Alternatives · Inference APIs
OpenRouter alternatives, graded
thecontinuitylayer.com/alternatives/openrouter3 of the 13 inference APIs on the record score higher than OpenRouter's 4½ of 5 (grade A): Groq (5, A+), OpenAI API (5, A+), Anthropic API (5, A+) lead the ranking. Every grade is read from the maker's own page, checked 5 November 2026, never from a review.
A
OpenRouter · 4½ of 5
13
inference APIs to compare
3
score higher
5 November 2026
Makers' pages checked
Every inference API on the record, ranked
OpenRouter’s own row is shaded. The five columns are the tests a person switching asks about first; each product page has every test, with the maker’s line and the source. Where the test is about training, no is the good answer and is colored as such.
| inference API | Grade | Price | Rate limits | Training | Retention | Status page |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Groq#1 · Groq | A+5/5 | |||||
| OpenAI API#2 · OpenAI | A+5/5 | |||||
| Anthropic API#3 · Anthropic | A+5/5 | |||||
| Fireworks AI#4 · Fireworks AI | A4½/5 | |||||
| OpenRouter#5 · OpenRouter · this one | A4½/5 | |||||
| DeepInfra#6 · DeepInfra | A4½/5 | |||||
| Gemini API#7 · Google | B+4/5 | |||||
| xAI API#8 · xAI | B+4/5 | |||||
| Together AI#9 · Together AI | B3½/5 | |||||
| Mistral API#10 · Mistral AI | B3½/5 | |||||
| Cohere API#11 · Cohere | B3½/5 | |||||
| Baseten#12 · Baseten | B3½/5 | |||||
| DeepSeek API#13 · DeepSeek | C−2½/5 | |||||
| HiAPI#14 · HiAPI | D2/5 |
- Price · Does it publish a per-token price?
- Rate limits · Does it publish its rate limits?
- Training · Does it train on your API prompts by default?
- Retention · Does it say how long it keeps your prompts and outputs?
- Status page · Does it run a public status page?
OpenRouter alternatives, by what matters
6 inference APIs that don't train on your prompts by default
OpenRouter's grade on this test: partly.
7 inference APIs that publish their rate limits
OpenRouter passes this test too.
9 inference APIs that say how long they keep your prompts
- A+ Groq
- A+ OpenAI API
- A+ Anthropic API
- A Fireworks AI
- A DeepInfra
- B+ Gemini API
- B+ xAI API
- B Mistral API
- B Baseten
OpenRouter passes this test too.
Alternatives to the others
- Groq alternatives
- OpenAI API alternatives
- Anthropic API alternatives
- Fireworks AI alternatives
- DeepInfra alternatives
- Gemini API alternatives
- xAI API alternatives
- Together AI alternatives
- Mistral API alternatives
- Cohere API alternatives
- Baseten alternatives
- DeepSeek API alternatives
- HiAPI alternatives
The whole shelf: Inference APIs. How the grades are made: How we grade. No maker pays for a place or a grade.