9Router - FREE AI Router & Token Saver

Never stop coding. Save 20-40% tokens with RTK + auto-fallback to FREE & cheap AI models.

Connect All AI Code Tools (Claude Code, Cursor, Antigravity, Copilot, Codex, Gemini, OpenCode, Cline, OpenClaw...) to 40+ AI Providers & 100+ Models.

🚀 Quick Start • 💡 Features • 📖 Setup • 🌐 Website

🇻🇳 Tiếng Việt • 🇨🇳 中文 • 🇯🇵 日本語 • 🇷🇺 Русский • 🇹🇭 ไทย • 🇮🇷 فارسی

🤔 Why 9Router?

Stop wasting money, tokens and hitting limits:

• ❌ Subscription quota expires unused every month
• ❌ Rate limits stop you mid-coding
• ❌ Tool outputs (git diff, grep, ls...) burn tokens fast
• ❌ Expensive APIs ($20-50/month per provider)
• ❌ Manual switching between providers

9Router solves this:

• ✅ RTK Token Saver - Auto-compress tool_result content, save 20-40% tokens per request
• ✅ Maximize subscriptions - Track quota, use every bit before reset
• ✅ Auto fallback - Subscription → Cheap → Free, zero downtime
• ✅ Multi-account - Round-robin between accounts per provider
• ✅ Universal - Works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Cline, any CLI tool

🔄 How It Works

┌─────────────┐
│  Your CLI   │  (Claude Code, Codex, OpenClaw, Cursor, Cline...)
│   Tool      │
└──────┬──────┘
       │ http://localhost:20128/v1
       ↓
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│           9Router (Smart Router)            │
│  • RTK Token Saver (cut tool_result tokens) │
│  • Format translation (OpenAI ↔ Claude)     │
│  • Quota tracking                           │
│  • Auto token refresh                       │
└──────┬──────────────────────────────────────┘
       │
       ├─→ [Tier 1: SUBSCRIPTION] Claude Code, Codex, GitHub Copilot
       │   ↓ quota exhausted
       ├─→ [Tier 2: CHEAP] GLM ($0.6/1M), MiniMax ($0.2/1M)
       │   ↓ budget limit
       └─→ [Tier 3: FREE] Kiro, OpenCode Free, Vertex ($300 credits)

Result: Never stop coding, minimal cost + 20-40% token savings via RTK

⚡ Quick Start

1. Install globally:

npm install -g 9router
9router

🎉 Dashboard opens at http://localhost:20128

2. Connect a FREE provider (no signup needed):

Dashboard → Providers → Connect Kiro AI (~50 credits/month free: Claude 4.5 + GLM-5 + MiniMax) or OpenCode Free (no auth) → Done!

3. Use in your CLI tool:

Claude Code/Codex/OpenClaw/Cursor/Cline Settings:
  Endpoint: http://localhost:20128/v1
  API Key: [copy from dashboard]
  Model: kr/claude-sonnet-4.5

That's it! Start coding with FREE AI models.

Alternative: run from source (this repository):

This repository package is private (9router-app), so source/Docker execution is the expected local development path.

cp .env.example .env
npm install
PORT=20128 NEXT_PUBLIC_BASE_URL=http://localhost:20128 npm run dev

Production mode:

npm run build
PORT=20128 HOSTNAME=0.0.0.0 NEXT_PUBLIC_BASE_URL=http://localhost:20128 npm run start

Default URLs:

• Dashboard: http://localhost:20128/dashboard
• OpenAI-compatible API: http://localhost:20128/v1

Video Guides

🎬 Made a video about 9Router? Submit a Pull Request adding your video to this section — we'll merge it!

🛠️ Supported CLI Tools

9Router works seamlessly with all major AI coding tools:

🌐 Supported Providers

🔐 OAuth Providers

🆓 Free Providers

Note: iFlow, Qwen Code and Gemini CLI free tiers were discontinued in 2026. Use Kiro / OpenCode Free / Vertex instead.

Kiro AI moved to a paid model in Sep 2025 — the free tier is now capped at 50 credits/month (plus 500 trial credits for new accounts in the first 30 days). Paid tiers: Pro $20/mo (1,000 credits), Pro+ $40/mo (2,000), Pro Max $100/mo (5,000), Power $200/mo (10,000). OpenCode Free model list fluctuates over time (some models free only for limited promos) — subject to change without notice. Vertex AI: the $300 free credit for new GCP accounts is still valid, but since Mar 2026 the Gemini API endpoint no longer consumes these credits — call the Vertex AI Studio endpoint instead.

🔑 API Key Providers (40+)

💡 Key Features

Set X-9Router-Token-Saver: off to bypass all token savers for one chat request.

