A founder-first directory of credits, discounts, and programmes that lower your burn while you build.
Founders come here to answer one simple question:
What can I get for free or cheap right now, and can I actually qualify for it?
Cloud bills, AI compute, accounting software, and CRM costs add up fast in the first year, and most founders either miss the perks that would offset them or waste days applying for headline offers they were never eligible for.
This directory provides a neutral, founder-oriented reference for startup perks, credits, and discounts available to New Zealand companies. Most are open globally and work for NZ founders. A few are NZ-specific. A few are gated behind funding or an accelerator. We tell you which is which.
No pay-to-play. No affiliate links. No provider has paid to appear here.
Last verified: October 2026. Perk programmes change constantly, so always confirm the current offer on the provider's own page before you apply.
The NZ Startup Perks Directory:
Read This First: How Startup Perks Actually Work in 2026
Three things trip founders up. Knowing them saves you days.
1. The headline number is almost never what you get. "Up to $350,000" usually means a top tier that needs venture funding, an accelerator, or a partner referral code. Bootstrapped founders land in the entry tier (often $1,000 to $5,000) on most programmes. That is still real money, but plan around the number you will actually qualify for, not the marketing figure.
2. The fastest way to unlock a lot at once is your bank or incorporation account. Opening an account with a startup-focused financial platform (Airwallex or Emerge for NZ founders; Stripe Atlas if you have a US entity) unlocks a bundle of partner perks in one step, instead of applying to 30 programmes one by one. This is the single highest-leverage move in your first month.
3. Some credits don't stack, and some expire fast. AWS Lift and AWS Activate cannot both be claimed. Most cloud credits expire 12 months after they are issued (some tranches in as little as 4 months) whether you use them or not. Don't claim credits before you are ready to spend them.
Submit a Perk:
This directory is for open-access perks, credits, and programmes that genuinely help New Zealand founders save money while building.
👋 Founders
Know a perk we have missed? Recommend it here (takes less than a minute).
👋 Providers
Run a startup perk programme open to NZ founders? Submit it for review.
1. Cloud Infrastructure
Compute, storage, and database credits. For most early-stage teams this is the single biggest cost these credits offset.
AWS Activate (Founders)
https://aws.amazon.com/startups/credits
Start with US$1,000 in AWS credits, with some applicants qualifying for up to US$5,000. For self-funded startups that are pre-Series B, founded in the last 10 years, and new to Activate. Your AWS account must be on a paid plan, not the free tier. Credits also cover third-party models on Amazon Bedrock, including Claude. Cannot be combined with AWS Lift.
AWS Activate (Portfolio)
https://aws.amazon.com/startups/credits
Up to US$200,000 in credits for pre-Series B startups. Requires an Organisation ID from an AWS Activate Provider, which can be your VC, angel investor or accelerator. There is no public route without that ID. An invite-only tier above this (US$200,000+) runs through an AWS account manager.
AWS Lift (NZ / APAC)
https://aws.amazon.com/events/apj/aws-lift/
Up to US$83,500 in promotional credits over 12 months, released in tiers as your AWS usage grows. You start with US$250, and each tranche expires 4 months after issue. For businesses located in New Zealand (or 16 other APAC countries) that averaged under US$750 a month on AWS in the prior 3 months and took under US$500 in other AWS credits in the prior 12 months. Most startups are excluded: companies under 10 years old that are self-funded or pre-Series B cannot join, and neither can anyone who has ever had Activate credits. Lift is built for established SMBs. Startups should use Activate.
Google for Startups Cloud Program
https://cloud.google.com/startup
US$2,000 on the Start tier for pre-funded startups with a working MVP, a clear business model and plans to raise. Up to US$200,000 on the Scale tier for VC-funded startups (seed to Series A), or up to US$350,000 for AI-first startups. Angel, friends-and-family, crowdfunding and government grant funding do not qualify for the Scale tier, only for Start. Credits cover Google Cloud services, not third-party models or Marketplace products; some members also get Workspace and Maps benefits. Not for dev shops, consultancies, agencies or crypto mining. Your business email must match your website domain.
Microsoft for Startups
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/startups
Approved startups start with US$1,000 in Azure credits. Startups backed by an investor, accelerator or VC in Microsoft’s Investor Network can unlock up to US$150,000, using a 10-character referral code from that investor. No investor is needed to apply.
