Polyrouter
Polyrouter: A free, self-hosted gateway with unusually detailed routing and budget controls. Ranked #16 of 34 in LLM Gateway Software by our editors (7.4/10); pricing: Free plan; best for open-source teams needing advanced routing policies.
At a glance
- Editor score7.4 / 10
- PricingFree plan
- Best forOpen-source teams needing advanced routing policies
- Free planYes
- Paid fromFree
- Facts checked21 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Multiple routing layers, fallback chains, and spend controls
- Usage, cost, request, and latency analytics
- Self-hosted deployment with OpenAI and Anthropic compatibility
Where it doesn't
- Narrower provider and integration breadth than larger gateways
- Polyrouter Cloud is not yet available
- Requires self-hosting for deployment and infrastructure management
Our verdict on Polyrouter
Polyrouter is an open-source, self-hosted LLM gateway that gives applications and agents one endpoint for multiple model providers. It is designed for teams and developers that want to keep provider credentials and request metadata on their own infrastructure while routing requests across OpenAI, Anthropic, compatible APIs, and local endpoints. The web dashboard can issue agent API keys, and the platform supports BYOK, OAuth subscriptions, custom providers, and local providers.
Self-hosting is free, making Polyrouter a fit for teams that can operate their own deployment. The published offering includes web, API, and self-hosted access, while Polyrouter Cloud is not yet available. The gateway also includes hard spend limits and budgets, plus usage, cost, request, and latency analytics. Metadata-only request logging is enabled by default, with Prometheus metrics and optional OpenTelemetry tracing for teams that need operational visibility.
Routing is the product’s defining capability. Requests can use explicit or automatic model selection, ordered fallback chains across providers, and semantic, structural, workload, and cascade routing layers. That breadth supports applications with differing cost, latency, workload, and availability requirements. Protocol compatibility with OpenAI and Anthropic APIs helps existing applications connect without targeting a proprietary interface. Polyrouter is most suitable for open-source teams prioritizing routing control, self-hosting, and budget governance. Teams that need a broader provider or integration ecosystem, or a hosted cloud option, should consider an alternative.
Your product? Our editors can test Polyrouter in depth and publish a review, labelled as paid · from $149/mo →
Polyrouter pricing
Polyrouter fact sheet
| Free plan | Yes |
|---|---|
| Paid from | Free |
| Provider count | Not verified |
| Fallback routing | Yes |
| Usage analytics | Yes |
| Self-hosted deployment | Yes |
| Budget controls | Yes |
| Virtual API keys | Yes |
| Deployment | Self-hosted |
| Platforms | Web |
| Support | Community, Docs |
| Built for | Solo, Small business, Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Integrations | 7 integrations: OpenAI, Anthropic, Claude Pro/Max, ChatGPT Plus/Pro, OpenAI-compatible APIs, Anthropic-compatible APIs … |
| Pricing | Free plan |
| Website | polyrouter.app |
| Facts checked | 21 Sep 2026 |
Polyrouter integrations
Polyrouter lists 7 integrations on its own site.
- OpenAI
- Anthropic
- Claude Pro/Max
- ChatGPT Plus/Pro
- OpenAI-compatible APIs
- Anthropic-compatible APIs
- Local endpoints
Alternatives to Polyrouter
- OpenRouterA broad LLM gateway for teams that need model choice without separate integrations.9.2
- Cloudflare AI GatewayA free managed gateway for routing, monitoring, and governing multi-provider AI traffic.9.1
- Alibaba Cloud AI GatewayA broad AI gateway for enterprises standardizing LLM, agent, and MCP traffic.9.0
See all Polyrouter alternatives →
Used Polyrouter? Be the first to review it
The editor score above is our own research. What this page doesn't have yet is a reader's view — what you used Polyrouter for, what worked and what didn't. No stars are seeded and no review is paid for; an editor reads every one before it appears.
Write a reviewTwo minutes · verified accounts only · read by an editor before it appears
Featured on iTechGuides
Polyrouter is listed in our LLM Gateway Software directory. Add the badge to your site — it links back to this page.
<a href="https://www.itechguides.com/products/polyrouter/"><img src="https://www.itechguides.com/best/badge/polyrouter.svg" alt="Featured on iTechGuides" width="230" height="46"></a>
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
Last updated · How we research and update