OpenRouter Setup

OpenRouter provides unified access to multiple AI models (GPT-4, Claude, Mistral, etc.) through a single API.

When to Use OpenRouter

Use OpenRouter when you want:

Access to models not available through native APIs (GPT-4, Claude, Mistral, etc.)
Simplified billing across multiple model providers
Experimentation with various models without separate API keys

Use native APIs (Gemini/OpenAI) when you want:

Direct access to specific providers without intermediary
Potentially lower latency and costs
Access to the latest model features immediately upon release

Important: Don't use both OpenRouter and native APIs simultaneously - this creates ambiguity about which provider serves each model.

Quick Start

1. Get API Key

Sign up at openrouter.ai
Create an API key from your dashboard
Add credits to your account

2. Set Environment Variable

# Add to your .env file
OPENROUTER_API_KEY=your-openrouter-api-key

# IMPORTANT: Set allowed models to control costs
OPENROUTER_ALLOWED_MODELS=gpt-4,claude-3-sonnet,mistral-large

# Or leave empty to allow ANY model (WARNING: risk of high costs!)
# OPENROUTER_ALLOWED_MODELS=

That's it! Docker Compose already includes all necessary configuration.

3. Use Models

If you set OPENROUTER_ALLOWED_MODELS:

# Only these models will work:
"Use gpt-4 via zen to review this code"
"Use claude-3-sonnet via zen to debug this error"
"Use mistral-large via zen to optimize this algorithm"

If you leave OPENROUTER_ALLOWED_MODELS empty:

# ANY model available on OpenRouter will work:
"Use gpt-4o via zen to analyze this"
"Use claude-3-opus via zen for deep analysis"
"Use deepseek-coder via zen to generate code"
# WARNING: Some models can be very expensive!

Check current model pricing at openrouter.ai/models.

Available Models

Popular models available through OpenRouter:

GPT-4 - OpenAI's most capable model
Claude 3 - Anthropic's models (Opus, Sonnet, Haiku)
Mistral - Including Mistral Large
Llama 3 - Meta's open models
Many more at openrouter.ai/models

Troubleshooting

"Model not found": Check exact model name at openrouter.ai/models
"Insufficient credits": Add credits to your OpenRouter account
"Model not in allow-list": Update OPENROUTER_ALLOWED_MODELS in .env

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