GitLab for Startups
Free GitLab Ultimate for 12 months
About this perk
GitLab is a complete AI-powered DevSecOps platform used by global engineering teams to ship faster with fewer tools. Startups get everything from source control and CI/CD to security scanning, automation, and deployments in one place, eliminating tool sprawl and accelerating developer productivity. Through the GitLab for Startups program, eligible teams can unlock free GitLab Ultimate for 20 seats, plus discounted pricing as they scale.
For Seed-Stage Startups (Pre-Seed → Seed, ≤ $5M External Funding)
- Free GitLab Ultimate for 1 year (up to 20 seats)
- SaaS or self-managed
- Year 2: 50% discount on any tier (up to 20 seats)
For Early-Stage Startups (Series A → B, ≤ $20M External Funding)
- Year 1: 50% discount on any tier (up to 20 seats)
- Year 2: 25% discount on any tier
Support not included, but GitLab is built to be beginner-friendly.
Use GitLab’s AI-powered features (Code Suggestions, Issue Summaries, Merge Request guidance) to speed up development sprints. Even with no DevOps engineer, GitLab CI/CD templates help you deploy production-ready pipelines in minutes.
Eligibility
Pre-Seed, Seed, Series A, or Series B
Up to $20M in external funding
New GitLab customers only
Up to 20 employees/seats for the program
Must provide verification via Crunchbase, PitchBook, YC page, or accelerator docs
Usage analytics must be enabled for self-hosted installs
Why it matters for startups
Build + deploy faster
Consolidate CI/CD + code + security
Use AI-assisted development
Automate pipelines from day one
Ship enterprise-ready features without managing a toolchain
Use cases / best for
SaaS startups building cloud-native apps
Teams adopting CI/CD or GitOps
AI + ML model deployment pipelines
Security-first dev workflows (SAST, SCA, IaC scanning)
Early engineering teams scaling beyond GitHub + manual CI
Distributed teams that need unified dev infrastructure
FAQs
Yes, as long as funding is under the $5M (Seed) or $20M (Series A/B) cap.
You transition into discounted pricing (50% or 25% depending on tier).
No, but the platform is designed for easy self-service.
Yes, but additional seats follow standard GitLab pricing.
