Get a DeepSeek API Key Before Black Friday 2026 + 4 More Steps

On Nov 24 every HiAPI account that has topped up at least once gets 10M free DeepSeek tokens a day, and whatever you don't use that day is gone. Spend-back works the same way: only spending inside Nov 24–30 (PT) counts. So the deal is worth most to whoever is ready on day one. Five things to get done by Nov 23.

1. Get your API key (one key for DeepSeek and every model)

One HiAPI key works for DeepSeek, GPT Image, Nano Banana, Veo, Kling, Seedance and every other model on the platform, so this is also how you get a DeepSeek API key for the free week.

1. Sign up.
2. Open API Keys and create a key. Name it after the project that will use it.
3. Store it as an environment variable, not in your code:

export HIAPI_API_KEY="sk-..."

New accounts get 200 free credits on sign-up.

2. Test now with 200 free credits

Don't spend the event week finding the right model. Use the free credits this week to settle:

• which image or video model you'll use, and at what resolution
• the prompts you'll run at volume
• whether audio is worth paying for on your video model (on Veo 3.1 it roughly doubles the 720p price)

Then the event week is production only, and every dollar of it counts toward spend-back.

3. Point your code at HiAPI

The DeepSeek endpoint is OpenAI-compatible. Set it up and send one request now, at normal price (a test call costs a fraction of a cent):

curl https://api.hiapi.ai/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $HIAPI_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"model":"deepseek-v4.1-flash","messages":[{"role":"user","content":"Say hi"}]}'

On Nov 24 the event page publishes how to switch on the free tokens. You'll add that one step and nothing else changes. More examples: V4.1 Flash API guide.

4. Queue the work, plan one top-up

• List the jobs you'll run Nov 24–30: catalog images, ad variants, video drafts, document backlogs for DeepSeek.
• Spread the DeepSeek jobs across the week. Each day's 10M tokens don't carry over to the next day.
• Decide your top-up and make it one payment. The bonus is per payment: $300 once gets $30, $100 three times gets $24. $500 reaches both caps ($50 bonus, $100 spend-back). The math by budget: How much should you top up?
• Top up after the event starts. The bonus applies to top-ups made during the event window.
• New account? Your first top-up gets the first-top-up reward or the Black Friday bonus, whichever is higher.
• Never topped up? The free DeepSeek tokens need at least one successful top-up on the account, any amount. A small one before Nov 24 is enough to unlock them; save the big one for the event window.

5. Know your local start time

Spend after the end time doesn't count toward spend-back.

Ready?

• [ ] API key created and stored
• [ ] Models and prompts chosen with the free credits
• [ ] One test DeepSeek call through api.hiapi.ai/v1
• [ ] Jobs listed for Nov 24–30
• [ ] Top-up amount decided

See what's in the Black Friday deal →