What is the Google for Startups Cloud Program?
Google Cloud's credit program for startups. Its Start tier gives $2K of credits to startups that plan to raise venture funding soon, and its funded tiers, Scale and Scale AI, give up to $200,000 over two years, or up to $350,000 for AI-first startups, to startups with verifiable Pre-Seed to Series A funding.
Google describes it as resources for “startups in all stages of development”: the credits, plus technical training, access to startup experts, perks and business support. Acceptance at every tier is at Google's discretion.
Before any credits, Google's program page also lists a prototyping stage with no credits: instant access to AI Studio for pre-funded builders and new Google Cloud customers.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq), Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup)
How much are Google for Startups Cloud credits worth?
Start: $2K in credits. Scale: up to $100,000 in year one and up to an additional $100,000 in year two. AI-first startups get up to $250,000 in year one, which makes $350,000 over the two years.
Year two works differently from year one. Google's footnote says “20% up to an additional $100,000”: the credits cover a fifth of what you spend, so the full second-year amount only arrives if you spend five times as much on Google Cloud that year. Budget year-two usage at 80% of list price, not at zero.
Google's credit amounts
- Start: $2K in Google Cloud credits
- Scale, year 1: 100% up to $100,000
- Scale, year 1 for AI-first startups: 100% up to $250,000
- Scale, year 2: 20% up to an additional $100,000
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup)
Who qualifies for the Start tier and the Scale tier?
Start is for startups founded in the past 2 years with a working MVP, a clear business model and plans to seek venture funding soon. The funded tiers, Scale and Scale AI, are for startups with verifiable Pre-Seed to Series A funding, founded within the last 3 to 5 years depending on the tier.
Google's AI program page sets the AI tier's window: founded within the last five years, with Pre-Seed or Seed rounds in the last five years or a Series A in the last 12 months.
Some companies are turned away at every tier: companies that have gone public or been acquired, educational institutions, government entities, nonprofits, personal blogs or content, “dev shops, consultancies, or agencies”, and crypto mining companies. Google adds that acceptance “may also be determined by company age, company stage, past or present Google Cloud credit usage, as well as total amount and type of funding.”
The funded tiers also look for
- Funding from a known investor (Google asks for verifiable Pre-Seed to Series A funding)
- No more than $5,000 in earlier Google Cloud credits
- A working MVP, a clear roadmap and a verified company domain
- In stealth, your accelerator or VC verifying your status with Google
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup), Google for Startups Cloud Program: AI program (cloud.google.com/startup/ai), Google for Startups: Cloud Program page (startup.google.com/cloud)
What if my startup is funded by angels, a grant or crowdfunding?
Apply for Start. Google's FAQ says angel, crowdfunding and friends and family money “will not qualify a startup for the Scale tier, but the startup may be evaluated for the Start tier.”
Private equity and government innovation grants get the same treatment: not enough for Scale, evaluated for the other tiers. A startup with no outside money fits Start as long as it was founded in the past 2 years, has a working MVP and plans to raise venture funding soon.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq)
What counts as an AI-first startup for the $350,000 tier?
AI has to be the foundation of the product. Google's AI program is for startups “that use or plan to use Gemini to deploy AI services as a foundation of their primary product or solution offering”, on top of the Scale tier's funding and age rules.
The FAQ draws the line at AI built into “your startup's foundational structure and strategy and not only as a productivity/bolt-on layer”, and says applications are reviewed case by case.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program: AI program (cloud.google.com/startup/ai), Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq)
What do I need to apply for Google for Startups Cloud credits?
Your 18-character Google Cloud billing account ID and a business email on your startup's public website domain. Scale applicants also link public sources that report their funding round.
Google is strict about the domain: “your company website domain must match your email domain and the email domain associated with your billing account.” A billing account opened with a personal Gmail address is the usual reason to fix things before applying. A pitch deck does not prove funding; Google asks for “links to publicly available, online sources detailing the equity investments made in your company.”
Before you apply
- Create a Google Cloud account; the billing account ID is under Billing, then Manage your billing account
- Apply with an email on your website's domain, and open the billing account with an email on that same domain
- For Scale, collect links to public pages that report your equity round
- In stealth, ask your investor to verify the funding with Google
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq)
How long does Google take to decide?
Usually a few business days. Google's FAQ says most startups hear back “within a few business days after your submission”, and applications that need a manual review can take 10 days or more.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq)
What can Google for Startups credits be spent on?
Google Cloud services, including Google's own models such as Gemini and Gemma. They do not pay for third-party services or Google Cloud Marketplace products, and Google Workspace and Google Maps Platform come as separate program benefits rather than out of the credits.
The model rule matters most to AI startups: “Third-party models are billed directly and are not covered by the program credits.” A partner's model served on Google Cloud is paid for in cash even while you hold credits.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq), Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup)
Do Google for Startups credits pay for the Gemini API?
Yes, but only alongside a prepaid balance. Gemini API billing now runs on Prepay, and Google's docs say “When your Prepay credit balance on the billing account hits $0, Google Cloud credits will no longer be consumed.”
So a startup holding program credits still buys Prepay credit first (the minimum is $5) and keeps that balance above zero, ideally with auto-reload turned on. While it is positive, “Google Cloud credits that are eligible for the Gemini API are consumed before your Prepay credit balance.”
A new billing account also starts in Tier 1, which caps Gemini API spend at $250 a month however large your credit balance is. Higher tiers follow payment history: Tier 2 needs “Paid $100 + 3 days from first successful payment”.
Source: Gemini API docs: billing (ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/billing), Gemini API docs: rate limits (ai.google.dev/gemini-api/docs/rate-limits)
What else comes with the program besides credits?
Google's program page lists 12 months of Google Workspace Business Plus at no extra cost, monthly Google Maps Platform credits, and technical and product training such as Google Skills. As a startup grows, Google adds dedicated help from Startup Success Managers and Customer Engineering teams, on terms that depend on the tier you are assigned. Google states no dollar amount for the Maps credits.
Two catches. The Workspace and Maps benefits each need a separate application, and the Maps credits open only once Google has approved you for the program. The Workspace offer is for new signups: your domain must not have been on a paid Workspace plan within 90 days of applying.
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup), Google Maps Platform: public programs (developers.google.com/maps/billing-and-pricing/public-programs)
Do Google for Startups credits expire?
Yes. Scale credits run over two years, and the program terms say each credit expires on the date Google states in writing when it issues the credit, or the date shown in your console.
The terms also say the credits “are not transferable, refundable, redeemable for cash, and may not be sold, purchased, or bartered”.
Source: Google Cloud startup program terms (cloud.google.com/terms/startup-program-tos), Google for Startups Cloud Program page (cloud.google.com/startup)
Can Google share my startup's Google Cloud usage with my investors?
Yes. By joining, a startup agrees to the program terms, under which it consents to Google sharing information on its purchase and use of Google Cloud services with any of its then-current investors.
Source: Google Cloud startup program terms (cloud.google.com/terms/startup-program-tos)
What can I do if Google rejects my application?
Ask why. Google's FAQ gives the same answer for a rejection, for stealth startups and for founders who joined years ago and never used their credits: “Email your Account Manager or cloudstartupsupport@google.com to get more information.”
Source: Google for Startups Cloud Program FAQ (cloud.google.com/startup/faq)
