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If you already use the OpenAI SDK, the only change is pointing base_url at OrcaRouter and using an OrcaRouter API key.

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1. Get an API key

Sign in at orcarouter.ai and copy your key from the dashboard. OrcaRouter keys start with sk-orca-.

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2. Install a client

pip install openai

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3. Make a call

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url="https://api.orcarouter.ai/v1",
    api_key="sk-orca-...",
)

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

print(response.choices[0].message.content)
That’s it. Everything else — streaming, tools, vision, JSON mode, Claude models, Gemini models — works exactly as it would against the provider directly. Swap gpt-4o for any model ID you see in /v1/models.

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Next steps

Principles

What OrcaRouter is and isn’t.

Auto Router

Let OrcaRouter pick the cheapest model for you.

Model Fallbacks

Chain models for resilience.

Chat Completions

Full API reference.