🚀 RTK Token Saver

Tool outputs (git diff, grep, find, ls, tree, log dumps...) often eat 30-50% of your prompt budget. RTK detects them and applies smart, lossless compression before the request hits the LLM:

• Filters: git-diff, git-status, grep, find, ls, tree, dedup-log, smart-truncate, read-numbered, search-list
• Auto-detect: No config needed — RTK peeks the first 1KB of each tool_result and picks the right filter.
• Safe by design: If a filter fails, throws, or makes output bigger, RTK silently keeps the original text. Errors never break your request.
• Universal: Works across all formats (OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Cursor, Kiro, OpenAI Responses) because it runs before any format translation.
• Default ON: Toggle anytime in Dashboard → Endpoint settings.

Without RTK: 47K tokens sent to LLM
With RTK:    28K tokens sent to LLM   (40% saved · same context · same answer)

🧠 Headroom Token Saver

Headroom is optional and runs separately. 9Router calls Headroom's local /v1/compress endpoint, then keeps normal routing, fallback, auth, and usage tracking:

Client → 9Router → Headroom /v1/compress → 9Router → provider

Local setup:

pip install "headroom-ai[proxy]"
headroom proxy --port 8787

Enable in Dashboard → Endpoint → Token Saver → Headroom. Default URL: http://localhost:8787.

Docker examples:

# Headroom service in same Docker network
http://headroom:8787

# Headroom running on host machine
http://host.docker.internal:8787

If Headroom is down or returns an error, 9Router fails open and sends the original request.

🐴 Ponytail (Lazy Senior Dev)

Ponytail injects a "lazy senior dev" system prompt into every request, biasing the LLM toward minimal, YAGNI-first code — deletion over addition, stdlib over new deps, one-liners over abstractions. Adapted from DietrichGebert/ponytail.

• Lite — Build what's asked, name the lazier alternative.
• Full — YAGNI ladder enforced: stdlib → native → existing deps → one-liner → minimal code.
• Ultra — YAGNI extremist: deletion first, ship the one-liner, challenge the rest of the requirement in the same response.

Without Ponytail: verbose code, extra abstractions, "just in case" scaffolding
With Ponytail:    shortest working diff, no unrequested abstractions, fewer tokens

Never trades away: input validation, error handling that prevents data loss, security, accessibility, or anything explicitly requested. Enable in Dashboard → Endpoint → Ponytail. Stacks with Caveman (output terseness) and RTK (input compression).

🎯 Smart 3-Tier Fallback

Create combos with automatic fallback:

Combo: "my-coding-stack"
  1. cc/claude-opus-4-6        (your subscription)
  2. glm/glm-4.7               (cheap backup, $0.6/1M)
  3. if/kimi-k2-thinking       (free fallback)

→ Auto switches when quota runs out or errors occur

📊 Real-Time Quota Tracking

• Token consumption per provider
• Reset countdown (5-hour, daily, weekly)
• Cost estimation for paid tiers
• Monthly spending reports

🔄 Format Translation

Seamless translation between formats:

• OpenAI ↔ Claude ↔ Gemini ↔ Cursor ↔ Kiro ↔ Vertex ↔ Antigravity ↔ Ollama ↔ OpenAI Responses
• Your CLI tool sends OpenAI format → 9Router translates → Provider receives native format
• Works with any tool that supports custom OpenAI endpoints

👥 Multi-Account Support

• Add multiple accounts per provider
• Auto round-robin or priority-based routing
• Fallback to next account when one hits quota

🔄 Auto Token Refresh

• OAuth tokens automatically refresh before expiration
• No manual re-authentication needed
• Seamless experience across all providers

🎨 Custom Combos

• Create unlimited model combinations
• Mix subscription, cheap, and free tiers
• Name your combos for easy access
• Share combos across devices with Cloud Sync

📝 Request Logging

• Enable debug mode for full request/response logs
• Track API calls, headers, and payloads
• Troubleshoot integration issues
• Export logs for analysis

💾 Cloud Sync

• Sync providers, combos, and settings across devices
• Automatic background sync
• Secure encrypted storage
• Access your setup from anywhere

Cloud Runtime Notes

• Prefer server-side cloud variables in production:
  • BASE_URL (internal callback URL used by sync scheduler)
  • CLOUD_URL (cloud sync endpoint base)
• NEXT_PUBLIC_BASE_URL and NEXT_PUBLIC_CLOUD_URL are still supported for compatibility/UI, but server runtime now prioritizes BASE_URL/CLOUD_URL.
• Cloud sync requests now use timeout + fail-fast behavior to avoid UI hanging when cloud DNS/network is unavailable.

📊 Usage Analytics

• Track token usage per provider and model
• Cost estimation and spending trends
• Monthly reports and insights
• Optimize your AI spending

💡 IMPORTANT - Understanding Dashboard Costs:

The "cost" displayed in Usage Analytics is for tracking and comparison purposes only. 9Router itself never charges you anything. You only pay providers directly (if using paid services).

