Yes. It really is free.

Accounts for Teachers and Students are Absolutely FREE.

GradeConnect was created out of the frustration of teachers—like you—who were fed up with the high cost of online gradebooks available at the time.

GradeConnect is supported via an array of means other than charging you. Currently, it's cost of operation is being taken care of by banner advertisements.

There are also a number of 'premium accounts' available that do require a fee. There are two reasons for this. One, the revenue from the premium accounts helps keep the program free for teachers and students. And, two, well these premium services simply require more resources ( bandwidth, server space and attention ).