

Since June 1, 2026, all Copilot plans use usage-based billing. GitHub's billing docs define 1 AI Credit = $0.01 USD. Chat, agent mode, the cloud agent and code review use credits based on the tokens consumed (input, output and cached) at each model's published API rate. Code completions and Next Edit suggestions don't use credits, which is why the Student plan can offer them without limit. Your allowance resets to the full amount at 00:00 UTC on the first day of each calendar month, regardless of when you signed up, and unused credits don't carry over.

GitHub's docs only say the Student plan has "an allowance of AI credits". The figure of 200 credits per month comes from GitHub's official community announcement, updated June 1, 2026. That is 200 x $0.01 = $2.00 of model usage per month. By comparison, Pro's 1,500 credits are worth $15.00 and Pro+'s 7,000 credits are worth $70.00.

200 credits go fast with agents. On June 1, 2026, students in GitHub's community forum reported using their whole allowance in about 10-20 agent-mode requests. This is user reporting, not an official figure, but it shows that long agent sessions are expensive. Use chat for short questions and keep agent tasks small and specific.

Auto model selection

Since June 24, 2026, Auto is the default and only model selection on the Free and Student plans. Auto picks a model for each request from several model families, within the plan's restrictions. GitHub's March announcement said Auto still gives students access to models from OpenAI, Anthropic and Google, even though models such as GPT-5.4 and Claude Opus and Sonnet can't be selected directly. In April 2026, GPT-5.4 mini was added to Student Auto selection, and GPT-5.3-Codex was removed from the Student picker but stayed available through Auto.

Who qualifies

Copilot Student uses the same verification as the GitHub Student Developer Pack. GitHub Docs lists these requirements for GitHub Education:

• You are enrolled in a degree- or diploma-granting program, such as a high school, college, university or homeschool.
• You are at least 13 years old.
• You own a personal GitHub account. Organization accounts can't apply.
• If recent applicants from your school verified with an academic email address, you must also add and verify one on your account before applying.

If you're asked for proof, GitHub accepts a photo of your school ID showing a current enrollment date, a class schedule, a transcript, or an affiliation or enrollment verification letter. If your school doesn't issue email addresses, you can submit official documentation instead. GitHub re-checks Copilot Student eligibility every month, so your verification must stay valid.

Edge cases

• Copilot through your school or employer: GitHub Docs says Copilot Free is only for developers who don't get Copilot through an organization or enterprise. If your university gives you a Business or Enterprise seat, use that.
• Teachers: this page covers students. Verified teachers have their own GitHub Education benefits.
• Existing paid subscribers: if you already pay for Copilot Pro and then get verified, you can switch plans from your Copilot settings. Check the billing page before you cancel anything.

How to activate Copilot Student

1. Go to github.com/settings/education/benefits. If you're not verified yet, click Start an application, choose Student, and complete the form with your school and proof of enrollment.
2. Wait for approval. GitHub doesn't publish a fixed review time.
3. Once approved, return to the benefits page. Under Free GitHub developer resources for students and teachers, click Learn more.
4. Follow the prompts to turn on Copilot Student and choose your Copilot policies, such as whether to allow suggestions that match public code.
5. Install the Copilot extension in your editor (VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs and others) or use Copilot CLI, and sign in with the same GitHub account.
6. Check Settings > Copilot on GitHub to confirm your plan shows as Copilot Student and to see your AI Credits usage.

GitHub's setup docs say approval and Copilot activation are separate. The benefit can take several days to apply after verification. If you see Copilot Free, a trial or a paid checkout, don't buy anything. Try the direct sign-up link (github.com/github-copilot/free_signup), wait a few days and try again, then contact GitHub Support if it still doesn't work.

Limits, renewal and what happens next

• No end date: the plan lasts as long as GitHub Education keeps you verified. There is no 12-month limit.
• When credits run out: the April 27, 2026 billing post says the old fallback to a cheaper model is ending, and usage is limited by available credits. Completions keep working. You can wait for the monthly reset or upgrade.
• Upgrading: students can upgrade to Copilot Pro ($10/month), Pro+ ($39/month) or Max ($100/month) and keep their other Student Pack benefits. Paid plans can also set a dollar budget for additional usage.
• After graduation: once you're no longer verified, the Student plan ends. You can drop to Copilot Free (2,000 completions a month and a smaller feature set) or pay for a plan. GitHub doesn't charge you automatically because no card is needed for Student.
• Your code: your repositories and settings stay on your GitHub account whatever plan you're on.

Worked example: is upgrading worth it?

Suppose you use agent mode heavily for a capstone project. The Student plan gives $2.00 of credits a month. Pro costs $10/month and includes 1,500 credits ($15.00 of usage). Upgrading for a four-month semester costs 4 x $10 = $40 and gives you 4 x 1,500 = 6,000 credits instead of 4 x 200 = 800, plus the option to choose models manually. If you mainly use completions and occasional chat, the free Student plan is likely enough.

Alternatives and add-ons for students

Combining offers often makes sense. Copilot Student's unlimited completions work well alongside a separate agent tool with its own credits. If you need API access for your own apps, see our guide to free AI API keys.

Timeline of 2026 changes

Tips to stretch your credits

• Rely on completions. They're unlimited and free of credits, so write a clear comment or function signature and let inline suggestions fill in code.
• Keep agent tasks narrow. One focused task per request ("add input validation to this form") uses fewer tokens than "refactor the whole project".
• Add custom instructions to your repository so Copilot doesn't need long explanations in every prompt.
• Check your usage on your GitHub Copilot settings page early in the month so you know how quickly you're spending credits.
• Follow your course rules. Many courses limit AI use in graded work. Copilot's public-code filter helps you avoid copying licensed code, but it doesn't replace your school's academic integrity policy.