Example: If your dashboard shows "$290 total cost" while using Kiro free models, this represents what you would have paid using paid APIs directly. Your actual cost = $0 (Kiro free tier: ~50 credits/mo).

Think of it as a "savings tracker" showing how much you're saving by using free models or routing through 9Router!

🌐 Deploy Anywhere

• 💻 Localhost - Default, works offline
• ☁️ VPS/Cloud - Share across devices
• 🐳 Docker - One-command deployment
• 🚀 Cloudflare Workers - Global edge network

💰 Pricing at a Glance

💡 Pro Tip: RTK + Kiro AI + OpenCode Free combo = $0 cost + 20-40% token savings!

📊 Understanding 9Router Costs & Billing

9Router Billing Reality:

✅ 9Router software = FREE forever (open source, never charges)
✅ Dashboard "costs" = Display/tracking only (not actual bills)
✅ You pay providers directly (subscriptions or API fees)
✅ FREE providers stay FREE (Kiro ~50 credits/mo, OpenCode Free, Vertex $300 credits = $0 within free-tier limits) — note iFlow/Qwen/Gemini CLI free tiers were discontinued in 2026 ❌ 9Router never sends invoices or charges your card

How Cost Display Works:

The dashboard shows estimated costs as if you were using paid APIs directly. This is not billing - it's a comparison tool to show your savings.

Example Scenario:

Dashboard Display:
• Total Requests: 1,662
• Total Tokens: 47M
• Display Cost: $290

Reality Check:
• Provider: Kiro (free tier: ~50 credits/mo)
• Actual Payment: $0.00
• What $290 Means: Amount you SAVED by using free models!

Payment Rules:

• Subscription providers (Claude Code, Codex): Pay them directly via their websites
• Cheap providers (GLM, MiniMax): Pay them directly, 9Router just routes
• FREE providers (iFlow, Kiro, Qwen): Genuinely free forever, no hidden charges
• 9Router: Never charges anything, ever

🎯 Use Cases

Case 1: "I have Claude Pro subscription"

Problem: Quota expires unused, rate limits during heavy coding

Solution:

Combo: "maximize-claude"
  1. cc/claude-opus-4-7        (use subscription fully)
  2. glm/glm-5.1               (cheap backup when quota out)
  3. kr/claude-sonnet-4.5      (free emergency fallback)

Monthly cost: $20 (subscription) + ~$5 (backup) = $25 total
vs. $20 + hitting limits = frustration

Case 2: "I want zero cost"

Problem: Can't afford subscriptions, need reliable AI coding

Solution:

Combo: "free-forever"
  1. kr/claude-sonnet-4.5      (Claude 4.5 free via Kiro, ~50 credits/mo)
  2. kr/glm-5                  (GLM-5 free via Kiro)
  3. oc/<auto>                 (OpenCode Free, no auth)

Monthly cost: $0
Quality: Production-ready models + RTK saves 20-40% tokens

Case 3: "I need 24/7 coding, no interruptions"

Problem: Deadlines, can't afford downtime

Solution:

Combo: "always-on"
  1. cc/claude-opus-4-7        (best quality)
  2. cx/gpt-5.5                (second subscription)
  3. glm/glm-5.1               (cheap, resets daily)
  4. minimax/MiniMax-M2.7      (cheapest, 5h reset)
  5. kr/claude-sonnet-4.5      (free via Kiro, ~50 credits/mo)

Result: 5 layers of fallback = zero downtime
Monthly cost: $20-200 (subscriptions) + $10-20 (backup)

Case 4: "I want FREE AI in OpenClaw"

Problem: Need AI assistant in messaging apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack...), completely free

Solution:

Combo: "openclaw-free"
  1. kr/claude-sonnet-4.5      (Claude 4.5 free)
  2. kr/glm-5                  (GLM-5 free)
  3. kr/MiniMax-M2.5           (MiniMax free)

Monthly cost: $0
Access via: WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack, Discord, iMessage, Signal...

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

The dashboard tracks your token usage and displays estimated costs as if you were using paid APIs directly. This is not actual billing - it's a reference to show how much you're saving by using free models or existing subscriptions through 9Router.

Example:

• Dashboard shows: "$290 total cost"
• Reality: You're using Kiro free models (~50 credits/mo)
• Your actual cost: $0.00
• What $290 means: Amount you saved by using free models instead of paid APIs!

The cost display is a "savings tracker" to help you understand your usage patterns and optimization opportunities.

No. 9Router is free, open-source software that runs on your own computer. It never charges you anything.

