400+ models on one key - with Anthropic, Google, OpenAI and xAI controls restored to their native ranges, not the router's flattened ones.
OpenRouter is the routing layer: one key, hundreds of models, automatic fallback. It is not where you organize the work. Point Big-AGI at that key and the catalog turns into an expert workspace.
| Capability | Through your OpenRouter key | Inside Big-AGI |
|---|---|---|
| Model catalog | Hundreds, one key | The same catalog, same key |
| Reasoning and parameter control | Router-flattened | Vendor-accurate ranges |
| Merging multiple answers | Basic Fusion | Advanced and custom merges |
| Personas and saved prompts | Not the router's job | Built in, with memory |
| Chat history and attachments | Bring your own | Local-first, yours |
| Request transparency | API-level | AI Inspector on every call |
You do not need credits to begin. On October 4, 2026 OpenRouter listed 17 models at $0, five of them NVIDIA Nemotron builds and two Gemma 4 sizes, and Big-AGI runs them the moment your key is linked. Add a Google key for the Gemini free tier and you have a second vendor at no cost. Free usage runs under OpenRouter's own daily and per-minute limits, so it is built for trying things, not production loads. When you outgrow it, the same key unlocks every paid model at OpenRouter's rates.
1
Create an API key at the OpenRouter console.
2
Paste it into Big-AGI's model settings.
3
Start chatting, or Beam it against other models and fuse the answers.
One OpenRouter key, and Big-AGI adds no markup and no intermediary: the billing relationship runs directly between you and OpenRouter. You bring the aggregator, Big-AGI brings the workspace.
Your keys stay in your browser, not on Big-AGI's servers. Chats are stored locally first, and sync only if you turn it on. Nothing is added to your system prompt, and the AI Inspector shows the exact request, the token counts, and a cost estimate for every call.
This is the part a router cannot do for you. Send one prompt to models from different providers at once, Anthropic next to OpenAI next to an open model OpenRouter hosts. Where they agree, you can trust the answer. Where they differ, you have caught something worth a second look. Fusions then combine, cross-check, and synthesize the parallel answers instead of just picking the best one. Big-AGI has shipped and refined this workflow since 2024. Parallel runs use more tokens than a single chat.
Big-AGI is an independent, open-source client. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by OpenRouter.
FAQ
On purpose. OpenRouter caps its no-charge models per minute and per day, so Big-AGI spaces its own calls to them about five seconds apart instead of collecting rate-limit errors. That is pacing, not a fault.
Press Link OpenRouter Key in Big-AGI's setup panel: you authorise at OpenRouter and the key comes back installed, no copy-paste. Or create one at openrouter.ai/keys; it reads sk-or-v1-... and is shown once, so copy it before leaving the page.
Yes. OpenRouter is one of the services Direct Connection supports: turn it on in the OpenRouter setup panel once the key is in the browser, and requests go browser-to-OpenRouter, skipping the Big-AGI edge. It starts off.
Not for the no-charge models: they answer on a low daily cap with no deposit. Real use runs on prepaid credits added at openrouter.ai/settings/credits, and that balance is the spending limit unless auto top-up is on, which refills it.
Your key, your data, your choice of model. Big-AGI's Open branch is open source and self-hostable, so you can check exactly how OpenRouter is called.
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