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To use Bluehost AI Credits from Sim, connect an existing Sim installation to Bluehost’s AI Gateway. Save the gateway API key in Sim’s workspace secrets, then either ask Sim chat to configure the connection or build a workflow that sends requests to the gateway. Bluehost documents Sim as a supported app and says AI Credits are available on Self-Managed VPS and VDS plans. The steps below follow Bluehost’s published instructions; they have not been independently tested against a live account or workflow.
Before you connect
- Install Sim and complete its first-time setup. Bluehost’s connection guide assumes both are already done.
- Use an eligible Bluehost Self-Managed VPS or VDS plan. Check your Bluehost account portal to confirm your plan’s current eligibility.
- Make sure your account has an active AI Credits balance. Bluehost says an active balance is required before you can create or manage API keys.
- Have access to Sim workspace secrets, where you will store the key. Do not put the raw key in workflow content.
Bluehost lists Sim as a supported application. You can also check Sim’s official integrations page for its integration information.
Choose a setup method
| Method | Best fit | What you control |
|---|---|---|
| Ask Sim chat to configure it | You want Sim to handle the configuration and report whether it succeeded. | You provide the gateway URL, secret name, and requirements; Sim proposes and configures the setup. |
| Build the workflow manually | You want to inspect or customize each request and response step. | You configure the input, prompt escaping, gateway request, and response extraction block by block. |
Bluehost does not publish comparative reliability results for these methods. Both routes use the same gateway; choose based on how much direct control and visibility you need.
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Save the API key as a Sim secret
- In Sim, open the workspace’s secrets settings.
- Create a secret named
BLUEHOST_AI_GATEWAY_KEY. - Set its value to your Bluehost AI Credits API key and save it.
In workflow configuration, refer to the secret as {{BLUEHOST_AI_GATEWAY_KEY}} rather than pasting the key itself. Bluehost explicitly warns against putting the raw key into a workflow.
Option 1: Ask Sim chat to configure the gateway
With the secret saved, ask Sim chat to configure a connection to https://gateway.ai.bluehost.com using BLUEHOST_AI_GATEWAY_KEY. Bluehost’s example prompt asks Sim to probe the gateway’s supported protocols, validate a selected model ID, and provide a checklist for after a restart. Ask it to report pass or fail and identify any blocked step.
The guide uses claude-sonnet-4-6 as an example model. Treat it only as an example: check the gateway’s current model list before selecting it or relying on its availability.
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Option 2: Build a four-block workflow manually
For the OpenAI-compatible chat-completions route, assemble these four blocks in order:
- Start: Add a string input named
prompt. - escapePrompt: Add a JavaScript step that converts the prompt to a JSON-safe quoted string:
JSON.stringify(String(prompt ?? ''))Use Sim’s connection picker to pass the Start block’s
promptoutput into this step. - gatewayCall: Configure an HTTP POST request to
https://gateway.ai.bluehost.com/v1/chat/completions. Set the headers tocontent-type: application/jsonandAuthorization: Bearer {{BLUEHOST_AI_GATEWAY_KEY}}. In the JSON request body, specify your selected model,max_tokens, and a user message whose content comes fromescapePrompt. The escaping step returns a quoted JSON string; use its output directly as the content value, without adding another pair of quotation marks. - extractText: Read the OpenAI-compatible response at
choices[0].message.content. Check that it contains non-empty text, then return the text, reported model, and usage.
Escaping the prompt before inserting it into the request body matters: quotes, backslashes, and newlines in raw input can otherwise make the JSON invalid.
Use an Anthropic-compatible request instead
Bluehost also documents a Messages API route. Use it in place of the chat-completions route only if you configure the matching request headers and response parser:
- Method and URL: POST
https://gateway.ai.bluehost.com/v1/messages. - Headers:
content-type: application/json,x-api-key: {{BLUEHOST_AI_GATEWAY_KEY}}, andanthropic-version: 2023-06-01. - Response extraction: Assistant text is normally at
content[0].text. The OpenAI-compatiblechoices[0].message.contentparser does not match this response shape.
Test the workflow and troubleshoot errors
Run a prompt that includes quotation marks; adding a newline is also useful for checking that escaping works. In Sim’s execution trace, confirm that all four blocks complete, the extracted text is present, the model field matches the model you intended to use, and the gateway request returns HTTP 200.
If the gateway returns “400 Invalid JSON payload”
- Confirm that the
escapePromptstep exists and runs. - Check that the request body uses the escaped output, not the raw Start input.
- Make sure you have not wrapped the escaped output in extra quotation marks.
Inspect model and cost headers
Bluehost identifies x-bh-model as the resolved model ID and x-bh-cost as the reported cost in US dollars. Depending on how Sim exposes the API block response, these headers may appear alongside the status and response body; inspect the execution trace. Bluehost’s documentation does not establish that every Sim configuration exposes them in the same location.
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Bluehost describes AI Credits as a prepaid shared wallet for supported model providers, accessed through one API key. Its overview updated September 16, 2026 lists these credit packs and terms; the listed prices are subject to change, so check your portal for current rates:
Best Value
- New
- Mint Condition
- Dispatch same day for order received before 12 noon
- Guaranteed packaging
- No quibbles returns
| Credits | Listed price | Bluehost-stated value per credit |
|---|---|---|
| 500 | $5 | $0.010 |
| 1,000 | $10 | $0.010 |
| 5,000 | $50 | $0.010 |
| 10,000 | $100 | $0.010 |
Bluehost says these credits are a one-time purchase, not a recurring plan. The wallet is shared across the account, and the balance is valid for 12 months from the most recent purchase; another purchase resets the validity window for the full balance. Credits do not renew automatically and are non-refundable. If the balance expires without a purchase to refresh it, it resets to zero, while keys and the workspace are retained. Check your portal for your current balance and expiry date.
Model charges are separate from the credit-pack figures. Before choosing a model, use GET https://gateway.ai.bluehost.com/v1/models to find an exact model ID returned by the gateway, and consult Bluehost’s model and credit-pricing reference for current costs. The published setup guide’s example model is not a complete or permanent list, and the available documentation does not establish a complete current per-token price table.
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