AI SDK
OpenAI Compatible Providers

Cheaper Inference

Use the Cheaper Inference OpenAI compatible API with the AI SDK.

Cheaper Inference is an API gateway that provides access to models from multiple AI labs through an OpenAI-compatible API. You can use its Chat Completions endpoint with the AI SDK through the @ai-sdk/openai-compatible module.

Setup

Install the OpenAI Compatible provider:

$ pnpm add @ai-sdk/openai-compatible

Create a Cheaper Inference API key and set it as a server-side environment variable:

export CHEAPER_INFERENCE_API_KEY=your-api-key

See the Cheaper Inference integration guide for instructions on creating an API key.

Provider Instance

Create a Cheaper Inference provider instance with createOpenAICompatible:

import { createOpenAICompatible } from '@ai-sdk/openai-compatible';

const cheaperInference = createOpenAICompatible({
  name: 'cheaper-inference',
  apiKey: process.env.CHEAPER_INFERENCE_API_KEY,
  baseURL: 'https://api.cheaperinference.com/v1',
});

The apiKey setting sends your key as a Bearer token in the Authorization header.

Language Models

Create a language model by passing a Cheaper Inference model ID to the provider instance:

const model = cheaperInference('gpt-5.4');

Generate Text

Use generateText to generate text with the model:

import { createOpenAICompatible } from '@ai-sdk/openai-compatible';
import { generateText } from 'ai';

const cheaperInference = createOpenAICompatible({
  name: 'cheaper-inference',
  apiKey: process.env.CHEAPER_INFERENCE_API_KEY,
  baseURL: 'https://api.cheaperinference.com/v1',
});

const { text } = await generateText({
  model: cheaperInference('gpt-5.4'),
  prompt: 'Explain what an API gateway does in one sentence.',
});

console.log(text);

Stream Text

Use streamText to stream text as it is generated:

import { createOpenAICompatible } from '@ai-sdk/openai-compatible';
import { streamText } from 'ai';

const cheaperInference = createOpenAICompatible({
  name: 'cheaper-inference',
  apiKey: process.env.CHEAPER_INFERENCE_API_KEY,
  baseURL: 'https://api.cheaperinference.com/v1',
});

const result = streamText({
  model: cheaperInference('gpt-5.4'),
  prompt: 'Count from 1 to 5, separated by spaces.',
});

for await (const textPart of result.textStream) {
  process.stdout.write(textPart);
}

Supported Models and Capabilities

This integration uses Cheaper Inference's OpenAI-compatible Chat Completions endpoint for text generation and streaming. Support for tools, vision, and other model-specific features depends on the selected model.

The model catalog changes over time. Use the authenticated GET /models endpoint to find current model IDs, capabilities, and pricing.

Resources

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