Google Offers Free AI Pro Plan to College Students, Launches New Learning Tools

College students can get Google's AI Pro plan for free now. Here's how

Part of a larger $1 billion investment in AI education and job training. As AI tools continue to develop, they expand beyond the standard question-and-answer loop and offer more meaningful assistance for students. Google, for instance, has tools that can create podcasts for users from their notes, debug code, and create in-depth reports in seconds. Now, students can access all these tools for free. On Wednesday, Google said that it is offering its Google AI Pro subscription tier to college students for free. To be eligible, you must be a student 18 or older in the US, Japan, Indonesia, Korea, or Brazil. The plan includes all of the best of Google's AI suite of tools, including expanded access to Gemini 2.5 Pro and NotebookLM, Deep Research, Veo 3, and Jules. This release comes at a time when there is a shift in how AI is being adopted by the education system. At the beginning, the tech was met with ample resistance, with school districts even banning it. However, more educators and schools have gotten on board due to the growing promise of the tech in aiding learning. For a glimpse of what these tools can do for you, keep reading below. The Google AI Pro Tier typically retails for $20 per month and bundles all of Google's different AI offerings, including the best models in Gemini and standalone tools, into one plan. Students, in particular, can benefit from many of these tools as they ensure that the quality of the responses and assistance is as high as possible and can tackle different tasks. For example, Gemini 2.5 Pro is the best model for complex tasks such as coding, which could be helpful for students entering disciplines such as computer science or software engineering. Deep Research, also accessible in Gemini, is another powerful feature that goes beyond question-answer interactions by combining in-depth reports from hundreds of sites on the web. This could be useful when researching a topic for a paper or an exam. Also: AI usage is stalling out at work from lack of education and support Students also get higher access to NotebookLM, Google's viral experimental AI notebook that combines LLMs with your notes to further your understanding of a topic by providing summaries, answering questions, and even discussing your content with you. With the broader access, users have five times higher usage limits to some of NotebookLM's greatest features, including Audio Overviews, notebooks, queries, and sources per notebook. I was recently converted to this tool and can not get enough of it. Other fun perks include access to Veo 3, Google's insanely realistic AI video generator; higher limited in Whisk, Google's AI image-to-video tool; and Jules, an AI coding agent, which got a positive review from our resident coding and AI expert, David Gewirtz. Perhaps the best feature, in my opinion, is that students get Gemini AI assistance infused in the Google suite of applications, which many students rely on for their everyday tasks. Some examples include Gemini coediting in Google Docs, analyzing and visualizing data in Google Sheets, and creating presentations in Google Slides. The extra 2TB of storage is also helpful as it is easy to accumulate lots of digital content. Google is also rolling out new tools in Gemini for consumer and Workspace for EDU accounts that are meant to make studying more efficient. For example, Google launched Guided Learning, its response to OpenAI's Study Mode. Instead of giving an answer, it gives you a step-by-step breakdown of the topic, ensuring the user learns the topic. Also: Can AI save teachers from a crushing workload? There's new evidence it might (Disclosure: Ziff Davis, ZDNET's parent company, filed an April 2025 lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.) The company also said Gemini now produces more visuals in the responses to ensure a more engaging learning experience, including high-quality images, sigarams, and YouTube videos. Lastly, Gemini can now create flashcards and study guides on class materials. Google is also committing over $1 billion to fund more free Google AI Training programs in the next three years, including AI education, job training programs, and other education-related initiates in the US. Also: Claude for Education just got several new integrations for students Lastly, Google is launching the Google AI for Education Accelerator, an initiative that Google said "will offer free AI training, Google Career Certificates, and Google's most advanced AI tools to every college student in America for free." While the goal seems ambitious, the company says that over 100 universities, representing millions of students, have already signed up. Get the morning's top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter.

