API KEYS · GUIDE 3 OF 7
How to get a free OpenRouter API key
One key for many models, including a rotating set of free ones.
- You need
- Email, Google or GitHub sign-in. No card for free models.
- Free allowance
- Models ending in “:free” (and the openrouter/free router) cost nothing: 20 requests per minute and 50 requests per day, rising to 1,000 per day once an account has bought $10 of credits in total. Failed requests count too.
- Best for
- Trying different open models with one key; a backup when another provider is down.
- Region notes
- Free models work without a card. Buying credits depends on card acceptance in your country. Free-model providers have their own data policies — check privacy settings and do not send private data.
- Key looks like
sk-or-…
Step by step
- Open openrouter.ai and sign in.
- Go to Settings → Keys (openrouter.ai/settings/keys) and click “Create Key”.
- Name it, leave the credit limit at 0 (so it can only use free models) and create it.
- Copy the key — it starts with sk-or-.
- Optional: in Settings → Privacy, choose which providers may be used for free models.
- On Open Practice, choose OpenRouter in Key settings, paste and press “Test key”. Only free models are listed.
Use it on Open Practice
Paste the key into Key settings and press Test key. Then open any free tool and choose “Draft with my AI key”. The key stays in your browser.
If something goes wrong
| 429 | Daily free limit (50) reached — it resets daily (UTC). |
|---|---|
| 402 payment required | You picked a paid model. Choose one ending in :free. |
| Different answers each time | The free router picks among available free models. Choose a specific :free model for consistency. |
Keep your key safe
- Treat a key like a password: never post it in chats, screenshots, GitHub or website code.
- Create one key per project so you can delete just that one if it leaks.
- If a key leaks, delete it in the provider console immediately and create a new one.
- Prefer free-only keys (for example, OpenRouter with a $0 credit limit) so a leak cannot cost money.
- On a shared or public computer, do not tick “remember on this device”, and press “Forget all keys” when you finish.
Other free keys
GUIDEGroqThe easiest first key: email signup, no card, very fast open models.GUIDEGoogle Gemini (AI Studio)Generous free tier on Gemini Flash models with a Google account.GUIDEMistralFree “Experiment” plan covering Mistral’s model line-up, with phone verification.GUIDECerebrasExtremely fast inference — but check whether a card is now required.GUIDECloudflare Workers AIFree daily AI allowance inside the same account that hosts your Workers and bots.GUIDEHugging FaceThe home of open models. Great for discovery; hosted inference now needs credits.
Questions people ask
Is OpenRouter free?
Models ending in “:free” (and the openrouter/free router) cost nothing: 20 requests per minute and 50 requests per day, rising to 1,000 per day once an account has bought $10 of credits in total. Failed requests count too.
Do I need a credit card for OpenRouter?
Email, Google or GitHub sign-in. No card for free models.
Is OpenRouter available in my country?
Free models work without a card. Buying credits depends on card acceptance in your country. Free-model providers have their own data policies — check privacy settings and do not send private data.