The latest articles on DEV Community by Chidera Ezeudu (@chidera_ezeudu_0870985528). https://dev.to/chidera_ezeudu_0870985528 https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F4121474%2Fb5dbdc33-3a5a-42ca-bfcb-a0c278e10bc6.jpg https://dev.to/chidera_ezeudu_0870985528 en Chidera Ezeudu Fri, 11 Sep 2026 21:41:51 +0000 https://dev.to/chidera_ezeudu_0870985528/how-to-get-free-ai-credits-in-your-terminal-517f https://dev.to/chidera_ezeudu_0870985528/how-to-get-free-ai-credits-in-your-terminal-517f <p>If you've ever wanted an AI coding assistant that lives right in your shell no browser tab, no subscription, no API key required to start I built exactly that, and it's free to use.</p> <h3> Meet Dario </h3> <p>Dario is a terminal-based AI assistant you install with one command:<br> </p> <div class="highlight js-code-highlight"> <pre class="highlight shell"><code>npm <span class="nb">install</span> <span class="nt">-g</span> @npmdevy25/dario </code></pre> </div> <p>Then just ask it anything, right from your shell:<br> </p> <div class="highlight js-code-highlight"> <pre class="highlight shell"><code>dario <span class="s2">"how do I undo a git commit"</span> </code></pre> </div> <p>You'll get a clean, boxed answer straight in your terminal no context switching, no copypasting from a chat window.</p> <h3> The free part </h3> <p>Every user gets <strong>150 free queries a day</strong>, no signup, no credit card. That's a pretty generous daily allowance for quick coding questions, debugging help, or "wait, what's the syntax for this again" moments.</p> <p>Under the hood, Dario falls back across multiple providers (Groq, Cerebras, and Gemini) so it stays fast and rarely hits a rate-limit wall if one provider is busy, it automatically tries the next.</p> <p>If you ever need more than 150 queries in a day, you can plug in your own free <a href="https://console.groq.com" rel="noopener noreferrer">Groq API key</a> and skip the daily limit entirely.</p> <h3> How it stays free </h3> <p>Dario is ad supported occasionally you'll see a small sponsored line under an answer. That's what funds the free tier instead of a paywall.</p> <h3> Try it </h3> <div class="highlight js-code-highlight"> <pre class="highlight shell"><code>npm <span class="nb">install</span> <span class="nt">-g</span> @npmdevy25/dario dario <span class="s2">"explain the difference between git pull and git fetch"</span> </code></pre> </div> <p>I'd genuinely love feedback — what's confusing, what's missing, whether the daily quota feels right. Drop a comment or open an issue on the repo.</p> <p><em>Built as a solo project. If you find it useful, a share or a star goes a long way.</em></p> ai aitoken webdev terminal