Anaconda, Inc. offers two programs that let organizations use the Anaconda Platform without paying, and the Terms of Service make these programs one of the free-use routes. Free use applies to an individual using the Platform for personal, non-commercial purposes, to use on behalf of an Eligible Academic Institution (subject to accepting the Academic End User License Agreement), to use on behalf of an Eligible Non-Profit and Research Organization, and to for-profit organizations with 200 or fewer total employees or contractors.[3] The two programs are defined in policies referenced by the Terms, so eligibility is decided by those policies, not by the Terms themselves.[3]
Anaconda for Education
Eligibility
An Eligible Academic Institution is an organization accredited as a college, university or other higher education institution by a recognized national, regional or local agency, including the U.S. Department of Education, the Council for Higher Education Accreditation, the Council of International Schools or equivalent bodies.[1] Anaconda may ask for proof of accreditation or a certification of status, together with a brief description of the organization’s mission and intended use.[1] The policy’s FAQ states that K-12 schools are not eligible for this program, that verification requires an academic email address, and that a person who graduates or leaves no longer qualifies and may continue only under the standard Terms with applicable fees.[1]
Benefits
Eligible institutions receive free access to the Starter Plan on registration, even if they would not otherwise qualify for free use under the Terms.[1] The public price of that plan is $15 per user per month for other customers.[5] Program users are also exempted from the scaled enterprise deployment restriction and from the distribution restriction in the Terms, so they may employ clusters and may redistribute system outputs for academic purposes, provided the use stays within non-commercial, educational use.[1]
Conditions
All access and use under the program is limited to non-commercial, educational purposes. The policy lists commercial research and development, business consulting, product development, marketing, services to external commercial entities, and creation of commercial intellectual property as prohibited.[1] The free access is valid for twelve months from an individual signing the Academic End User License Agreement or an organization signing the Eligible Academic Institution Agreement. Annual renewal needs verification of continued status and re-signing. Material changes affecting eligibility must be reported within 30 days.[1] Misrepresentation of status ends participation immediately.[1] Institutions with a current paid subscription have further payment waived for the remainder of that term, but there is no refund of fees already paid.[1] Individuals sign up with an academic email address; institutions seeking an institution-wide agreement submit a support ticket.[1]
Catalog: Eligible academic institutions receive the Starter Plan free for non-commercial use, Anaconda for Education (Academic Program) and Eligibility changes must be reported within 30 days.
Non-Profit and Research Program
Eligibility
An Eligible Non-Profit or Research Organization is one of the following: a 501(c)(3) or equivalent nonprofit in good standing with annual revenue under USD 1 billion; an internationally recognized nonprofit or charitable organization in good standing with revenue under USD 1 billion; a research organization with revenue under USD 1 billion, meaning an entity primarily engaged in conducting, funding or disseminating research; a healthcare organization under USD 1 billion; a non-profit not otherwise ineligible; or one Anaconda deems eligible.[2]
The policy then lists organizations that are ineligible even if they meet those tests: nonprofits and healthcare organizations over USD 1 billion in revenue, educational institutions (who may qualify under the Academic Policy), private foundations, government or government-affiliated institutions including national laboratories, defense and military research organizations and FFRDCs, and research programs, departments or projects inside for-profit companies, even if the research is non-commercial. Individuals affiliated with an eligible organization who do legitimate non-commercial research under its authority remain eligible even when collaborating with corporate partners.[2] Research consortiums are not treated as one entity; each organization is evaluated on its own.[2]
Benefits and conditions
Participants receive free access to the Platform and the Offerings included in a Free Plan on the pricing page, excluding Offerings that require payment, a 50% discount on standard pricing for a Business Plan, and a 50% discount on a PythonAnywhere plan.[2] Ineligible organizations can ask the sales team about special Business Plan pricing, subject to review of existing agreements.[2] Because the Business Plan is listed at $50 per user per month, the discount implies roughly $25 per user per month, although Anaconda’s policy states only the percentage.[2][5]
The program term is twelve months, with annual re-verification and re-signing of the Non-Profit and Research End User License Agreement (individuals) or Organization Agreement (organizations). Eligibility changes must be reported within 30 days. A false claim of eligibility ends participation immediately and the organization may have to pay all fees that would otherwise have been charged.[2] Verification may involve official non-profit documentation; for U.S. organizations the FAQ names an IRS determination letter or Form 990, and Anaconda may request it at any time in the term.[2] Commercial use is not permitted under the policy.[2]
Catalog: Eligible non-profit and research organizations get free Free-Plan access and 50% off Business and Non-Profit and Research Program.
Comparison
| Point | Academic Program | Non-Profit and Research Program |
|---|---|---|
| Free access | Starter Plan[1] | Offerings in a Free Plan[2] |
| Paid-plan discount | None stated | 50% on Business and PythonAnywhere[2] |
| Revenue ceiling | None stated | USD 1 billion[2] |
| Scaled-deployment restriction | Waived for non-commercial educational use[1] | Not mentioned |
| Term | 12 months, renewable[1] | 12 months, renewable[2] |
| Excluded | K-12 schools[1] | Foundations, government-affiliated bodies, for-profit research units, organizations over USD 1 billion[2] |
Other free offerings
The Terms say no paid licence is needed for Edublocks, whatever the type or size of organization, and that Edublocks has its own terms.[3][6] Catalog: Edublocks needs no paid licence for any organization. Anaconda’s FAQ says an organization that is eligible for free use but holds a paid plan it no longer wants may contact support, and that Anaconda cannot refund previously paid subscription fees.[4]
Compliance notes for licence managers
A free-use claim is something Anaconda may verify. The organization should hold the program agreement, the date it expires, and the evidence of its status. Two common edge cases follow from the policies. First, a research group inside a company is listed as ineligible, so a company should not expect to use the non-profit route for such a unit.[2] Second, a university’s industry-sponsored project is outside the academic program’s scope if it amounts to commercial research and development.[1] Both programs are limited to twelve months, so an organization using them needs a renewal reminder.
Out of scope
This article does not cover the paid Starter and Business plans for commercial users, the free-use rule for organizations of 200 or fewer people, or the Anaconda Platform and Kilo or Enkrypt AI offerings. See Anaconda Terms of Service and User counting and Anaconda Platform, Core, Kilo and Enkrypt AI plans.