Create your OpenRouter account and key

When you're done, you'll have an OpenRouter key, ready to paste into Chirp Builder.

Who can do this: anyone can make an OpenRouter account. To connect the key, you need a Chirp Builder plan: the card in Settings appears once you have one.

What you'll need: an email address, or a Google or GitHub account, and a card or other payment method for OpenRouter's credit. OpenRouter is a separate company; its own terms apply, and you must be 18 or over to use it.

The AI provider: OpenRouter card in your Chirp Builder Settings links straight to the pages you need:

Make your account and key

1. Go to openrouter.ai and sign up, with your email or a Google or GitHub account. In Chirp Builder, the Create one at openrouter.ai link (1) takes you there.
2. Add credit. At OpenRouter, open Credits (in your account settings) and buy some credit; $5 is the smallest purchase. OpenRouter adds a small fee when you buy credit, not on each answer.
3. Open openrouter.ai/keys (2), the Keys page, and create a new key.
4. Give the key a name you'll recognize, such as Chirp Builder, and set a credit limit, for example $20, with a monthly reset. The limit is the most this key can ever spend in that period. See Keep your AI spending in check.
5. Copy the key. It starts with sk-or-. Keep it somewhere safe; treat it like a password.

What success looks like

You have a key that starts with sk-or- and some credit in your OpenRouter account. Now connect your OpenRouter key to Chirp Builder.

If it doesn't work

• You lost the key, or can't see it again. Make a new one on the Keys page and delete the old one there. Then use Replace in Chirp Builder's Settings.
• Chirp Builder says "Insufficient credits" after you connect it. Your OpenRouter account needs credit; add some at OpenRouter, then click Check again.

Good to know

• Use a separate key for Chirp Builder, not one you use elsewhere. Then its limit and its usage only cover your Chirps.
• OpenRouter's Activity page shows every request and what it cost, and you can filter it by key.
• OpenRouter can also top up your credit automatically when it runs low. If you turn that on, a credit limit on the key matters even more.