Exa API, two $20 coupon codes totaling $40 in credits

5-step guide to redeeming and integrating Exa API credits

A five-step guide to securing the official Free tier's basic credits for Exa, a pay-as-you-go search API, registering a promo code, setting API key budget limits, and connecting the official SDK or hosted MCP server.

Promo code credit report From October 24, 2026, to November 3, 2026, multiple community users reported that redeeming both codes, EXA20FREEBUFF ($20) and EXA20FIRESHIP ($20), added $40. EXA50FIRESHIP, known as a $50 code, was reported by multiple community members on November 2 and November 3, 2026, to have reached its redemption limit. There were also reports of an expiration message on November 2, 2026, so it may not be redeemable.

Official Free tier and call pricing A new user's first team receives $10 on the day of sign-up ($10 reset on the first of each month, with no rollover) and a one-time $10 bonus with no expiration upon completing onboarding. Official rates are $4 per 1k requests for /search (lite), $7 per 1k requests for /search (auto, fast), $1 per 1k pages for /contents, $5 per 1k requests for /answer, $12 per 1k requests for deep-lite and deep, and $15 per 1k requests for deep-reasoning.

Returns 402 when credits are depleted When team credits run out or the budget limit assigned to an individual API key is used up, requests return 402 Payment Required. Auto recharge, which automatically purchases credits when the balance reaches a specified threshold, can be configured in the Billing dashboard whenever needed.

1. Step 1: Sign up at dashboard.exa.ai and complete onboarding

   Sign up at dashboard.exa.ai to start on the official Free tier in the default Personal team. No matter which day of the month you sign up, the full $10 is credited on the day you join, enough for up to 2,500 Lite searches. Complete the dashboard onboarding to receive an additional one-time bonus of $10 that never expires.

   The $10 monthly free credits (reset on the 1st of each month, with no rollover of unused credits) and the $10 onboarding bonus are awarded only to the user’s first team. You can create and switch to additional teams using the team switcher in the upper left of the dashboard, but credits are tied to the selected team, so each team must be topped up separately.

2. Step 2: Enter the codes one by one in Billing and check your balance

   Go to Billing in the sidebar, enter the coupon code, and click Redeem.

   Enter multiple codes one at a time (user reports from October 24, 2026 to November 3, 2026) and click Redeem for each code (report updated November 3, 2026). According to user reports as of November 3, 2026, the same code can only be registered once per account or team. A user report from November 2, 2026 also says that the popup may take about 20 seconds to appear after registration, and the balance may not change until you refresh the page.

   1. EXA20FREEBUFF: user reports that $20 was added (reports in multiple communities from October 24, 2026 to November 3, 2026)
   2. EXA20FIRESHIP: User reports say $20 was added (multiple community reports from October 24, 2026, to November 3, 2026, including a report on November 3, 2026, that two codes were redeemed together on a new free account, increasing the balance from $20 to $60)
   3. EXA50FIRESHIP: Reported to be a $50 code, but multiple communities reported on November 2 and 3, 2026, that the registration limit had been reached. There was also a report on November 2, 2026, of an expiration message appearing, so the code may not be accepted
3. Step 3: Check whether payment method verification is required and confirm the expiration date

   A payment method is not required to sign up for the official Free tier. There are reports dated November 2, 2026, and November 3, 2026, of registering two $20 codes without adding a card. However, there are also reports that some accounts were asked to verify a payment method with a non-prepaid card first, or before using bonus credits, posted October 23, 2026, and updated November 3, 2026.

   There is no official information on the code credit validity period. There are only user reports from October 24, 2026, and reports that no expiration date was visible on the dashboards of users who registered on November 2 and 3, 2026.

4. Step 4: Issue API keys and set a budget limit for each key

   Create an API key at dashboard.exa.ai/api-keys (the dashboard's API keys screen). On the API keys screen, you can monitor usage for each individual key and set lower budget limits for the keys that need them.

   When an individual API key reaches its assigned budget limit, requests made with that key return 402 Payment Required.

5. Step 5: Connect the official SDK and hosted MCP server

   When making calls from code, the official SDKs exa-py and exa-js read the EXA_API_KEY environment variable. Agents that use tools can call Exa through the hosted MCP server mcp.exa.ai/mcp without writing code.

   The official Free tier is limited to 10 QPS and 50 active runs, and does not include the Exa Snapshot feature. Free credits are deducted at standard rates and cannot be cashed out or refunded.

Things to check before adding a card and using credits

1. Add a card in the Billing dashboard and purchase credits to switch to a paid pay-as-you-go plan. There is no separate subscription fee or minimum spend.
2. Check the Billing dashboard to see whether Auto recharge, which automatically purchases credits when your balance reaches a specified threshold, is configured.
3. Set a low budget limit for individual API keys at dashboard.exa.ai/api-keys. Once the limit is reached, requests stop with 402 Payment Required.
4. Credits, billing, and API keys are shared at the team level, so check the team switcher in the upper left to make sure the team where you registered the coupon (Personal by default) is selected.