Free AI model providers for Pi. Access free models from multiple providers in one install.

pi-free is a Pi extension that unlocks free AI models from 9 providers — and adds 2 paid providers for convenience.

When you install pi-free, it:

1. Registers 11 AI providers with Pi's model picker — 9 with free tiers + 2 paid-only (OpenCode Go, Fireworks)

2. Filters to show only free models by default — You see only the models that cost $0 to use, no API key required for some providers. Paid-only providers are hidden until you explicitly enable them.

3. Provides a toggle command — Run /{provider}-toggle (e.g., /zen-toggle, /kilo-toggle) to switch between free-only mode and showing all models including paid ones

4. Handles authentication for you — OAuth flows (Kilo, Cline) open your browser automatically; API keys are read from ~/.pi/free.json or environment variables

5. Adds Coding Index scores — Model names include a coding benchmark score (CI: 45.2) to help you pick capable coding models at a glance

6. Persists your preferences — Your toggle choices (free vs all models) are saved to ~/.pi/free.json and remembered across Pi restarts

pi install git:github.com/apmantza/pi-free

Start Pi and press Ctrl+L to open the model picker.

Free models are shown by default — look for the provider prefixes:

✅ Offers Free Models (no usage limits, no payment required):

• zen/ — OpenCode Zen models (no setup required)
• kilo/ — Kilo models (free models available immediately, more after /login kilo)
• openrouter/ — OpenRouter models (free account required)
• cline/ — Cline models (run /login cline to use)

🔄 Freemium (free tier with limits, then paid):

• nvidia/ — NVIDIA NIM models (1,000 free requests/month, then credits)
• cloudflare/ — Cloudflare Workers AI (10K Neurons/day free tier, then $0.011/1K Neurons)
• modal/ — GLM-5.1 FP8 via Modal (free promotional period until April 30, 2026)
• ollama/ — Ollama Cloud models (usage-based free tier, resets every 5 hours + 7 days)

🔧 Dynamic API Providers (free models when API key configured):

• mistral/ — Mistral models (free models via API when MISTRAL_API_KEY set)
• groq/ — Groq models (free models via API when GROQ_API_KEY set)
• cerebras/ — Cerebras models (free models via API when CEREBRAS_API_KEY set)

💳 Paid Only (no free tier):

• go/ — OpenCode Go models (requires subscription — $5 first month, then $10/month)
• fireworks/ — Fireworks models (credit-based pricing, no free tier)

Want to see paid models too? Run the toggle command for your provider:

/zen-toggle         # Toggle Zen (✅ offers free models)
/kilo-toggle        # Toggle Kilo (✅ offers free models)
/openrouter-toggle  # Toggle OpenRouter (✅ offers free models)
/cline-toggle      # Toggle Cline (✅ offers free models)
/mistral-toggle     # Toggle Mistral (🔧 dynamic - needs API key)
/groq-toggle        # Toggle Groq (🔧 dynamic - needs API key)
/cerebras-toggle   # Toggle Cerebras (🔧 dynamic - needs API key)

Notes:

• Toggle commands are mainly for ✅ Offers Free Models providers — to switch between "free models only" vs "show paid models too"
• 🔄 Freemium providers (NVIDIA, Cloudflare, Ollama, Modal) show all models by default — you manage your usage limits via their dashboards
• 💳 Paid-only providers (Go, Fireworks) have no toggle since all models require payment

You'll see a notification like: zen: showing free models or zen: showing all models (including paid)

Some providers require a free account or API key. Two providers (Go, Fireworks) are paid-only with no free tier.

The first time you run Pi after installing this extension, a config file is automatically created:

• Linux/Mac: ~/.pi/free.json
• Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.pi\free.json

Add your API keys to this file:

{
  "openrouter_api_key": "sk-or-v1-...",
  "nvidia_api_key": "nvapi-...",
  "cloudflare_api_token": "...",
  "ollama_api_key": "...",
  "fireworks_api_key": "...",
  "mistral_api_key": "...",
  "modal_api_key": "sk-modal-..."
}

Or set environment variables instead (same names, uppercase: OPENROUTER_API_KEY, NVIDIA_API_KEY, etc.)

See the Providers That Need Authentication section below for detailed setup instructions per provider.

Works immediately with zero setup:

1. Press Ctrl+L
2. Search for zen/
3. Pick any model (e.g., zen/mimo-v2-omni-free)
4. Start chatting

No account, no API key, no OAuth.

Get an API key from ollama.com/settings/keys, then:

Option A: Environment variable

export OLLAMA_API_KEY="..."
export OLLAMA_SHOW_PAID=true

Option B: Config file (~/.pi/free.json)

{
  "ollama_api_key": "YOUR_KEY",
  "ollama_show_paid": true
}

Note: Ollama requires OLLAMA_SHOW_PAID=true because they have usage limits on their cloud API.

Free tier resets every 5 hours + 7 days.

Some providers require free accounts or OAuth to access their free tiers. Two providers (Go, Fireworks) are paid-only — they have no free tier.

Kilo shows free models immediately. To unlock all models, authenticate with Kilo's free OAuth:

/login kilo

This command will:

1. Open your browser to Kilo's authorization page
2. Show a device code in Pi's UI
3. Wait for you to authorize in the browser
4. Automatically complete login once approved

• No credit card required
• Free tier: 200 requests/hour
• After login, run /kilo-toggle to switch between free-only and all models

Get a free API key at openrouter.ai/keys, then either:

Option A: Environment variable

export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="sk-or-v1-..."

