Access Kimi: K3, K2.7 Code, and Current Routes

Kimi now has a new flagship route, a cheaper coding route, and several older access paths that should not be mixed together.

1
2
3
4
5

Need the newest Kimi flagship? → Kimi K3
Need cheaper routine coding? → Kimi K2.7 Code
Need lower K2.7 latency? → Kimi K2.7 Code HighSpeed
Need Kimi's membership-backed CLI? → Kimi Code with k3 / kimi-for-coding
Need an NVIDIA-hosted experiment? → Verify its current K2.6 trial and account terms

Current Kimi Routes

K3 is the newest Kimi flagship and the right route for latest-Kimi intent. K2.7 Code remains the cheaper routine coding model. K2.6 remains a compatibility, NVIDIA NIM, and prior-comparison lane; K2.5 remains historical context.

API Pricing

Prices are per 1 million tokens.

K3 is priced as a flagship escalation lane, not a budget lane. Moonshot has released the model weights and serving materials under the Kimi K3 License. Treat them as open weights, not as a generic open-source grant; review that license and your serving requirements before self-hosting.

K2.7 Code requires thinking mode in the documented API path. HighSpeed is the same model at higher token prices, with Kimi advertising approximately 180 tokens/s and up to 260 tokens/s for short contexts while warning that constrained resources can make performance fluctuate.

Kimi Code Membership

The current Kimi Code model configuration shows K3 and K2.7 Code across plan-dependent model IDs:

1
2

curl -fsSL https://code.kimi.com/kimi-code/install.sh | bash
kimi

Membership-backed third-party tools can use k3 or kimi-for-coding, depending on plan and context entitlement. Membership k3 supports low/high/max reasoning; Moderato exposes up to 256K context, while Allegretto and higher tiers expose up to 1M. That is convenient but less reproducible than pinning kimi-k3 or kimi-k2.7-code in the API, where K3 is currently always-on and max-only.

Kimi documents weekly quota refresh, a rolling five-hour frequency window, shared device/API-key quota, and a unified monthly credit pool across membership features. Check the signed-in console for the current balance and exact plan terms.

The VS Code path is transitional: current docs say new extension installs are limited to legacy Python CLI users while the TypeScript CLI integration is adapted. Other editors can connect through ACP.

Free and Promotional Routes

The safe wording is narrow:

• NVIDIA’s live catalog currently exposes Kimi K2.6 as a trial service, not K3.
• The public docs do not establish a universal payment requirement, quota, or expiry; verify the signed-in account terms.
• NVIDIA’s trial terms prohibit production use without a separate NVIDIA or service-provider subscription.
• Do not configure the trial as an autonomous fallback.
• That does not make K2.7 Code free.
• A no-payment-required trial can be labeled Free only while the live signup requires no payment.
• A discounted first month is Low-cost, not free.
• Checkout screenshots and old campaign rules are not evergreen entitlements.
• Kimi’s current Moonshot Together rules describe a referral draw with published odds. The 30- and 365-day credit tiers require a paid-subscription task chance, awarded credits expire December 31, and AIHackers has not run redemption or published a referral CTA. Use the neutral draw guide.

NVIDIA NIM K2.6 setup covers the current official NVIDIA model ID and non-production restriction. NVIDIA did not list K3 when checked August 1, so use Moonshot’s direct API or released weights for latest-Kimi intent. Recheck the provider catalog, signup requirements, quota, and model ID before recommending the trial.

For a free coding IDE rather than Kimi specifically, use the Free Stack guide and verify its current hosted model roster.

Evidence and Quality

Kimi K3 has an Artificial Analysis Index 57 row and Moonshot launch-suite evidence. Kimi’s earlier K2.7 release notes report improvements over K2.6 of 10.4% on Program-Bench, 11.4% on MCP Mark Verified, and 76.2% on SWE Marathon, plus 30% lower reasoning-token use. Keep the source labels attached.

Do not reuse K2.5’s 76.8% SWE-bench Verified result as a K2.7 score.

Cost per Successful Task

Run the same repository task and record:

• exact model ID or backend alias;
• input, output, cache hits, and cache writes;
• retries and wall-clock time;
• tests and accepted completion;
• human review and repair.

The HighSpeed premium is justified only if lower latency changes the workflow. The membership is justified only if its credits and tool convenience beat measured API use for the same accepted tasks.

Which Route to Choose

Sources

• Kimi API: Global model and pricing surface
• Kimi: K3 launch blog (Archive)
• Kimi Platform: K3 quickstart (Archive)
• Kimi Platform: Current model list (Archive)
• Kimi Platform: K3 pricing (Archive)
• Kimi: K3 weights and license (Archive)
• Kimi: Kimi Code model configuration (fresh archive pending after exact/protocol/wildcard retries and an HTTP 520 save response on July 18)
• Kimi Platform: K2.7 Code quickstart (Archive)
• Kimi Platform: K2.7 Code pricing (Archive)
• Kimi: Kimi Code
• Kimi: Kimi Code documentation (Archive)
• Kimi: K2.7 Code release notes (Archive)
• Kimi: Membership credit update (Archive)
• Kimi: Moonshot Together rules — live rules rechecked August 20; archive archive-pending
• NVIDIA: Live API model catalog
• NVIDIA: Kimi K2.6 reference

Related links

• /models/kimi-k3/
• /models/kimi-k2.7-code/
• /tools/kimi-code/
• /compare/models/glm-5.2-vs-kimi-k2.6/
• /compare/codex-vs-claude-vs-kimi/
• /value/free-stack/
• /value/deals/kimi-referral-draw/
• /value/llm-cost-saving-playbook/
• /risks/kimi/

Last verified: August 20, 2026. API prices, HighSpeed capacity, membership aliases, referral odds, credits, checkout terms, open-weight status, and third-party trial routes can change independently.