Is There a Free Tier? What You Can Try on This Aggregator Before Spending USDC
Learn about free options on this LLM API aggregator, how to obtain trial credits through contributions, and how to evaluate multiple models before spending USDC. The aggregation service charges official price ×1.3, with contributors receiving credits at official price ×1.1 (or ×1.2 for premium).
Does This Aggregator Offer a Free Tier?
This aggregator does not provide a traditional free tier like some platforms. Instead, it uses a prepaid model where you top up with USDC on Base (no KYC) and pay per use. However, there are ways to try the service without spending your own USDC.
How to Get Free Credits
The primary way to earn free credits is by contributing to the platform. When you make valuable contributions—such as improving documentation, fixing bugs, or helping with translations—you receive credits based on the official API price of the models you help with. These credits can then be used to make API calls.
Contribution Credit Structure
- Standard contributors earn credits equivalent to official price × 1.1 for the models they support.
- Premium contributors earn credits equivalent to official price × 1.2 for premium models.
- This means your contribution is rewarded at a rate higher than the base API cost, giving you extra value.
Using Credits to Try Models
Once you have credits, you can use them to call any supported model (Claude, GPT, DeepSeek, Qwen, GLM, Kimi) with a single API key. There are no restrictions on which models you can try with your credits; you can experiment across different providers and compare outputs.
What About the Pay-Per-Use Cost?
When you use your own USDC to top up, you pay the official price × 1.3 for each API call. This covers the aggregator's service, including unified billing and access to multiple models without separate accounts.
Strategies to Minimize Spending
If you want to explore the service before committing USDC, consider these approaches:
- Start with smaller, cheaper models to test the integration and response quality.
- Use credits from contributions to offset your initial usage.
- Monitor your usage via the dashboard to understand cost patterns.
- Leverage the single API key to switch between models and find the most cost-effective option for your task.
Conclusion
While there is no free tier in the traditional sense, you can earn credits by contributing to the platform. These credits let you try the aggregator and its supported models without upfront USDC. For ongoing use, top up with USDC on Base and pay per call at official price ×1.3. This model ensures you only pay for what you use while supporting the platform's maintenance and development.