OpenRouter Install & Auth Skill

OpenRouter Install & Auth

Overview

Set up OpenRouter API credentials, configure the OpenAI-compatible client, verify authentication, and check credit balance. OpenRouter keys start with sk-or-v1- and authenticate against https://openrouter.ai/api/v1.

Prerequisites

OpenRouter account (free at openrouter.ai)
Python 3.8+ or Node.js 18+
OpenAI SDK (pip install openai or npm install openai)

Quick Setup

1. Generate an API Key

Go to openrouter.ai/keys
Click Create Key, name it (e.g., my-app-dev)
Copy the sk-or-v1-... value immediately (shown only once)
Optionally set a credit limit on the key for spend control

2. Configure Environment

# .env file (add .env to .gitignore!)
OPENROUTER_API_KEY=sk-or-v1-your-key-here

# Or export directly
export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="sk-or-v1-your-key-here"

3. Initialize the Client

Python:

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://openrouter.ai/api/v1",
    api_key=os.environ["OPENROUTER_API_KEY"],
    default_headers={
        "HTTP-Referer": "https://your-app.com",  # For analytics attribution
        "X-Title": "Your App Name",               # Shows in dashboard
    },
)

TypeScript:

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  baseURL: "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1",
  apiKey: process.env.OPENROUTER_API_KEY,
  defaultHeaders: {
    "HTTP-Referer": "https://your-app.com",
    "X-Title": "Your App Name",
  },
});

4. Verify Authentication

# Quick auth + credit check
import requests

resp = requests.get(
    "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1/auth/key",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['OPENROUTER_API_KEY']}"},
)
data = resp.json()["data"]
print(f"Key: {data['label']}")
print(f"Credits used: ${data['usage']:.4f}")
print(f"Credit limit: ${data.get('limit', 'unlimited')}")
print(f"Free tier: {data['is_free_tier']}")
print(f"Rate limit: {data['rate_limit']['requests']} req / {data['rate_limit']['interval']}")

5. Send a Test Request

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="google/gemma-2-9b-it:free",  # Free model for testing
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Say hello"}],
    max_tokens=50,
)
print(response.choices[0].message.content)
print(f"Tokens: {response.usage.prompt_tokens} in / {response.usage.completion_tokens} out")

Required Headers

| Header | Purpose | Required | |--------|---------|----------| | Authorization | Bearer sk-or-v1-... | Yes | | HTTP-Referer | Your app URL for dashboard attribution | Recommended | | X-Title | App name shown in OpenRouter dashboard | Recommended | | Content-Type | application/json | Yes (POST) |

Key Formats

| Type | Pattern | Purpose | |------|---------|---------| | Standard key | sk-or-v1-... | API access (chat completions, models) | | Management key | sk-or-v1-... | Key provisioning only (cannot call completions) | | BYOK provider key | Varies by provider | Bring-your-own-key for direct provider access |

Error Handling

| HTTP | Error Code | Cause | Fix | |------|-----------|-------|-----| | 401 | invalid_api_key | Key malformed, revoked, or wrong | Regenerate at openrouter.ai/keys | | 401 | missing_api_key | No Authorization header | Add Authorization: Bearer sk-or-v1-... | | 403 | insufficient_credits | Zero balance on paid model | Add credits at openrouter.ai/credits or use :free model | | 403 | key_disabled | Key was disabled by admin | Re-enable in dashboard or create new key |

Key Rotation

# Programmatic key management via Management API
import requests

MGMT_KEY = os.environ["OPENROUTER_MGMT_KEY"]  # Management key, not API key

# Create a new key
resp = requests.post(
    "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1/keys",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {MGMT_KEY}"},
    json={"name": "my-app-prod-v2", "limit": 100.0},
)
new_key = resp.json()["data"]["key"]  # sk-or-v1-...

# List existing keys
keys = requests.get(
    "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1/keys",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {MGMT_KEY}"},
).json()

Enterprise Considerations

Store keys in a secrets manager (AWS Secrets Manager, GCP Secret Manager, Vault)
Use management keys to provision per-service API keys programmatically
Set credit limits per key to isolate blast radius
Rotate keys on a schedule (90 days recommended)
Add secret scanning to CI pipelines (e.g., gitleaks, trufflehog)
Use BYOK for direct provider billing when volume justifies it

References

Examples | Errors
OpenRouter Quickstart | Auth Docs | Key Provisioning

Agent Skills: OpenRouter Install & Auth

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