Migrate from OpenAI SDK

Switching from OpenAI to Routor takes two minutes and three line changes. Your existing SDK, your existing patterns, your existing code. Nothing else moves.

Before and After

Node.js / TypeScript

Before:

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  apiKey: process.env.OPENAI_API_KEY,
});

const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model:    "gpt-4o",
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: prompt }],
});

After:

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  apiKey:  process.env.ROUTOR_API_KEY,    // change 1
  baseURL: "https://api.routor.io/v1",   // change 2
});

const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model:    "auto",                        // change 3
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: prompt }],
});

Three changes. Everything else stays the same.

Python

Before:

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(api_key=os.environ["OPENAI_API_KEY"])

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="gpt-4o",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": prompt}]
)

After:

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["ROUTOR_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://api.routor.io/v1",
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="auto",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": prompt}]
)

Environment Variable

Add your Routor key to .env:

ROUTOR_API_KEY=sk-routor-YOUR_KEY_HERE

Keep your OPENAI_API_KEY if you use OpenAI directly anywhere else. They are completely separate.

What Changes in Practice

	OpenAI direct	With Routor
Model used	Always GPT-5.5	Right model for each prompt
Cost	Fixed GPT-5.5 pricing	25 to 70% lower on average
Failover	None	Automatic across 13 providers
`model` in response	`"gpt-4o"`	Actual model used
Response format	OpenAI format	Identical OpenAI format

Gradual Rollout

You do not have to switch everything at once. Routor runs alongside direct OpenAI calls. They are independent. Keep critical features on a direct GPT-5.5 call while you test Routor on lower-stakes requests:

const routorClient = new OpenAI({
  apiKey:  process.env.ROUTOR_API_KEY,
  baseURL: "https://api.routor.io/v1",
});

// Regular requests go through Routor
const regularResponse = await routorClient.chat.completions.create({
  model:    "auto",
  messages: [...],
});

// High-stakes requests: force COMPLEX tier minimum
const criticalResponse = await routorClient.chat.completions.create({
  model:             "auto",
  routor_tier_floor: "COMPLEX",
  messages: [...],
});

Verifying the Switch Worked

Check the model field in the response body. It will show the actual model used instead of "auto":

console.log(response.model);
// "kimi-k2.6" - the provider's bare model id

// Non-streaming responses also include a routor object with the full decision:
console.log((response as any).routor);
// { model: "moonshot/kimi-k2.6", tier: "LIGHT", profile: "auto", savingsPct: 83.2, ... }

Or check the Logs page in your dashboard to see routing decisions in real time.

TypeScript users: extra fields like routor_tier_floor are accepted by the API and passed through by the SDK at runtime, but the SDK’s types don’t know them - add // @ts-expect-error above the line or cast the params object.

Getting Started

Core Concepts

Dashboard

Playground

Providers

Guides

Migrate from OpenAI SDK

Before and After

Node.js / TypeScript

Python

Environment Variable

What Changes in Practice

Gradual Rollout

Verifying the Switch Worked

​Before and After

​Node.js / TypeScript

​Python

​Environment Variable

​What Changes in Practice

​Gradual Rollout

​Verifying the Switch Worked

Before and After

Node.js / TypeScript

Python

Environment Variable

What Changes in Practice

Gradual Rollout

Verifying the Switch Worked