GitHub Copilot for Students 2026: Free Access, Eligibility and Limits

Key Takeaways

• Copilot Student costs $0 for students verified through GitHub Education. GitHub rechecks eligibility every month.
• It includes unlimited code completions and a monthly allowance of GitHub AI Credits for chat and agents. Models are picked by auto model selection only, and third-party agents are excluded.
• To qualify you must be at least 13, enrolled in a degree- or diploma-granting program (high school, college, university or homeschool), own a personal GitHub account and prove current enrollment.
• Verification and activation are separate steps. After approval, turn on Copilot Student from your Education benefits page. It can take a few days to appear.
• If you outgrow it, Copilot Pro costs $10/month with 1,500 monthly AI Credits and a choice of models. Your other student benefits stay in place.

What is GitHub Copilot Student?

GitHub Copilot is GitHub's AI coding assistant. It suggests code as you type, answers questions in chat, explains unfamiliar code and can run agent tasks that edit files for you.

Copilot Student is a dedicated free plan for verified students. GitHub moved students onto it on March 13, 2026. Before that, students received Copilot Pro. The new plan sits alongside Copilot Free in GitHub's lineup of individual plans, but it is more generous: completions are unlimited rather than capped.

Copilot Student is one of several benefits you get through GitHub Education, along with the GitHub Student Developer Pack and free GitHub Codespaces use.

Copilot Free vs Copilot Student vs Copilot Pro

Here is how the three plans most students choose between compare, based on GitHub's Copilot plans documentation as of October 24, 2026:

GitHub does not list the exact size of the Free and Student AI Credit allowances on its plans page. Check your Copilot usage dashboard to see your balance and when it resets. Included credits reset at 00:00 UTC on the first day of each month and do not roll over.

How GitHub AI Credits work

One GitHub AI Credit is worth $0.01. Chat, Copilot CLI, the cloud agent, Spaces and Spark draw down credits based on the tokens used and the model that handles your request. A quick chat question with a lightweight model can cost a fraction of a credit. A long agent session across many files costs much more. Code completions and next edit suggestions do not use credits.

On Copilot Student, auto model selection picks the model for you. You cannot choose a specific model by name, which keeps the plan free to run but means you cannot force the most capable model for a hard task.

Who is eligible for Copilot Student?

Copilot Student eligibility comes straight from GitHub Education. There is no separate Copilot application. According to GitHub's student application docs, you qualify if you:

• Are enrolled in a degree- or diploma-granting program, such as a high school, college, university or homeschool.
• Can provide documents that prove your current student status.
• Own a personal GitHub account.
• Are at least 13 years old.

Accepted proof includes a photo of your school ID showing a current enrollment date, your class schedule, your transcript, or an affiliation or enrollment verification letter.

Academic email rules

GitHub tailors verification to each school. If recent applicants from your school verified using an academic email, you will have to add and verify your school email on your GitHub account before applying. If your school does not issue academic emails, you can submit official documentation such as a school webpage or a letter on school letterhead explaining that. If your school's email domain is not recognized, contact GitHub Education Support with your school's full name, website and email domain.

How to get GitHub Copilot free as a student

Step 1: Verify with GitHub Education

1. Sign in to your personal GitHub account and go to github.com/settings/education/benefits.
2. Under "GitHub Education", click Start an application.
3. Complete the form, add your academic email or upload proof of enrollment, and click Submit application.

Use clear photos where your name, school name and current dates are easy to read. Blurry or undated documents are a common reason for rejection.

Step 2: Activate Copilot Student

1. Go back to your Education benefits page.
2. Under "Free GitHub developer resources for students and teachers", click Learn more.
3. Follow the prompts to activate Copilot Student and set your Copilot use policies.

Step 3: Sign in from your editor

Install the Copilot extension in your editor and sign in with the same GitHub account that holds your student status. Copilot works in VS Code, Visual Studio, JetBrains IDEs, Xcode, Vim and Neovim, Zed (Agentdex profile) and Eclipse, as well as on github.com, in GitHub Mobile and in the Copilot CLI. Signing in with the wrong account is one of the most common reasons Copilot seems not to work.

Troubleshooting: approved but no Copilot Student

GitHub's student setup docs say approval and activation are separate, and the student benefit can take several days to finish applying. If you see Copilot Free, a trial or a paid checkout page instead:

• Open your Copilot settings and follow the prompts there.
• Try github.com/github-copilot/free_signup directly.
• Do not complete a purchase if only paid options appear. Wait a few days and try again.
• If it still is not working after several days, contact GitHub Support.

One more thing to check: Copilot Free plans are only for individuals who do not already get Copilot through an organization or enterprise. If a school or company organization has given you a Copilot seat, that organization's plan applies instead.

