Here’s a breakdown of ways to get started with Databricks for free:

Databricks Free Trial

• Full Platform Access: Experience the entire Databricks platform, including collaboration tools, machine learning, and powerful analytics features.
• 14-Day Duration:  The trial allows ample time to experiment and test Databricks.
• Compute Included: You get compute resources in your cloud environment (AWS, GCP, or Azure) to run your workloads.
• Upgrade Path: Seamlessly transition to a paid plan after the trial if needed.

How to Sign Up:

1. Visit: https://www.databricks.com/try-databricks
2. Create an account using your work email

Databricks Community Edition

• Ideal for Learning & Exploration: Perfect for familiarizing yourself with Databricks and Apache Spark.
• Limited Features: Certain advanced features (like the REST API) are not included.
• No Time Limit: Use it indefinitely for learning and building projects.
• Smaller Clusters: Suitable for smaller datasets and workloads.

How to Sign Up:

1. Visit: https://docs.databricks.com/en/getting-started/community-edition.html
2. Follow the instructions to create an account

Key Considerations

• Trial Resources: Be mindful of resource usage in your cloud account during the trial to avoid unexpected charges after the trial ends.
• Community Edition Limits: You’ll likely need a paid Databricks plan for large-scale or production use cases.