Looking for a LiteLLM alternative?

Apiarium is a modern LiteLLM alternative for developers who want a single API key across multiple AI providers — fully managed, with predictable credit-based pricing and support for text, images, speech, and transcription out of the box.

LiteLLM is a strong open-source option, especially if you want full control over routing, self-host your own gateway, and are comfortable running and maintaining the proxy and its database yourself. Apiarium takes a different angle: no infrastructure to run, no config files to maintain — you get one API key and a credit balance that just works from the first request.

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Why developers choose Apiarium

☁️

Nothing to host

No proxy server, no Postgres database, no Docker Compose file to keep alive. Sign up and start making requests.

🔑

One API key

No juggling accounts, keys, or invoices per provider. One key covers GPT-4o, Claude, Gemini, TTS, and transcription.

🧾

Predictable pricing

Credits map to real usage across every endpoint, so you know your ceiling before you hit it — not after the bill.

fetch('https://api.apiarium.dev/llm', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    Authorization: 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY',
    'Content-Type': 'application/json'
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    model: 'claude-sonnet', // or gpt-4o, gemini
    messages: [{ role: 'user', content: 'Hi' }]
  })
})

Apiarium vs LiteLLM

FEATUREAPIARIUMLITELLM

Fully managed — no infrastructure to run✓—

Single API key out of the box✓—

OpenAI-compatible request format—✓

Text / LLM models✓✓

Image generation✓✓

Text to speech✓✓

Audio transcription✓✓

Predictable credit-based pricing✓—

Free to start, no card required✓—

LiteLLM's proxy mode can issue a single virtual key once you've deployed and configured it yourself — the comparison above reflects what each option gives you before any setup. Feature comparison reflects publicly available information as of July 2026 and may change — check LiteLLM's own docs for their current capabilities.

When to choose which

Choose LiteLLM if...

You want full control over routing and infrastructure, need it to run inside your own network for compliance reasons, or already have a team comfortable maintaining a self-hosted gateway.

Choose Apiarium if...

You want one key, one predictable bill, and access to text, image, speech, and transcription without running or maintaining any infrastructure yourself.

What is LiteLLM?

LiteLLM is an open-source AI gateway that gives you a unified, OpenAI-compatible interface for calling 100+ LLM providers — OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini, Bedrock, Azure, and more. It ships in two forms: a Python SDK you can drop directly into your codebase, and a self-hosted proxy server that centralizes routing, virtual API keys, spend tracking, and fallbacks for a whole team.

It's a popular choice for teams that want to build their own AI gateway while keeping full control over infrastructure, cost tracking, and which providers requests are routed to — with the tradeoff that you're responsible for deploying, securing, and maintaining that infrastructure yourself.

Frequently asked questions

Can I migrate from LiteLLM?

Yes. Apiarium uses its own REST endpoints (documented at apiarium.dev/docs) rather than the OpenAI request format LiteLLM mimics, so migrating means pointing your requests at Apiarium's /llm, /image, /tts, or /transcribe endpoints instead of a drop-in base_url swap.

Do I need to host anything?

No. Apiarium is fully managed — there's no proxy server, database, or config file to run or maintain.

Do I need separate API keys for each provider?

No. One Apiarium API key gives you access to GPT-4o, Claude, Gemini, TTS, and transcription.

Is there a free tier?

Yes — 500 free credits to start, no credit card required.

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