Best Software Deals & Free Trials

Cheapest reliable hosting — from $2.99/mo

Hostinger runs 60-80% off promotions year-round on annual shared hosting plans. Includes a free domain, free SSL, and weekly backups. Best for new sites, developer side-projects, and anyone leaving Bluehost.

Free .com domain with hosting plans

Namecheap hosting plans include a free domain for the first year. Also consistently one of the cheapest domain registrars — around $9/year for .com renewals, well below the GoDaddy prices most people get locked into.

2-year plan from $3.99/mo + 3 months free

NordVPN frequently discounts 2-year plans heavily. Current promotions bring the effective monthly cost under $4, making it one of the better value VPNs for the feature set. 30-day money-back guarantee.

No logs, no accounts, no tricks

Mullvad doesn't run promotions — flat $5/month, no email required to sign up, accepts cash and crypto. The privacy-first option for developers who want a VPN that genuinely doesn't know who they are.

Full access free — no credit card required

Jasper's 7-day trial gives full access to all templates and the AI assistant. Enough time to run a real content sprint and judge whether it's worth $39/month for your volume. Cancel anytime before the trial ends.

Free tier covers grammar, spelling, and clarity

Grammarly's free plan handles grammar, spelling, and basic suggestions. Premium ($12/mo) adds tone detection, advanced rewrites, and plagiarism checking. Most people get by with free for months before needing to upgrade.

Full Pro access free for two weeks

New Cursor accounts get a 14-day Pro trial with unlimited completions and access to the best AI models. Use it during an actual project to judge whether $20/month pays for itself — for daily coding, it usually does.

$10/mo — free with GitHub Education

Copilot is $10/month for individuals. Students and verified educators get it free through GitHub Education. Apply with a .edu email or proof of enrollment. Takes 24-48 hours to verify.

Full access to all SEO tools — normally $129/mo

Semrush's free trial unlocks keyword research, site auditing, backlink analysis, and rank tracking. The trial is enough to do a full SEO audit and find a few months of content ideas before committing.

Design social media, thumbnails, and docs free

Canva's free tier includes hundreds of templates, a usable stock photo library, and full-resolution export. Pro ($12.99/mo) adds background removal, premium assets, and team sharing. Free is genuinely sufficient for most solo creators.

Unlimited pages and blocks — free forever

Notion's personal plan is permanently free with no page limit. Plus ($8/mo) adds unlimited file uploads and version history. For solo use, free is sufficient for note-taking, project tracking, and wikis.

Build your newsletter to 1,000 subscribers free

ConvertKit's free plan lets you grow to 1,000 email subscribers before you pay anything. Includes landing pages, opt-in forms, and basic sequences. The Creator plan at $15/mo unlocks automations and paid newsletters.