Cloudflare for Startups
https://www.cloudflare.com/startups/
One year of credits in three tiers. US$10,000 for bootstrapped or self-funded startups with under US$1M raised. US$100,000 for startups with under US$5M raised and a Cloudflare partner investor. US$350,000 for US$5M+ raised with a partner investor. All tiers need a technology product, founded within 10 years, a live website and a business email, and first-time applicants only. Credits cover Workers, R2 (capped at US$10,000) and Workers AI (capped by tier); core security and CDN are free. Not open to consultancies, agencies, MSPs or resellers. No extensions, and your card is charged once credits run out.
DigitalOcean Startups (formerly Hatch)
https://www.digitalocean.com/startups
12 months of credits, with the amount set by your DigitalOcean partner (VC or accelerator); direct applicants choose “Other” on the form. Credit use is capped at US$10,000 a month, plus 15 months of free Standard support. Credits cannot be used on GPUs or on third-party AI models such as Anthropic and OpenAI; GPU credits are a separate, selective application. Prioritises AI-native startups that have raised US$10M or less. Service businesses such as agencies and dev shops are not eligible. Needs a new team account with a company email and card, and no prior DigitalOcean credits. Unused credits are forfeited.
Oracle Cloud (OCI) Always Free
https://www.oracle.com/cloud/free/
A free, no-expiry tier: Arm Ampere compute equal to 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of memory, up to two AMD micro VMs, 200 GB of block storage, 20 GB of object storage and 10 TB of outbound data a month. New accounts also get a US$300 trial credit for 30 days. One account per person, with a card required for identity checks. Idle instances can be reclaimed by Oracle.
2. AI & Compute Credits
AI model and GPU costs are now the fastest-growing line item for many founders. The largest tiers here almost always require a VC or accelerator referral.
NVIDIA Inception
https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/startups/
Free to join, with no fees, equity, cohorts or deadlines. Members get free self-paced NVIDIA training, preferred pricing on select NVIDIA hardware and software, partner offers, free cloud credits from NVIDIA and its partners, and introductions to investors in NVIDIA’s VC network where eligible. Must be incorporated, under 10 years old, employ at least one developer and have a working website. Not for consulting or outsourced development firms, crypto companies, cloud providers, resellers or public companies. No revenue needed.
Claude Startups (Anthropic)
https://claude.com/programs/startups
Open to bootstrapped and funded startups founded in the last 5 years or funded in the last 2; apply through a Claude Console account with a company email. Members get partner discounts (up to US$45,000 combined, from third-party tools rather than Anthropic) and office hours with Anthropic’s Applied AI team. The free year of Claude Team and US$1,000 API credit launched in October 2026 are paused while Anthropic re-reviews applications. VC-backed startups in Anthropic’s partner network can get up to US$100,000 in API credits through their VC.
OpenAI for Startups
https://openai.com/business/why-openai/startups/
OpenAI’s own page now offers API credits only through its VC partner network (it names Thrive Capital, Sequoia, a16z, Kleiner Perkins and Conviction). You apply with a referral code from your VC, and no credit amount is published. There is no direct application. Without a partner VC, the Airwallex for Startups bundle includes US$2,500 in OpenAI API credits for eligible NZ startups (see Financial, Banking & Fundraising).
A practical note: if your spend is mostly model and API calls rather than infrastructure, AI credits stretch much further when you pick the right model for each task rather than defaulting to the largest one.
3. Developer Tools
GitLab for Startups
https://about.gitlab.com/solutions/startups/
Pre-seed or seed startups with up to US$5M in external funding get 12 months free of GitLab Ultimate (SaaS or self-managed) for up to 20 seats, then 50% off in year two. Series A or B startups with up to US$20M raised get 50% off in year one and 25% off in year two, up to 20 users. Externally funded startups only; self-funded companies are not eligible. New GitLab customers only, and you must prove funding with a Crunchbase or PitchBook profile or your VC or accelerator’s page. Support is not included in the free year.
GitHub (via Microsoft for Startups)
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/startups
Microsoft’s startup page still lists GitHub among the tools members get free access to, but no longer states how many seats or for how long. Confirm what applies once you are approved. Same eligibility as Microsoft for Startups (see Cloud Infrastructure above).
