OpenRouter vs Nano-GPT
Two routers, same idea, different tax: OpenRouter charges 5.5% on the way in, Nano-GPT charges nothing on deposit but sells a subscription instead.
Updated August 28, 2026 · Independent comparison — OpenRouter, Nano-GPT are separate products.
OpenRouter
One key, hundreds of models, pay-per-token
OpenRouter is a credit-based router in front of hundreds of models from every major lab, open and closed. It does not mark up tokens — you pay the underlying provider's list rate — and takes its cut as a 5.5% fee on credit purchases (5% for USDC, which is never refundable). It adds routing you cannot get from a single lab: :floor for the cheapest provider, :nitro for the fastest, automatic fallback when a provider errors, and BYOK at a 5% surcharge. Free-tier models are capped at 50 requests/day, or 1,000/day once you have bought $10 of credits.
Nano-GPT
600+ models, crypto-friendly, optional $12 pass
Nano-GPT is a pay-as-you-go multi-model API with an optional $12/month Pro pass layered on top. The pass grants 60M input-token units per week plus 100 images/day, resetting Mondays at 00:00 UTC; the pay-as-you-go side takes card top-ups from $1 and crypto from $0.10 with no deposit percentage. Its catalogue runs past 600 models including LongCat-2.0, and 'Use balance after limits' lets the subscription spill into pay-as-you-go instead of stopping. BYOK is supported at 5% of the normal model cost.
Bottom line
Two routers, same idea, different tax: OpenRouter charges 5.5% on the way in, Nano-GPT charges nothing on deposit but sells a subscription instead. Choose OpenRouter if you want the deepest routing feature set — cheapest-provider, fastest-provider and automatic fallback; choose Nano-GPT if you don't want to pay a deposit fee at all.
Pricing
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Price/mo | No monthly fee — credit top-ups | Pay-per-token, or $12/mo Pro |
| Intro promo | Small signup allowance; free models 50/day, 1,000/day after $10 of credits | None published |
| Billing shape | Credits at provider list rates + 5.5% purchase fee | Credits at list price, or a weekly token bucket |
Models & Context
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Models included | Hundreds — every major lab, open and closed | 600+ including LongCat-2.0, DeepSeek, Qwen, Kimi, GLM and frontier models |
| Catalogue size | 400+ models | 600+ models |
| Context window | Per model; up to the model's own max | Per model; up to the model's own max |
Limits & Overage
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Limits (5h / weekly / monthly) | Your balance; free-tier models capped per day | Pro: 60M input-token units/week + 100 images/day, resetting Monday 00:00 UTC |
| What happens past the cap | Requests fail at zero unless auto top-up is on | Pauses until the weekly reset unless 'Use balance after limits' is on |
| Parallel-agent friendly | Yes — no concurrency policy on paid credits | Personal subscription — not pooled across a team |
Access & Friction
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Host agents & IDEs supported | Any OpenAI-compatible client — Cline, OpenCode, Cursor, Aider, Roo | Web chat and API; documented for OpenCode, Cursor, Cline, Codex CLI, Claude Code |
| Gives you an API key | OpenRouter key; BYOK at 5% (free to $25k/mo at list price) | Nano-GPT key; BYOK at 5% of normal model cost |
| BYOK-able elsewhere | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payment / region friction | Visa/Mastercard, Alipay, USDC; 5.5% card fee (min $0.80), 5% USDC, non-refundable | Card from $1 or crypto from $0.10, no deposit percentage |
Verdict at a glance
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | One key across every lab, with routing and fallback | List-price access with tiny top-ups and crypto payment |
The actual fees
| Feature | OpenRouter | Nano-GPT |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit fee | 5.5% on card/Alipay (min $0.80), 5% USDC | None |
| Minimum top-up | Commonly $5 | $1 by card, $0.10 by crypto |
| Optional subscription | ✗ | $12/month Pro |
| BYOK surcharge | 5% (free to $25k/month at list price) | 5% of normal model cost |
| Catalogue | 400+ models | 600+ models |
The Verdict
Choose OpenRouter if...
- ✓You want the deepest routing feature set — cheapest-provider, fastest-provider and automatic fallback
- ✓You want provider pinning and per-provider transparency
- ✓You want BYOK at list price up to $25k/month before the surcharge
- ✓You're building something where provider reliability matters more than the fee
- ✓You want the larger, better-documented ecosystem
Choose Nano-GPT if...
- ✓You don't want to pay a deposit fee at all
- ✓You want to top up tiny amounts — $1 by card, $0.10 by crypto
- ✓The optional $12/month pass (60M input-token units per week) fits your usage
- ✓You want crypto payment and a more private account
- ✓You want 'use balance after limits' so a subscription never hard-stops you
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between OpenRouter and Nano-GPT?
OpenRouter is a credit-based router in front of hundreds of models from every major lab, open and closed. Nano-GPT is a pay-as-you-go multi-model API with an optional $12/month Pro pass layered on top.
How much do OpenRouter and Nano-GPT cost?
OpenRouter: No monthly fee — credit top-ups. Nano-GPT: Pay-per-token, or $12/mo Pro. See the pricing table above for full plan details.
Should I choose OpenRouter or Nano-GPT?
Choose OpenRouter if you want the deepest routing feature set — cheapest-provider, fastest-provider and automatic fallback. Choose Nano-GPT if you don't want to pay a deposit fee at all.
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