Yes, Kiro is free to start. Kiro's pricing page lists a perpetual Free tier with 50 credits a month and access to open weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5, with rate limits. Paid plans run from Pro at $20 a month to Power at $200 a month, with far more credits and premium models.
Kiro is the AI coding tool, built and operated by AWS, that plans your project with specs before it writes any code. Because it comes from Amazon, a lot of developers assume it's either completely free or only for AWS customers. Neither is quite right. Here's what the free tier does, what the paid plans add and how Kiro's credits work, all from Kiro's own pricing page, checked as of October 2026.
What Kiro's free tier includes
- 50 credits a month, every month: Kiro calls it a perpetual free tier
- Access to open weight models, such as Qwen3 Coder Next, DeepSeek 3.2 and MiniMax M2.1, plus Claude Sonnet 4.5
- Rate limits on that model access
- Kiro powers, which Kiro says all users can use at no extra charge
To get the free tier you sign in with a social login or an AWS Builder ID. It isn't available in Kiro Enterprise or in the AWS GovCloud (US) Regions, which both need a paid plan.
Kiro plans and prices compared
| Plan | Price as listed | Credits a month | Models |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | 50 | Open weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5, with limits |
| Pro | $20 per user a month | 1,000 | Premium models, add-on credits |
| Pro+ | $40 per user a month | 2,000 | Premium models, add-on credits |
| Pro Max | $100 per user a month | 5,000 | Premium models, add-on credits |
| Power | $200 per user a month | 10,000 | Premium models, add-on credits |
Paid plans get the premium models, including Auto, Claude Sonnet 5 and Claude Opus 5, although Kiro notes that not every premium model is available in every country. Prices exclude taxes such as VAT and sales tax.
How Kiro credits work
A credit is Kiro's unit of work. Simple prompts can use less than one credit, and bigger jobs such as running a spec task usually use more. Credits are metered to two decimal places, so the smallest charge is 0.01 credits.
- The model matters. Kiro's own example says a task that costs X credits on Auto costs 1.3X on Sonnet 4.6.
- Everything uses credits: vibe mode, spec mode, spec refinement, task execution and agent hooks.
- Usage limits reset at the start of each billing month, and unused monthly credits don't roll over.
- You can watch your credits in the subscription dashboard inside Kiro, which updates at least every 5 minutes.
Add-on credits and the sign-up bonus
On paid plans you can buy add-on credits at $0.04 each, in packs from $5 for 125 credits up to $100. Unlike your monthly credits, unused add-on credits roll over and expire 12 months after you buy them.
There's also a sign-up bonus that's easy to misread. The first time you upgrade to any paid plan with a social login or Builder ID, Kiro credits $20 toward your subscription, prorated by date because Kiro bills on the 1st of each month. Kiro's own example: upgrade to Pro on 15 June and you're credited $10 for the rest of June, then charged $10 on 1 July. Upgrading needs a valid credit card.
The Kiro details people miss
- Kiro Web is included in Pro, Pro+, Pro Max and Power, but not the Free tier, and it uses the same credits.
- Each developer needs their own subscription. You can't share one Kiro plan across a team.
- Using your plan through third-party harnesses that route requests outside Kiro's own tools isn't permitted.
- GovCloud (US) pricing is higher than standard pricing and has no free tier.
How to try Kiro for free
- Download Kiro and sign in with Google, GitHub or an AWS Builder ID.
- Open a small project and try a spec on one feature, so you see how credits are used.
- Use Auto where you can, because Kiro's example shows other models cost more credits.
- Check the subscription dashboard after a few tasks to see your burn rate.
- If 50 credits runs out in days, Pro at $20 a month is the next step up.
New to the tool? My guide on how to use Kiro covers specs, steering and hooks, and my list of the best vibe coding tools compares it with the alternatives.
Where you can use a Kiro subscription
Kiro says a subscription works across Kiro IDE, Kiro CLI, Kiro Web, Kiro Crew, ACP compatible IDEs and automation such as reviews in your CI/CD pipeline. It accepts all major credit cards, and Enterprise admins can switch on overages so developers keep working past their limit, billed at $0.04 per credit at month-end.
Is a paid Kiro plan worth it?
Fifty credits is enough to learn how Kiro thinks, not to build a product. If you code most days, Pro's 1,000 credits and the premium models are where Kiro becomes a daily tool, and the $20 first-upgrade credit softens the first month. Teams should budget per developer, because plans can't be shared.
My verdict: is Kiro free?
Yes. Kiro's perpetual free tier gives you 50 credits a month with open weight models and Claude Sonnet 4.5. As of October 2026 paid plans ran from Pro at $20 a month for 1,000 credits to Power at $200 a month for 10,000, with add-on credits at $0.04 each. Start free on a small spec, then upgrade when the credits start to pinch.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Kiro free to use?
Yes. Kiro lists a perpetual Free tier with 50 credits a month.
Which models can I use on Kiro free?
Open weight models such as Qwen3 Coder Next and DeepSeek 3.2, plus Claude Sonnet 4.5, with rate limits.
How much is Kiro Pro?
As of October 2026 Kiro Pro was $20 per user a month with 1,000 credits.
Do Kiro credits roll over?
Monthly credits don't roll over. Add-on credits roll over and expire 12 months after purchase.
How much are Kiro add-on credits?
Add-on credits cost $0.04 each, in packs from $5 for 125 credits up to $100.
Is Kiro made by Amazon?
Yes. Kiro's website says it's built and operated by AWS.
Can I share a Kiro subscription with my team?
No. Kiro says each developer needs their own subscription.