DigitalOcean Welcome Perks
https://www.digitalocean.com/startups
DigitalOcean Startups members get partner perks in their welcome kit. The current list includes 20% off Stripe Atlas, up to 90% off HubSpot in year one, US$2,000 in Airtable credit, US$1,000 toward Notion Team or Enterprise, and US$1,000 in Miro credit. Available to DigitalOcean Startups members only.
Kiro Startup Credits (AWS)
Up to one year of Kiro Pro+, AWS’s AI coding tool, for 2, 10 or 30 users depending on the tier you apply for. For early-stage to Series A startups with a business email on their own domain and an AWS account using the same email. Not available if you’ve already joined AWS Activate, so apply for Kiro first if you want both. Limited-time offer; credits expire a year after issue.
Worth checking directly: Sentry, Datadog, Vercel, Linear, and JetBrains also run startup programmes, most commonly accessed through a financial-platform bundle (see Financial, Banking & Fundraising) or an accelerator.
4. Productivity & Collaboration
Notion for Startups
https://www.notion.com/help/notion-for-startups
Up to 6 months free of the Business plan, including Notion AI. 6 months if you apply with a code from a Notion partner (you need under 100 employees). 3 months if Notion can verify you as a startup building a tech product and you apply directly. 1 month if you have fewer than 10 employees, are a service business, or Notion cannot verify you as a startup. New, non-paying Notion customers only, and one offer per company. The Airwallex for Startups bundle includes the 6-month offer.
Miro for Startups
Early-stage startups can apply directly for free Miro credits; Miro’s page no longer states an amount. Scale-ups can get up to 25% off. A US$1,000 credit still appears in some partner bundles (DigitalOcean’s welcome kit, for example), so check whether a programme you already belong to includes it before applying.
Jobtracker Timesheets for Startups
https://jobtracker.co.nz/startups
12 months free on the Team plan for up to 5 seats, then 50% off in year two. Includes timesheets, projects, rates, invoices, expenses, and CSV and PDF export. AI actions are capped at the standard trial allowance during the free year. For NZ-incorporated companies under 5 years old with fewer than 20 staff; bootstrapped is fine. New customers only, one offer per company, no card needed. Apply with your NZBN and a company email; the free year is applied within 3 working days.
EQIQs
A 14-day free trial, plus 20% off the Professional or Organization tier. EQIQs combines 21 psychometric frameworks into relationship profiles for teams and founders. No NZ-specific eligibility is stated. Sign up directly for the trial; no card is shown on the public site. For the 20% discount, email bd@eqiqs.com (there is no code), and EQIQs confirms eligibility.
5. Analytics & Product Data
These offers move around a lot. Treat the values below as indicative and confirm on the provider’s page before applying.
Mixpanel for Startups
First year free on the Startup Plan: every report and add-on, 1 billion events a year and 500,000 Session Replays. For startups incorporated less than 5 years ago with no more than US$8M raised, never on a paid Mixpanel plan and with no prior Mixpanel offer. You must start sending data within 90 days of acceptance or you are removed and cannot rejoin, so apply only when you’re ready to implement. No VC or accelerator needed.
Amplitude for Startups
https://amplitude.com/startups
First year 100% free on the Growth plan: up to 100M events a month (about 200,000 monthly tracked users), unlimited seats, no card needed. Year two is 40% off the annual Plus plan, or you can drop to the free plan (2M events a month) and keep your data. For startups with fewer than 20 employees and under US$10M raised. Sign up first, then apply from inside your workspace.
linkutm for Startups
https://go.linkutm.com/whatfounderswant
12 months free of the Growth plan (normally $348 a year): branded short links, QR codes, UTM templates and GA4 integration, with 1,500 links and 50,000 tracked clicks a month. For startups under 5 years old that have raised under $5M (bootstrapped is fine), aren’t on a paid linkutm plan, and apply with a company email. No card needed. Applications are reviewed by hand within 24 to 48 hours, and the coupon comes by email.
6. CRM, Support & Marketing
HubSpot for Startups
https://www.hubspot.com/startups
90% off year one, 50% off year two and 25% off year three on Professional and Enterprise products. For startups that have raised pre-seed, seed or Series A (not Series B or later) and are either affiliated with an approved HubSpot partner or have venture funding HubSpot can verify on Crunchbase, PitchBook or Harmonic. A 30% tier (15% in year two) is open to members of approved entrepreneurial organisations. New HubSpot customers only, and an annual commitment is required.
