I found several other users reporting the same issue in September 2026, so I would like to confirm whether this is a Starter Tier provisioning issue

Google AI Studio
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1

Hello Google AI Studio team,

I am trying to publish a full-stack application created with Google AI Studio Build Mode. When I click Publish → Get Started, the Confirm project and billing screen only shows:

Default Gemini Project
No billing setup
Set up billing
Refresh

The Google Cloud Starter Tier option does not appear, even after refreshing.

My current project is on the Free Gemini API tier, with ₹0 API usage, and I have not enabled prepaid billing. The Billing page shows that a billing account exists, but no prepayment has been configured.

According to the current Google AI Studio documentation, eligible users can publish up to 2 full-stack applications using the Google Cloud Starter Tier without setting up a Google Cloud billing account.

Could you please check whether the Starter Tier deployment entitlement is available/provisioned for my account and why the option is not appearing?

I do not want to enable paid billing or prepay simply to access the Starter Tier.

I have attached screenshots of the Publish, Projects, Billing, Usage, and API Keys pages for reference.

Thank you.

ai-studio-billing-page
ai-studio-billing-page1618×828 56 KB

ai-studio-publish-page
ai-studio-publish-page1160×970 65.7 KB

ai-studio-usage-page
ai-studio-usage-page1825×840 59.2 KB

2

I have the exact same issue.

My personal Google account has an existing AI Studio app. The project is on the Free Tier and has no billing attached.

When I go to Publish → Get Started, I only see:

“Default Gemini Project”
“No billing setup”
“Set up billing”
“Refresh”

Refreshing does not change anything, and the project selector does not show any Starter Tier / Google-managed Starter project.

I also have an old Google Cloud Billing account, but it is currently closed with a €0 balance. I do not want to reactivate it or enable paid billing.

Could the Google AI Studio team please check whether Starter Tier provisioning/eligibility is currently broken or missing for our accounts?

3

Hello @sanon_cristean @Ymir_Prime ,

Not all accounts are eligible for The Starter Tier. Please check out the caveats mentioned in the Google AI Studio deployment documentation. Eligibility is determined automatically, and we cannot review Starter Tier access manually.

You might want to consider linking a Cloud Billing account to your project.