Recent changes students should know about

• March 13, 2026: students with GitHub Education benefits moved to the new Copilot Student plan, with an updated model lineup.
• June 1, 2026: usage-based billing with GitHub AI Credits went live for all Copilot plans. New sign-ups for Student, Pro, Pro+ and Max were paused at the time.
• June 17, 2026: GitHub began reopening sign-ups for Copilot Student, Pro, Pro+ and Max gradually. If the option is not available to you yet, check back later.
• Model selection: Copilot Free and Copilot Student now use auto model selection only.

Should you upgrade from Student to Pro?

Most students never need to. Unlimited completions cover the bulk of everyday coding, and the credit allowance handles regular chat. Consider upgrading if you:

• Run out of AI Credits regularly because you use agent mode or the cloud agent heavily.
• Need to pick a specific model, for example a stronger model for a hard debugging session.
• Want third-party agents inside Copilot.

Copilot Pro costs $10/month and includes 1,500 AI Credits a month. Pro+ ($39/month, 7,000 credits) and Max ($100/month, 20,000 credits) are aimed at very heavy users, which few students are. See our full GitHub Copilot pricing guide for how every plan works.

Other GitHub Education perks worth claiming

• GitHub Codespaces: verified students get free Codespaces use for personal accounts, up to 180 core hours a month. That is a full cloud dev environment you can open from any browser, useful on a low-powered laptop.
• GitHub Student Developer Pack: free offers from GitHub partners, such as developer tools and cloud services. The list changes, so check the pack page for what is currently available.
• GitHub Classroom and Campus Experts: assignment tracking and a student community, if your school uses them.

Using Copilot well as a student

Copilot is most useful when it speeds up the parts of coding you already understand, and most risky when it replaces understanding you are supposed to be building. A few habits help:

• Ask it to explain, not just write. Highlight code and ask what it does, line by line.
• Use it for tests. Ask for unit tests for your own functions, then read them. Tests show you edge cases you missed.
• Compare approaches. Ask for two ways to solve a problem and decide which is better and why.
• Review every suggestion. Copilot can be confidently wrong. Run the code and check it before you rely on it.
• Follow your course rules. Many schools have AI policies for graded work. Check yours before using Copilot on an assignment.

If you want more than one AI tool in your kit, see our guides to Codeium vs GitHub Copilot, free AI code generators and the best LLMs for coding.

Copilot Student alternatives

Copilot Student is the strongest free option for most students, but it is not the only one. Copilot Free works without verification if you are waiting for approval. Google's free individual offering is now Google Antigravity, which replaced the unpaid Gemini Code Assist tier in June 2026, and open-source agents like Cline (Agentdex profile) let you bring your own model, including free local models through Ollama. Our Copilot alternatives guide compares the main options.

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FAQ

Is GitHub Copilot free for students?

Yes. Students verified through GitHub Education get the Copilot Student plan at no cost. It includes unlimited code completions and a monthly allowance of GitHub AI Credits for chat and agents.

How do I get GitHub Copilot for free as a student?

Apply for GitHub Education at github.com/settings/education/benefits with proof of current enrollment. Once approved, return to that page, click Learn more under "Free GitHub developer resources for students and teachers", and activate Copilot Student.

What is the difference between Copilot Student and Copilot Pro?

Copilot Student is free for verified students, uses auto model selection only and excludes third-party agents. Copilot Pro costs $10/month, includes 1,500 AI Credits a month and lets you choose from a selection of models.

How long does GitHub Education verification take?

It varies. Some applications are approved quickly, others need manual review. After approval, GitHub says the Copilot Student benefit can take several days to finish applying.

Do I lose Copilot Student when I graduate?

GitHub rechecks your eligibility every month. Once you are no longer an enrolled student, you lose student benefits and can move to Copilot Free or a paid plan.

Can high school students get GitHub Copilot free?

Yes, if they are at least 13 and enrolled in a degree- or diploma-granting program. High schools and homeschool programs both count, as long as you can prove current enrollment.

Related guides

• Best GitHub Copilot Model in 2026: Picks by Task, Explained
• Qodo vs GitHub Copilot (2026): Code Review vs Coding Assistant
• GitHub Copilot Agents (2026): Agent Mode, Cloud Agent, Custom Agents and CLI
• GitHub Copilot vs ChatGPT for Coding (2026): Which Should You Use?
• Cline vs Copilot (2026): Open-Source Agent or GitHub's Assistant?
• GitHub Copilot Enterprise (2026): Price, Features and When It Beats Business

Part of our GitHub Copilot guides hub

Written by Agentdex Editorial. Agentdex is an independent directory reviewing AI coding tools; we are not affiliated with the companies mentioned. Prices and features are as of October 24, 2026, from official sources linked above. Always confirm on the vendor's site.