Perplexity Pro Free with Airtel: Is the Offer Still Available in 2026?

Last updated: 10 October 2026

In July 2025, Airtel surprised its customers with a big gift: Perplexity Pro free for 12 months, a subscription Airtel valued at ₹17,000. Overnight, "perplexity pro free airtel" became one of India's most searched AI phrases, and lakhs of users claimed it through the Airtel Thanks app.

But offers like this don't last forever. If you are trying to claim it now, or you claimed it earlier and want to know when it expires, this guide gives you the full, current picture. You'll learn whether the offer is still live, what happens to existing users, how to check your expiry date, what Perplexity Pro includes, and the best free alternatives in October 2026.

Quick answer: No, Perplexity Pro is no longer free with Airtel for new users. The Airtel offer ran from 17 July 2025 and ended on 16–17 January 2026. Users who claimed it before the deadline keep Pro for 12 months from their activation date, so the last free subscriptions end around January 2027. New users can use Perplexity's free plan instead.

Is the Perplexity Pro free Airtel offer still available?

No. The offer is closed for new claims. Here is what the official and reliable sources say:

• Perplexity's own help centre article on the Airtel promo (opens in new tab) says the promotion ended on 16 January 2026.
• Telecom news site TelecomTalk reported that the claim window ran from 17 July 2025 to 17 January 2026, and that new users can no longer claim it.
• The small one-day difference in dates is likely due to time zones or how each source counted the last day. Either way, the offer is over.

Why do some pages still say it's live?

Airtel's older blog posts and many YouTube videos from 2025 still describe the offer in the present tense. They were written when the deal was active and haven't been updated. Since Perplexity's help centre confirms the promotion has ended, you cannot claim it in the Airtel Thanks app today, even if an old banner or link still appears.

Can I get it by buying a new Airtel SIM?

No. Since the claim window has closed, buying a new Airtel SIM or recharging a higher plan will not unlock free Perplexity Pro.

Timeline of the Airtel Perplexity offer

Who was eligible?

When the offer was live, Airtel said all Airtel customers could claim it, including:

• Prepaid mobile users
• Postpaid mobile users
• Airtel Xstream Fiber (broadband) users
• Airtel DTH users

Each individual account holder could claim it once, and no payment or credit card details were needed.

Already claimed it? How to check when your Pro expires

If you claimed the offer, you keep Perplexity Pro for 12 months from the date you activated it, not 12 months from July 2025. TelecomTalk reported that users who activated before the deadline continue to get uninterrupted access for their full 12 months.

That means:

• If you activated in July or August 2025, your free Pro has most likely already ended (around July–August 2026).
• If you activated in October 2025, your Pro ends around October 2026, which is now.
• If you activated in January 2026, you have Pro until about January 2027.

Steps to check your Perplexity Pro status

1. Open perplexity.ai (opens in new tab) or the Perplexity app and log in with the same email you used to claim the Airtel offer.
2. Tap your profile icon → Settings.
3. Open the Subscription section. Labels can vary slightly between the website and the app.
4. Look for your plan name (Pro) and the expiry or renewal date.

If you see "Free" instead of "Pro", either your 12 months are over, or you are logged in with a different email from the one you used during activation.

Lost access early? Try these checks

• Wrong account: Log out and log back in with the Gmail, email or Apple ID you used in the Airtel app.
• Different device: Pro is linked to your Perplexity account, not your phone, so it should work on any device once you log in correctly.
• Still a problem: Contact Perplexity support through the help centre, mentioning your Airtel activation. You can also raise it in the Airtel Thanks app help section.

What happens when your free Perplexity Pro ends

This is where the Airtel offer was friendlier than many other free trials.

• Check whether you added a card: Claiming the Airtel offer did not need a card. However, in December 2025 Perplexity emailed Airtel users asking them to add a valid card to keep Pro. If you never added one, your plan should not renew as a paid plan, and reports say its status may show as "Paused" when the free period ends. If you did add a card, cancel auto-renewal under Settings → Subscription unless you want to pay.
• Your threads stay: Your past searches, Spaces and saved threads stay in your account, though some Pro-only features stop working.
• Pro-only features stop: Higher Pro Search limits, model choice, Labs and higher file-upload limits go back to free-plan limits.

If you did add a card later to upgrade or extend, check your subscription settings to make sure you are not set up for auto-renewal unless you want it.

What Perplexity Pro includes

Perplexity is an AI-powered answer engine. Instead of a list of links, it gives you a direct answer with numbered sources you can click and verify. Pro unlocks the stronger features.

According to Airtel's 2025 offer page and Perplexity's plans, Perplexity Pro includes:

• Many more Pro Searches: Airtel's page said up to 300 a day in 2025. As of October 2026, Perplexity's help centre lists Pro Searches on Pro as "weekly limits" based on average use, without a fixed number, and Pro users reported tighter limits in May 2026.
• Choice of AI models: Pick from top models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and Perplexity's own models.
• Deep Research: Long, multi-step research reports with dozens of sources.
• File uploads: Upload PDFs, Word files and spreadsheets and ask questions about them.
• Image generation from text prompts.
• Perplexity Labs: Build spreadsheets, dashboards and simple web apps from a prompt.
• Comet Plus: Premium publisher content in Perplexity's Comet browser, bundled with Pro.

