Pro-model access is rationed
Gemini 3 Flash is the free workhorse. Access to 3.1 Pro is limited and runs out first — reported at roughly 5 prompts a day during the 2.5 generation.
Last verified September 1, 2026
Gemini free limits
The free tier is the baseline every paid multiplier is measured from: Plus is 2× it, Pro 4×, Ultra 20× or 80× depending on tier. Google publishes no absolute number for it.
What you get
Free tier at a glance
| Free tier | |
|---|---|
| Price | $0 |
| Usage limit | Baseline (1×) |
| Models | Gemini 3 Flash; limited Gemini 3.1 Pro |
| Storage | 15 GB across Gmail, Drive and Photos |
| Refresh | Every 5 hours, plus a weekly cap |
Where it stops
Three walls free users hit
Deep Think and Veo are not included
Deep Think is Ultra-only. Video generation is a paid feature. Deep Research on free was reported at about 5 reports a month.
The weekly cap still applies
Free is not exempt. A heavy Monday can leave you short on Friday even though the 5-hour timer has cycled many times.
Upgrade math
What each step actually buys
| Step up to | Price | You get |
|---|---|---|
| Google AI Plus | $7.99/mo | 2× the limits, 400 GB storage |
| Google AI Pro | $19.99/mo | 4× the limits, 5 TB, Gemini 3 Pro in Search |
| Google AI Ultra | from $99.99/mo | Up to 20× Pro, 20 TB+, Deep Think |
Context window
The limit Google does publish exactly: context per plan.
Usage limits are multipliers, but the context window is a hard number and it is the difference you feel first on long documents.
| Plan | Context window | What fits |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 32,000 tokens | About 24,000 words: a long article or a short report |
| Google AI Plus | 128,000 tokens | About 96,000 words: a book-length manuscript or a large codebase slice |
| Google AI Pro | 1,000,000 tokens | Roughly 750,000 words, hours of video or a whole repository |
| Google AI Ultra (both tiers) | 1,000,000 tokens | Same as Pro; Ultra buys usage, not context |
When a long chat “forgets” or a big upload fails on Free, that is the 32k window, not your usage allowance. Splitting the document or moving to Plus fixes it; waiting five hours does not.
Upgrade ladder
What each step above Free buys.
| Step | Price | Usage | Context | Storage | Buy it when |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google AI Plus | $7.99 | 2× | 128k | 400 GB | You hit the Pro-model ration or the 32k window most days |
| Google AI Pro | $19.99 | 4× | 1M | 5 TB | Deep Research, long documents or video are part of your work |
| Google AI Ultra 5× | $99.99 | 20× | 1M | 20 TB | Pro runs dry during real work; Deep Think needed |
| Google AI Ultra 20× | $199.99 | 80× | 1M | 30 TB | All-day heavy use |
FAQ
Short answers
How many prompts do I get on free Gemini?
Google does not publish a number for the free tier — it is the baseline that every paid multiplier is measured against. Reported testing during the Gemini 2.5 generation put the Pro-model allowance around 5 prompts a day, with the lighter Flash model far more generous.
Does the free tier have a weekly limit?
Yes. The 5-hour refresh and the weekly cap apply on every tier, paid or not.
What is the cheapest way to raise my limit?
Google AI Plus at $7.99 a month, which doubles the free limits and raises storage from 15 GB to 400 GB.