Zendesk for Startups
https://www.zendesk.com/business/startups/
Free Zendesk Suite Professional and Copilot for 6 months as standard; 1 or 2 years only if you apply through a Zendesk VC or accelerator partner’s referral link. Agent numbers depend on your funding and partner, up to 50. For new Zendesk customers under 10 years old, with no more than Series B funding and fewer than 250 employees (50 to 249 employees need a partner referral). No card needed upfront, but you must choose a paid plan when the free period ends to keep the account.
Intercom Early Stage
https://www.intercom.com/early-stage
93% off year one, 50% off year two and 25% off year three on the Early Stage plan (from US$65 a month), plus a free year of Fin AI Agent with 300 Fin outcomes a month. Phone, SMS, WhatsApp and extra Fin outcomes are charged at list price. For new Intercom customers with up to US$10M in funding and fewer than 15 employees. Members also get a partner deals pack Intercom values at US$500,000, including Stripe, Notion and Linear.
Fuzzbucket for Startups
https://fuzzbucket.ai/startups
Fuzzbucket, an AI marketing platform, covers 25% of your subscription for 12 months, capped at US$1,000. This is a discount on a paid plan, not free credit: on the Pro plan (US$490 a year) it saves you about US$122. For pre-launch through Series A startups founded within 5 years with fewer than 50 employees; bootstrapped is fine. New customers, or existing ones within 60 days of their first payment. Approval required; VC- and accelerator-backed startups are fast-tracked.
iLoveVideoEditor
https://ilovevideoeditor.com/pricing
25% off the Pro (€250 a year) or Business (€500 a year) plan for 12 months with code WFW25 at checkout. A video automation tool with templates, an API and integrations with Zapier, Make and n8n; there’s also a free browser editor. New customers only. Limited to 500 redemptions, valid until 31 July 2027.
7. Financial, Banking & Fundraising
This is the highest-leverage category. The right account here unlocks a stack of other perks in one application, and the cap-table tools below are free at the stage most NZ founders are at.
Airwallex for Startups (NZ)
https://www.airwallex.com/en-nz/startups
For seed-stage startups: 3 months of Airwallex Grow free, no fees on the first NZD$100,000 of payments you collect, fee-free FX on the first NZD$100,000 of conversions, and access to Airwallex Yield on AUD and USD balances. Series A and beyond: contact sales. Members also unlock partner perks, including US$2,500 in OpenAI API credits, 6 months of Notion Business with AI, 30% off HubSpot and US$100,000 in AI compute credits from a partner cloud. For NZ or Australian businesses with an NZBN or ABN. Built for venture-backed startups, and prioritises those with external funding (angel, seed or institutional). New customers only; standard Airwallex fees still apply. This is the cleanest way for an NZ founder to unlock a bundle, with no US entity needed.
Emerge (NZ business banking)
https://www.emerge.nz/solutions/startups
A free NZ business account (no monthly fees, no foreign transaction fees), instant virtual and physical cards, expense management, Xero integration and a partner marketplace with discounts on SaaS and startup services. For NZ limited liability companies, sole traders, registered charities, charitable trusts and incorporated societies; you need your NZBN and ID. Emerge is not a registered bank: your funds are held in trust with a major NZ bank rated AA- by S&P.
Carta Launch
https://carta.com/equity-management/launch/
Free cap-table management: issue equity, manage stakeholders, generate and track SAFEs, and access fundraising insights. Free for companies with under 25 stakeholders and under US$1M raised. Available in APAC. Most useful if you are structuring for US-style equity and investors.
Stripe Atlas
Delaware C-corp or LLC incorporation for US$500 one-time (incorporation, tax ID, founder equity, 83(b) filing and your first year of registered agent), then US$100 a year after that. Atlas startups get US$2,500 in Stripe product credits for their first year and over US$50,000 in partner discounts (Google, Xero and others). Stripe refunds the US$500 if you deposit US$5,000 into a Stripe Treasury account within 90 days. Relevant if you are raising from US investors, and less so if you are staying NZ-only.
A note on the banking-unlock route for NZ founders: Stripe Atlas, Brex, and Mercury bundle the largest partner-perk stacks, but they are built around a US entity. If you are NZ-incorporated and not setting up in the US, Airwallex and Emerge are the equivalent move and work on your NZBN. This is reference information, not financial or legal advice. Whether to set up a US entity is a real decision with tax and legal consequences, so talk to an advisor before doing it for the sake of perks.