Perplexity Pro price in India

• Perplexity Pro's international price is $20/month or $200/year.
• Perplexity does not publish a separate India rupee price on its website. If you pay on the web, you may be charged in dollars plus foreign transaction fees on some cards. If you subscribe through Google Play or the App Store, check the rupee price shown at checkout.
• Airtel valued its 12-month offer at ₹17,000.

Perplexity Free vs Pro: is the free plan enough?

For most students and casual users, the free plan is enough. Here is how they compare.

Who should consider paying for Pro?

• Researchers, journalists and analysts who run many deep searches daily.
• Professionals who want one subscription that gives access to several top AI models.

Who can stay on Free?

• Students who need a few cited answers for assignments.
• Casual users checking news, product comparisons or facts.

Perplexity also launched its Comet browser for free in March 2026, so you can use its AI browsing features without Pro.

How the Airtel offer worked (for reference)

This section is for readers who want to understand old videos and posts, or who are helping a family member check an older claim. These steps no longer work for new claims.

When the offer was live, Airtel users claimed it like this:

1. Open the Airtel Thanks app and log in with the Airtel number.
2. Go to Rewards and OTTs (or scroll to the Perplexity banner on the home screen).
3. Tap the Perplexity Pro tile and select Claim Now.
4. Sign in to or create a Perplexity account using email, Gmail or Apple ID.
5. Complete the linking. Pro activated immediately for 12 months.

No card, UPI mandate or payment was needed, which is why this offer was so popular.

Best alternatives to free Perplexity Pro in 2026

Missed the Airtel deal? Here are legitimate options that are free or cheap right now.

1. Perplexity Free + Comet browser

The free plan still gives unlimited basic searches with sources and a small daily quota of Pro Searches. The Comet browser is free. For many users, this covers 80% of what they used Pro for.

2. Google AI Plus free for college students

If you are a college student aged 18+, you can claim Google AI Plus free for one year until 31 December 2026. It includes better Gemini limits and 400 GB storage, and Gemini can search the web too. See our step-by-step guide on Gemini Pro free for students in India.

3. Google AI Pro free with Jio

Jio users aged 18+ on an unlimited 5G plan of ₹349 or above can get Google AI Pro free for 18 months through the MyJio app, which includes Gemini's Deep Research. The offer was still listed on Jio's offer page (opens in new tab) as of October 2026. If you have a dual-SIM phone, this can be a good reason to keep a Jio SIM.

4. ChatGPT Free and Claude Free with web search

Both ChatGPT Free and Claude Free now include web search, so you can get answers with sources without paying. Compare them in our ChatGPT vs Gemini vs Claude guide. Note that the free ChatGPT Go offer for India has also ended; our ChatGPT Go free India explainer covers the details.

5. Perplexity education discount

Perplexity offers Education Pro at $10/month for students and faculty at university-level institutions, verified through SheerID, according to its help centre. It includes everything in Pro. Perplexity does not list an India-specific price, so check the amount at checkout. Check the official Perplexity students page before paying.

6. Airtel's current freebie: Adobe Express Premium

Airtel replaced the Perplexity deal with a different AI-powered perk. According to Adobe's FAQ (opens in new tab), all Airtel prepaid, postpaid, broadband and DTH customers can activate 12 months of Adobe Express Premium through the Airtel Thanks app between 29 January 2026 and 28 January 2027. As of October 2026 the offer is still open. It is great for making posters, reels and social media designs with AI.

For a complete list, see our guide to the best free AI tools for students in India.

Avoid fake "Perplexity Pro free" links

Since the real offer was so popular, scammers still use it as bait. Be careful of:

• WhatsApp messages like "Airtel giving Perplexity Pro free again, claim now" with unknown links.
• Sites asking for your Airtel OTP, Perplexity password or UPI PIN to "activate" Pro.
• "Perplexity Pro coupon codes" sold on Telegram or Instagram for ₹99. Many are stolen or fake and get cancelled.
• Modded APK files promising Pro features. These can contain malware.

Airtel offers appear only inside the official Airtel Thanks app or on airtel.in. Never share an OTP with anyone. If you've been cheated, call 1930 or report at cybercrime.gov.in. Learn how in our guide on how to report cyber fraud online in India.

Conclusion

The Perplexity Pro free Airtel deal was one of the best AI freebies India has seen, but it closed to new users in January 2026. If you claimed it, check your expiry date and enjoy Pro until it ends; you won't be charged automatically. If you missed it, Perplexity's free plan, the free Comet browser and Google's student and Jio offers are strong alternatives.

Next, claim a free year of Google AI Plus using our guide to Gemini Pro free for students in India, and explore more guides in our AI Tools & Reviews section.