1 Year of Google AI Pro Is Now Free for College Students: Here's How to Get It

College students can now get a 12-month subscription to Google's AI Pro plan for free. The offer is live on Google's website and will be up for grabs through Oct. 6. To be eligible for the program, you need to be 18 or older, have a Google account, verify your student status using a school email address, and add a valid payment method. Your free 12-month membership will begin the day you redeem the offer and will be renewed at the existing rate unless canceled beforehand. The subscription usually costs $20 per month and unlocks Google's most capable AI model, Gemini 2.5 Pro. It also lets you try out many Gemini-powered features like Deep Research, NotebookLM, Veo 3, and Jules. With Deep Research, you can ask Gemini to conduct research on your behalf and deliver a downloadable report; it can perform hours-long work in just a few minutes. Veo 3 helps you transform text or a photo into an 8-second clip with background music, while Jules, which just emerged from beta this week, is a coding agent that can fix bugs and handle development tasks independently. NotebookLM, on the other hand, lets you break down complex information into digestible pieces. It can take your sources -- documents or websites -- and convert them into summaries, audio overviews, or even narrated slideshows. The free version of this tool comes with three audio and video generations per day, which extends to 20 with the AI Pro subscription. Additionally, and most importantly, the AI Pro plan gets you 2TB of cloud storage, which can help store all your college work and memories in one place. Alongside this back-to-school offer, Google also rolled out a student-friendly Gemini tool that promotes purposeful learning. When enabled, Guided Learning will help you get to answers with prompts and explanations. Its responses will include images, diagrams, videos, and interactive quizzes to test and improve your knowledge. OpenAI released a similar tool for ChatGPT, called Study Mode, last week.

You can get NotebookLM's Pro version free for a year, as long as you meet this one condition

Whether you're a researcher, a college student, or just someone constantly buried under readings and assignments, there's a good chance you've tried at least one AI tool to lighten the load. I know I have. Out of all the AI productivity tools I've tested, both for work and my personal life, NotebookLM is one of the few that's genuinely made a difference. And while I've always thought its free tier is more than enough for most people, if Google were giving away the Pro version completely free, I'd sign up without thinking twice. Well... turns out, they are giving it away for free for a year. The only catch is that you need to meet one condition. Google's giving away its best AI tools to students for free As announced via a post on The Keyword blog, Google revealed that it's rolling out its most advanced AI tools for learning to college students for free. Google's doing this by allowing college students to sign up for a 12-month Google AI Pro plan at no cost. This tier gives users expanded access to Gemini 2.5 Pro, which is currently Google's most capable AI model. One Gemini feature I absolutely love is Deep Research, which lets you conduct in-depth research about any topic. What I like most about the feature is that it doesn't rely on its own training data or quickly browse the web. Instead, it pulls from hundreds of sources across the web and presents it all in a clean, readable report. With Google AI Pro, you get higher access to Deep Research. Google also announced that its agentic coding agent, Jules, is now widely available and no longer in public beta. With this offer, students will get higher limits when using Jules. Of course, this is a big win for STEM majors. Students will also get 2 TB of storage, which is ample space to store all your assignments, readings, projects, and more. And finally, this offer will give students access to NotebookLM's premium tier, which lets users generate five times more Audio Overviews, notebooks, queries, and sources per notebook compared to the free tier. This translates to 500 notebooks, each with 300 sources, and 500 daily chat queries, 20 daily Audio Overviews, and 20 Video Overviews. Unfortunately, this offer is currently restricted to certain regions. Students above 18 years old located in the United States, Japan, Indonesia, Korea, and Brazil are all eligible to get the Google AI Pro plan for free for the next 12 months. You can sign up for the free subscription by clicking here by October 6, 2025. Google also announced a brand-new Guided Learning mode within Gemini, which, similar to ChatGPT's Study Mode, is designed to help students learn instead of simply getting the answer. All in all, if you're a college student residing in any of the regions mentioned above, make sure you sign up for the free subscription as soon as possible. Time's ticking!

College students can get Google AI Pro for free, as company launches new guided learning mode

Google courts college students with new Google AI Pro deal. Credit: Google Google wants to get its AI tools into the hands of more students, following the lead of other industry giants as it attempts to retain its educational dominance. An easy way to do that? By making those tools free. Starting today, students 18 years or older can sign up for one whole year of Google's AI Pro plan for no cost, which includes access to a suite of Google's most popular AI offerings. It's not just U.S. students, either, with the deal available to university-level students across Japan, Indonesia, Korea, and Brazil, too. The Google AI Pro Plan includes an expanded Gemini 2.5 Pro, the company's latest chatbot model, as well as its Deep Research model and NotebookLM, an AI-powered teaching tool that can turn user-uploaded files into custom lessons and study guides. The plan also gives users access to advanced video generator Veo 3 and Google's coding assistant, Jules. These offerings come alongside a $1 billion commitment to AI education and training programs, which the company will dole out over the next three years, and a brand new Google AI for Education Accelerator, providing free training and Google Career Certificates, in addition to access to AI tools, to every college student in America. The company will also announce new education-focused upgrades to its existing products. One of those enhancements includes a new Guided Learning mode for Google's chatbot Gemini, or what the company describes as a "personal AI learning companion." With Guided Learning turned on, Gemini will skirt direct answers and instead provide open-ended conversations and step-by-step explanations, getting at the "how" and "why" rather than just spitting out the solution. "Learners told us that they want to be able to go from quick answers to deep understanding, but don't always know how to. They also valued having a safe place to ask any question they might have," wrote Google. "We designed Guided Learning to help with this by creating a conversational, judgment-free space for anyone to explore topics in an enjoyable way at their own pace, putting the power of a great learning experience in their own hands." In addition, Gemini will now be able to produce flashcards and study guides based on user-uploaded materials, and include "high-quality images, diagrams, and YouTube videos" in responses to complex questions. A week earlier, OpenAI announced Study Mode, a new set of system prompts for the AI assistant that uses common teaching principles, like the Socratic method, to encourage users to learn with the chatbot rather than just take answers at face value. Many users had already theorized the company was working on a "ChatGPT Tutor" in addition to its existing partnerships with educational tech companies, like Canvas. OpenAI, Microsoft, and Anthropic also recently joined together with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) to launch the National Academy for AI Instruction. Google has been developing its education offerings and AI tools for years, including a collaboration with the college admissions nonprofit College Board and recent AI-powered accessibility features.