8. NZ-Only Local Routes to Perks & Support
These are New Zealand-specific. Most are free, and most founders here underuse them. Some are tied to affiliation with the programme itself.
Ministry of Awesome Startup Perks
https://ministryofawesome.com/perks/
Christchurch-based Ministry of Awesome offers its perks library to participants in its Founder Catalyst programme. It includes Whimsical (12 months free with unlimited editor seats; mention “MoA” as your referrer), Xero (90% off for six months) and Kiwibank Startup+ (progress-based borrowing and business banking). There are also referral links to AWS Activate, Airwallex, Google Cloud, HubSpot, Notion, Stripe, Twilio, Intercom, Zendesk, Freshworks, Deel, GitHub and Webflow, plus NZ-made tools Orchestra and Capture The Bug.
The Factory Perks & Resources
https://thefactorynz.co.nz/perks-and-resources
The Factory, a Manawatū-based incubator and angel group, publishes a founder perks page with up to 90% off HubSpot in year one, 12 months of Customer.io, 1 year of Make’s Teams plan, $10,000 in Lua AI credits for 6 months, 100% off Webflow’s CMS plan for 1 year, and Airwallex (3 months of Grow free plus fee-free FX up to $100,000). It also lists three free confidential counselling sessions for founder wellbeing, open to founders across Aotearoa.
Get Your Free NZBN First
https://www.nzbn.govt.nz/whats-an-nzbn/nzbn-benefits-for-business/
Free for every NZ business, including sole traders, partnerships and trusts. Suppliers, banks and government agencies use your NZBN to identify your business, and you need one to open Airwallex or Emerge accounts (see Financial, Banking & Fundraising). Get or check your NZBN, then apply to the trade programmes of the suppliers you actually use.
Regional Business Partner (RBP) Network
https://www.business.govt.nz/strategy-and-performance/regional-business-partner-network
Free, government-funded growth advisors through 15 regional partners. After a discovery session, eligible businesses can use the Management Capability Development Fund, which subsidises up to 50% of management training to a maximum of NZD$5,000 a year (excl. GST). The network also runs free business resilience training and an AI Advisory Pilot Programme with co-funding for AI projects. Registering takes 5 to 10 minutes, and a growth advisor contacts you within 5 working days.
For the full picture of NZ government grants, R&D support, and founder programmes (RDTI, the R&D Experience and Career Grants, Te Puni Kōkiri Māori business support, and more), see the WFW directory, below:
9. Programmes That Unlock More Perks
These are not perks themselves. They are memberships or programmes that, once you join, open the door to bundles of supplier deals, often the same suppliers above but on better terms.
NVIDIA Inception
https://www.nvidia.com/en-us/startups/
A free membership (also listed under AI & Compute Credits) that unlocks preferred pricing on select NVIDIA hardware and software, partner offers, and free cloud credits from NVIDIA and its partners. Free, no equity.
F6S
A free platform listing hundreds of open deals and accelerator programmes. Some deals are open to all users; the high-value ones often need accelerator participation. Free to join and browse.
Secret (JoinSecret)
A deals marketplace with over 600 SaaS deals. About 350 are free with a free account; the rest need Premium at US$149 a year. Check whether the deal you want is in the free set before paying.
A straight word on paid deal memberships (Secret Premium and similar): many deals behind a paywall are available directly from the provider for free. Pay only if a deal you actually want is locked behind the membership and the saving clearly beats the fee.
Submit a Perk:
This directory is for open-access perks, credits, and programmes that genuinely help New Zealand founders save money while building.
👋 Founders
Know a perk we have missed? Recommend it here (takes less than a minute).
👋 Providers
Run a startup perk programme open to NZ founders? Submit it for review.
How Inclusion Works
All submissions are reviewed.
Inclusion is based on:
- relevance to startup founders
- whether the perk is genuinely open-access or has a realistic path to qualify
- usefulness in lowering a founder's burn
Listings are factual and non-promotional. No provider pays to appear, and there are no affiliate links. Listings may be removed if information becomes outdated or misleading.
About What Founders Want
What Founders Want builds founder-first infrastructure for New Zealand's startup ecosystem.
We create directories, templates, and resources that answer the questions founders actually search for.
If something reduces wasted time, lowers risk, or improves decision-making for founders, it belongs here.
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NZ Startup Directories