Cohere API free tier
Every new Cohere account gets a Trial API key. Calls from a Trial key are free, rate-limited and not permitted for production or commercial use: 20 requests a minute on the Chat API for most models, 10 a minute on Rerank, and 1,000 API calls a month in total.
Free tier: Cohere API, Trial key
Published on the provider page| Limit | Value | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Requests per minute | 20 | Account | Chat API, most models, Trial key |
| Requests per minute | 10 | Account | Rerank endpoint, Trial key |
| Requests per month | 1,000 | Account | All API calls on a Trial key |
- What moves you past this tier
- A Production key lifts the Chat API to 500 requests a minute on standard models with no stated monthly cap; newer model variants and audio transcription go through sales.
- Card required
- Not stated by the provider
- Source
- Cohere rate limits Read 2026-10-16
The free and non-commercial statements come from Cohere's pricing page FAQ, read the same day.
Questions
Is the Cohere API free?
Every new Cohere account is issued a Trial API key, and Cohere’s pricing page says calls made from a Trial key are free. They are rate-limited and not permitted for production or commercial use. Paid, production use goes through a Production key at the per-token rates on Cohere’s pricing page.
What are the Cohere trial key limits?
The rate-limits page lists 20 requests a minute on the Chat API for most models, 10 a minute on Rerank, 100 a minute on Tokenize, 2,000 inputs a minute on text Embed, and a cap of 1,000 API calls a month across everything on a Trial key. The numbers were read on September 14, 2026.
What changes with a Cohere production key?
The Chat API limit rises to 500 requests a minute on standard models, Rerank to 1,000 a minute and Tokenize to 2,000, with no monthly call cap stated. Newer model variants and audio transcription limits are set through sales. Whether a card is required is not stated on the pages we read.