Bringing the best of AI to college students for free

Summaries were generated by Google AI. Generative AI is experimental. Millions of college students around the world are getting ready to start classes. To help make the school year even better, we're making our most advanced AI tools available to them for free, including our new Guided Learning mode. We're also providing $1 billion to support AI education and job training programs and research in the U.S. This includes making our AI and career training free for every college student in America through our AI for Education Accelerator -- over 100 colleges and universities have already signed up. Bringing the best technologies to every student has always been core to Google's mission. It's why we built Chromebooks for every classroom, and why we've been working on LearnLM, which has helped make Gemini the world's leading model for learning. It's also deeply important to me. Having regular access to computers in grad school changed my life, and led me on the path to Google. It's my hope that bringing the best AI tools to college students will open up new worlds for them, too. Knowing how to use this technology will also serve these students well as they transition to the world of work. That's why we are building on our years of experience with the Google Career Certificates to offer AI training free for all college students. Here's more detail on what we're announcing: Starting today, students (ages 18+) in the U.S. as well as in Japan, Indonesia, Korea and Brazil can sign-up for a 12 month Google AI Pro plan for free. Here's what they'll get: We'll be expanding this offer to more countries in the coming weeks. Learn more about our tools or sign up for the free 12-month Google AI Pro plan by October 6. AI can broaden knowledge and expand access to it in powerful ways, helping anyone, anywhere learn anything in the way that works best for them. It's not about just getting an answer, but deepening understanding and building critical thinking skills along the way. That opportunity is why we built Guided Learning, a new mode in Gemini that acts as a learning companion guiding you with questions and step-by-step support instead of just giving you the answer. We worked closely with students, educators, researchers and learning experts to make sure it's helpful for understanding new concepts and is backed by learning science.

Google Gives Students in These Countries Free Access to Its AI Pro Plan

Google on Wednesday announced an offer for university students in the US and other countries. It will provide a complimentary subscription to its AI Pro plan to eligible students, for a one-year period. The subscription will grant them access to Google's advanced artificial intelligence (AI) features and tools across apps such as Gemini, Docs, Sheets, and NotebookLM. In the coming weeks, the tech giant will also expand this offer to include more countries. The Google AI Pro plan in the US is priced at $19.99 (roughly Rs. 1,750) per month. It is also available as an annual subscription, which costs $199.99 (roughly Rs. 17,500). As per the company, subscribing to the annual plan can help customers save $39.89 (roughly Rs. 3,500). Eligible university students can avail of the subscription free-of-cost for a year, Google said in a blog post. The offer has been announced for students aged 18 and above in the US, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea, and Brazil. It can be availed of till October 6. It will also be expanded to include more countries in the coming weeks. The same offer was announced for students in India last month. Google's AI Pro plan provides access to the latest Gemini 2.5 Pro and Deep Research on Gemini 2.5 Pro models. Subscribers can utilise video generation with the help of the tech giant's latest Veo 3 video generation model, along with increased limit for creating images to videos with Veo 2 in Whisk. As per the company, it will also grant limited access to Veo 3 Fast on Vertex AI. Additionally, students get 1,000 monthly AI credits which can be used to fulfill text, image, and video generation queries across Flow and Whisk platforms. Google says it also offers up to five times higher limit for creating Audio Overviews, notebooks, and more in NotebookLM. Along with this, you also get access to Gemini in Google's suite of apps such as Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Apart from the AI features, the Google AI Pro plan also includes 2TB of cloud storage across Google Drive, Gmail, and Google Photos.