Is Zed free?

Zed free tier — is it worth it?

Zed free vs paid

How long does Zed free tier last?

Zed free tier limits 2026

Zed free tier is moderate. Personal (free) plan: 2,000 Zed-hosted AI edit predictions per month — no API key needed. Beyond that, connect your own keys (BYOK) or use Ollama for unlimited free local AI. 2,000 free hosted predictions, then BYOK or Ollama keep it going. Best for performance-focused and privacy-focused developers.

Zed
standalone ide

Zed

Fast open-source editor — 2,000 free AI predictions hosted, or unlimited with your own keys

7.3
Overall / 10
Free Tier: Moderate
Visit Zed
7Power
7Useful
8Feedback
7Free Tier

Data as of

May 2026

Zed is a high-performance open-source code editor built in Rust. The free Personal plan includes 2,000 Zed-hosted AI edit predictions per month. Beyond that, connect your own API keys from any provider for unlimited use.

Free Tier

Moderate

2,000 free hosted predictions, then BYOK or Ollama keep it going. Best for performance-focused and privacy-focused developers.

Personal (free) plan: 2,000 Zed-hosted AI edit predictions per month — no API key needed. Beyond that, connect your own keys (BYOK) or use Ollama for unlimited free local AI.

What's included

Zed-hosted AI edit predictions

No API key needed. Only accepted (not dismissed) completions count against your limit.

2,000 accepted per month

BYOK

Connect keys from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, Ollama, and 8+ providers.

Unlimited — but requires paid API accounts

Local models via Ollama

Use Ollama to run local models at zero API cost — requires decent hardware.

Unlimited and free

Multiplayer collaboration

Real-time multiplayer editing is free — a unique Zed feature.

Included

How long until you run out?

Real-world estimates for typical developer usage.

Zed-hosted completions (2,000/month)

~4–10 days for active developers

Accepting 200–500 completions per active day burns through 2,000 in 4–10 working days.

With local models via Ollama

Completely free

Configure Zed with Ollama for zero ongoing cost. Requires decent local hardware.

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • +2,000 free hosted completions — no API key to start
  • +Open source — full transparency
  • +Native GPU-accelerated performance (Rust — no Electron)
  • +Real-time multiplayer included free
  • +Works with Ollama for free local AI

Cons

  • 2,000 hosted completions runs out quickly
  • BYOK beyond that requires paid API billing
  • Smaller extension ecosystem than VS Code
  • macOS and Linux only — Windows in beta

Scores

Powerfulness
7/10
Usefulness
7/10
User Feedback
8/10
Free Tier
7/10

Best for

Performance-focused developersPrivacy-conscious developers wanting open-source toolingDevelopers running local models via Ollama for free

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