Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode) vs Google for Startups Cloud Program (2026): Which Is Better for Startups?

Both are cloud credits for startups. Here is how Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode) and Google for Startups Cloud Program compare on what a startup gets, who qualifies and how to apply, and which one we would pick.

Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode)

A three-year startup program on Akamai Cloud (Linode): $500 to $120,000 in year-one credits, then discounts.

7.0 /10

Pricing: Up to $120k in credits & perks

Pros

No partner code needed
Three-year runway: credits then discounts
Simple Linode-style pricing and products

Cons

Needs some traction to qualify
Year two and three discounts are not published

Visit Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode) ↗

Google for Startups Cloud Program

Up to $2,000 in Google Cloud credits pre-funding, or up to $200,000 ($350,000 for AI-first startups) once VC-funded.

9.0 /10

Pricing: Up to $350k in credits & perks

Pros

No partner code needed for the Scale tier
Up to $350,000 for AI-first startups
Extras such as Workspace, Maps and support credits

Cons

Start tier is only $2,000
Year 2 covers just 20% of usage

Visit Google for Startups Cloud Program ↗

Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode) vs Google for Startups Cloud Program at a glance

	Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode)	Google for Startups Cloud Program
Editor score	7.0 / 10	9.0 / 10
Pricing model	Free	Free
What you get	Up to $120k in credits & perks	Up to $350k in credits & perks
Who qualifies	For-profit, under seven years old, new to Akamai Cloud, with paid staff, real users, revenue or VC funding, planning to scale on Akamai Cloud. Resellers and MSPs excluded.	Start: founded within 24 months, MVP, plans to raise VC. Scale: pre-seed/seed within 5 years or Series A within 12 months, founded within 5 years, under $5,000 of prior Google Cloud credits.
Partner code needed	No	No
Steps it helps with	claim startup credits, host and deploy, build your mvp	claim startup credits, host and deploy, build your mvp, choose your ai coding stack
Who it is for	Seed stage, Series A+, Bootstrapped, VC-backed only, SaaS	Pre-seed, Seed stage, Series A+, VC-backed only, AI startups, SaaS
Reader upvotes	0	0
Best for	akamai, linode, cloud credits	google cloud, gcp, cloud credits

Our pick

Google for Startups Cloud Program edges it with a score of 9.0 versus 7.0. Google for Startups Cloud Program is the better fit if you value: no partner code needed for the scale tier, up to $350,000 for ai-first startups. Choose Akamai Cloud Rise (formerly Linode) instead if you need: no partner code needed, three-year runway: credits then discounts. Many startups can claim both: see credits by value.