Option B: Config file (~/.pi/free.json)

{
  "openrouter_api_key": "sk-or-v1-..."
}

Then in Pi:

/openrouter-all   # Show all models (free + paid)

NVIDIA provides free monthly credits (1000 requests/month) at build.nvidia.com.

Important: Models have different "costs" per token:

• Zero-cost models: Don't consume your credit balance (shown by default)
• Credit-costing models: Consume credits faster (hidden by default)

Get your API key and optionally enable all models:

Option A: Show only free models (default)

export NVIDIA_API_KEY="nvapi-..."

Uses only zero-cost models → your 1000 credits last the full month

Option B: Show all models (uses credits faster)

export NVIDIA_API_KEY="nvapi-..."
export NVIDIA_SHOW_PAID=true

Or in ~/.pi/free.json:

{
  "nvidia_api_key": "nvapi-...",
  "nvidia_show_paid": true
}

Toggle anytime with /nvidia-toggle

Cloudflare provides 50+ open-source AI models with a generous free tier:

• 10,000 Neurons per day FREE (resets daily at 00:00 UTC)
• $0.011 per 1,000 Neurons beyond the free allocation

Get your API token at dash.cloudflare.com/profile/api-tokens:

1. Create a token with "Cloudflare AI" → "Read" permission
2. Or use "My Account" → "Read" for broader access

Setup:

export CLOUDFLARE_API_TOKEN="your_token_here"

The account ID is automatically derived from your token. Optionally, you can also set:

export CLOUDFLARE_ACCOUNT_ID="your_account_id"  # Optional

Models available: Llama 4, Mistral Small 3.1, DeepSeek R1, Gemma 4, Kimi K2.5/2.6, and more.

Toggle with /cloudflare-toggle

Cline models appear immediately in the model picker. To use them, authenticate with Cline's free account:

/login cline

This command will:

1. Open your browser to Cline's sign-in page
2. Wait for you to complete sign-in
3. Automatically complete login once approved

• Free account required (no credit card)
• Uses local ports 48801-48811 for OAuth callback

Modal hosts GLM-5.1 FP8 with a free promotional period. Get an API key at modal.com, then:

Option A: Environment variable

export MODAL_API_KEY="sk-modal-..."

Option B: Config file (~/.pi/free.json)

{
  "modal_api_key": "sk-modal-..."
}

Then select a modal/ model in the model picker.

Details:

• Free promotional period until April 30, 2026
• Model: GLM-5.1 FP8 (128k context, 16k max output)
• No credit card required during the promotional period

Add API key to ~/.pi/free.json or environment variables:

export MISTRAL_API_KEY="..."

⚠️ These providers have no free tier. All usage incurs costs.

Go provides access to curated open coding models via a monthly subscription. There is no free tier.

Set OPENCODE_GO_API_KEY (or opencode_go_api_key in ~/.pi/free.json) and GO_SHOW_PAID=true to enable.

Models available:

• GLM-5
• Kimi K2.5
• MiMo-V2-Pro
• MiMo-V2-Omni
• MiniMax M2.7
• MiniMax M2.5

Pricing: $5 first month, then $10/month. See opencode.ai/docs/go.

Toggle with /go-toggle.

Fireworks provides fast inference for open-source models. All models are credit-based with no free tier. You must set FIREWORKS_SHOW_PAID=true to even see these models.

Get an API key at fireworks.ai, then:

Option A: Environment variable

export FIREWORKS_API_KEY="..."
export FIREWORKS_SHOW_PAID=true

Option B: Config file (~/.pi/free.json)

{
  "fireworks_api_key": "YOUR_KEY",
  "fireworks_show_paid": true
}

Toggle with /fireworks-toggle.

Each provider has toggle commands to switch between free and all models:

The toggle command:

• For ✅ Offers Free Models providers: Switches between showing only free models vs. all available models (including paid)
• For 🔧 Dynamic API providers: Filters the model list when you have an API key configured
• Persists your preference to ~/.pi/free.json for next startup
• Shows a notification: "zen: showing free models" or "zen: showing all models (including paid)"

Note: 🔄 Freemium providers (NVIDIA, Cloudflare, Ollama, Modal) don't have toggle commands — they show all models and you manage usage via their dashboards. 💳 Paid-only providers (Go, Fireworks) also have no toggle since all models require payment.

Create ~/.pi/free.json in your home directory:

{
  "openrouter_api_key": "YOUR_OPENROUTER_KEY",
  "nvidia_api_key": "YOUR_NVIDIA_KEY",
  "fireworks_api_key": "YOUR_FIREWORKS_KEY",
  "mistral_api_key": "YOUR_MISTRAL_KEY",
  "opencode_api_key": "YOUR_ZEN_KEY",
  "opencode_go_api_key": "YOUR_GO_KEY",
  "ollama_api_key": "YOUR_OLLAMA_KEY",
  "ollama_show_paid": true,
  "modal_api_key": "YOUR_MODAL_KEY",
  "hidden_models": ["model-id-to-hide"]
}

Or use environment variables (same names, uppercase):

export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="..."
export NVIDIA_API_KEY="..."

pi-free now writes extension logs to:

• Windows: %USERPROFILE%\.pi\free.log
• Linux/macOS: ~/.pi/free.log

Useful env vars:

# Console log verbosity (default: error)
LOG_LEVEL=debug

# File log verbosity (default: debug)
PI_FREE_LOG_LEVEL=debug

# Custom log path (optional)
PI_FREE_LOG_PATH=/tmp/pi-free.log

# Disable file logging
PI_FREE_FILE_LOG=false

MIT — See LICENSE

Questions? Open an issue