Qwen Code
- Free allowance
- Open-source agent for the terminal; bring an OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible key; the free Qwen OAuth route was discontinued on 2026-04-15
- Verdict
- self-hosted, last resortverdict qualifies-with-caveat: usable, with a named limit or an unprobed read path. Self-hosted options are listed last, because this site is for users who have no hardware.
- Cost
- not stated
- Identity
- anonymousno card, no phone
- Binding limit
- noneno named constraint binds
- Evidence
- documented18 sources; a first-party page was read and the sentence quoted
- Freshness
- stale on 2026-11-30checked 2026-10-30 (live); stale on 2026-11-30
| Free tier | open-source agent for the terminal; bring an OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible key; the free Qwen OAuth route was discontinued on 2026-04-15 unit none; metered on none; the agent costs nothing; the key it is given is the bill |
|---|---|
| Price | none stated |
| Binding | none no vendor quota binds: the agent is free software and the endpoint it is given sets every limit, since the free Qwen OAuth route closed |
| Identity | anonymous none to install or run the CLI; the npm package and the standalone install script download with no credential, and each endpoint key carries that endpoint's own registration cost; the qwen.ai account was needed only for the Qwen OAuth route, closed on 2026-04-15 |
| Egress | not applicable |
| Interface | cli a terminal agent; multi-protocol, so any OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible base URL works |
| Tooling | the user installs and runs the qwen CLI (npm package @qwen-code/qwen-code, which needs Node.js 22 or later, or the vendor's standalone install script) on any machine, rented or free ones included, and gives it an endpoint key |
| Composes with | the agent pairs with a key of a built-in provider (DeepSeek, Grok, MiniMax, Z.AI, Kimi, Idealab, ModelScope, OpenRouter, Requesty) or with any OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible endpoint, so a free endpoint recorded under inference makes the whole stack free; the key-free Qwen OAuth route closed on 2026-04-15 |
| Reliability | the vendor cut the free Qwen OAuth quota from 1,000 to 100 requests per day and closed the route on 2026-04-15; cached OAuth tokens may work briefly and new requests are rejected |
| Notes | The free Qwen OAuth quota was discontinued on 2026-04-15. The /auth options are now QwenCloud, Alibaba ModelStudio, third-party providers and a custom provider, so the agent's cost is the endpoint it is pointed at. The qwen.ai landing page still offers Qwen OAuth sign-in; the auth documentation, last updated on October 22, 2026, says the route is closed. |
| Evidence note | documented the vendor's auth documentation states the end of the free OAuth tier and the current /auth routes; the anonymous install path was measured with unauthenticated GETs of the npm tarball and the install script; capacity belongs to the endpoint chosen and is not measured here |
Evidence 18
| date | source | what it proved |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-22 | qwen.ai/qwencode | Qwen Code is an open-source terminal agent that supports OpenAI, Anthropic and Gemini compatible APIs or Qwen OAuth sign-in |
| 2026-10-29 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the free Qwen OAuth tier was discontinued on 2026-04-15 and new requests are rejected |
| 2026-10-29 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the current /auth options are QwenCloud, Alibaba ModelStudio, Third-party Providers and Custom Provider |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the /auth dialog connects nine built-in third-party providers by API key |
| 2026-10-30 | probe: registry.npmjs.org/@qwen-code/qwen-code/-/qwen-code-0.26.4.tgz | an unauthenticated GET of the agent's npm tarball answers 200 and streams the package: no account is needed to install it |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the qwen.ai account requirement belongs to the discontinued Qwen OAuth section of the auth page |
| 2026-10-30 | github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code | the agent installs from npm as @qwen-code/qwen-code and needs Node.js 22 or later |
| 2026-10-30 | github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code/issues/3203 | the vendor's repository announced the closure of the free Qwen OAuth entry point on 2026-04-15 |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | Qwen OAuth is no longer offered in the /auth dialog and its free tier ended on 2026-04-15 |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the agent accepts any OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible endpoint, so the endpoint sets the limits |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the free Qwen OAuth tier ended on 2026-04-15; cached tokens may work briefly and new requests are rejected |
| 2026-10-30 | qwen.ai/qwencode | the qwen.ai landing page still offers Qwen OAuth sign-in although the auth documentation says the route is closed |
| 2026-10-30 | github.com/QwenLM/qwen-code/issues/3203 | before the closure the vendor cut the free OAuth quota from 1,000 to 100 requests per day |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/support/troubleshoo | the vendor's troubleshooting page also states Qwen OAuth is unavailable from 2026-04-15 |
| 2026-10-30 | probe: qwen-code-assets.oss-cn-hangzhou.aliyuncs.com/installation/install-qwen-standalone.sh | an unauthenticated GET of the vendor's standalone install script answers 200 with the full script |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | QwenCloud, the vendor's recommended /auth entry, serves key usage on a Token Plan with a monthly Credit quota or a pay-as-you-go Standard API Key |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | Alibaba ModelStudio serves key usage on a Coding Plan with a weekly quota, a usage-billed Token Plan or a Standard API Key |
| 2026-10-30 | qwenlm.github.io/qwen-code-docs/en/users/configuration/auth/ | the agent connects to any OpenAI, Anthropic or Gemini compatible endpoint, unchanged |
Unknown values 3
- egress terms: the field does not apply to this kind of offer
- per object cap stated: the field does not apply to this kind of offer
- retention stated: the field does not apply to this kind of offer