OpenRouter
thecontinuitylayer.com/tools/routers/openrouterAnyone who wants one key and one bill for most popular and open models
Router · OpenRouter
OpenRouter is a hosted service that gives you one API key and one prepaid balance for hundreds of models from many different providers. You send requests in the OpenAI format and choose a model by name, and OpenRouter forwards the request to a provider that serves it. It is the reference point for the other tools on this page.
For open models it is an easy way to try many options without signing up with each host. Free models are limited to 50 requests a day, and buying $10 of credits raises that to 1,000 a day. The 5.5% fee (8% on the Business plan) is charged when you buy credits, not per request. Bring-your-own-key traffic is free up to $25,000 of list-price inference a month, then a 5% fee applies.
Specs
| Fees | 5.5% fee on credit purchases; model prices passed through at provider rates |
|---|---|
| Routes to | 600+ models from 80+ providers behind one OpenAI-compatible API (vendor figures) |
| Fee | 5.5% on credit purchases (8% on Business) |
| Model prices | Passed through at provider rates |
| Free models | 50 requests/day; 1,000/day after buying $10 of credits |
| Bring your own key | Free up to $25,000 of list-price inference a month, then 5% |
| API format | OpenAI-compatible |
| Hosting | Hosted only |
Good for
- Trying many open models with one key
- Free-model experiments
- One prepaid bill across providers
Not for
- Teams that must self-host the gateway
- Heavy use where a 5.5% fee adds up
See also
- Requesty · Builders who want an OpenRouter-style router with routing and spend controls
- Kilo Gateway · Developers, especially Kilo Code users, who want provider prices with no markup
- Eden AI · Builders who need LLMs plus other AI services (OCR, speech, translation) behind one API
We last reviewed OpenRouter on 31 October 2026. Prices and specs change; check openrouter.ai before you buy or sign up. Figures we could not confirm on the vendor's own page read “not published” or “varies”.
Vendor source: https://openrouter.ai/blog/announcements/simplifying-our-platform-fee/