How do you actually get AWS credits?

Hey folks,

I’m building SaaS product on a ramen budget. The painful surprise? My burn on “must‑have” SaaS and Cloud is eclipsing what I can put into marketing and product.

I keep hearing legends about founders stacking thousands in AWS credits or discounts. But every blog post feels dated or locked behind an accelerator gate.

If you’ve personally snagged legit credits (not referral spam), could you share:

• Which programs or partners did you use—incubators, VCs, perk platforms, or direct “startup plans”?

• Any unconventional hacks (cold‑emailing account reps, timing upgrades around promos, bundling with other tools, etc.)?

• Gotchas—minimum funding raised, docs they ask for, hidden renewal cliffs?
  

Help a fellow bootstrapper keep the lights on—and maybe save a few dollars in this thread too 🙏