You only pay:

• ✅ Subscription providers (Claude Code $20/mo, Codex $20-200/mo) → Pay them directly on their websites
• ✅ Cheap providers (GLM, MiniMax) → Pay them directly, 9Router just routes your requests
• ❌ 9Router itself → Never charges anything, ever

9Router is a local proxy/router. It doesn't have your credit card, can't send invoices, and has no billing system. It's completely free software.

Mostly! The current FREE providers (Kiro, OpenCode Free, Vertex) are genuinely free, but free tiers have limits:

These are free services offered by those respective companies:

• Kiro AI: ~50 credits/month free (plus 500 trial credits for new accounts in the first 30 days) via AWS Builder ID / Google / GitHub OAuth. Paid tiers available above that.
• OpenCode Free: No-auth passthrough proxy, models auto-fetched from opencode.ai/zen/v1/models. The free model list fluctuates over time (some models free only for limited promos) — subject to change without notice.
• Vertex AI: $300 free credits for new Google Cloud accounts (90 days). Since Mar 2026 the Gemini API endpoint no longer consumes these credits — use the Vertex AI Studio endpoint instead.

9Router just routes your requests to them - there's no "catch" or future billing from 9Router itself. They're truly free services, and 9Router makes them easy to use with fallback support.

Discontinued free tiers (no longer recommended):

• ❌ iFlow: Was free unlimited, now changed to paid (2026)
• ❌ Qwen Code: Free OAuth tier fully discontinued by Alibaba on 2026-04-15
• ❌ Gemini CLI: Service fully shut down by Google on 2026-06-18 (replaced by the closed-source Antigravity CLI). Discontinued — do not use.

Free-First Strategy:

1. Start with 100% free combo:

   1. kr/glm-5 (GLM-5 free via Kiro, ~50 credits/mo)
   2. OpenCode Free models (no auth, auto-fetched)
   3. Vertex AI Gemini 3 Pro (using the Vertex AI Studio endpoint with $300 credits)
   

   Cost: $0/month (within Kiro's free credit cap; OpenCode/Vertex subject to their free-tier limits)

2. Add cheap backup only if you need it:

   4. glm/glm-4.7 ($0.6/1M tokens)
   

   Additional cost: Only pay for what you actually use

3. Use subscription providers last:

   • Only if you already have them
   • 9Router helps maximize their value through quota tracking

Result: Most users can operate at $0/month using only free tiers!

9Router's smart fallback prevents surprise charges:

Scenario: You're on a coding sprint and blow through your quotas

Without 9Router:

• ❌ Hit rate limit → Work stops → Frustration
• ❌ Or: Accidentally rack up huge API bills

With 9Router:

• ✅ Subscription hits limit → Auto-fallback to cheap tier
• ✅ Cheap tier gets expensive → Auto-fallback to free tier
• ✅ Never stop coding → Predictable costs

You're in control: Set spending limits per provider in dashboard, and 9Router respects them.

📖 Setup Guide

Claude Code (Pro/Max)

Dashboard → Providers → Connect Claude Code
→ OAuth login → Auto token refresh
→ 5-hour + weekly quota tracking

Models:
  cc/claude-opus-4-7
  cc/claude-opus-4-6
  cc/claude-sonnet-4-6
  cc/claude-haiku-4-5-20251001

Pro Tip: Use Opus for complex tasks, Sonnet for speed. 9Router tracks quota per model!

OpenAI Codex (Plus/Pro)

Dashboard → Providers → Connect Codex
→ OAuth login (port 1455)
→ 5-hour + weekly reset

Models:
  cx/gpt-5.5
  cx/gpt-5.4
  cx/gpt-5.3-codex
  cx/gpt-5.2-codex

GitHub Copilot

Dashboard → Providers → Connect GitHub
→ OAuth via GitHub
→ Monthly reset (1st of month)

Models:
  gh/gpt-5.4
  gh/claude-opus-4.7
  gh/claude-sonnet-4.6
  gh/gemini-3.1-pro-preview
  gh/grok-code-fast-1

Cursor IDE

Dashboard → Providers → Connect Cursor
→ OAuth login
→ Monthly subscription

Models:
  cu/claude-4.6-opus-max
  cu/claude-4.5-sonnet-thinking
  cu/gpt-5.3-codex

GLM-5.1 / GLM-4.7 (Daily reset, $0.6/1M)

1. Sign up: Zhipu AI
2. Get API key from Coding Plan
3. Dashboard → Add API Key:
   • Provider: glm
   • API Key: your-key

Use: glm/glm-5.1, glm/glm-5, glm/glm-4.7

Pro Tip: Coding Plan offers 3× quota at 1/7 cost! Reset daily 10:00 AM.

MiniMax M2.7 (5h reset, $0.20/1M)

1. Sign up: MiniMax
2. Get API key
3. Dashboard → Add API Key

Use: minimax/MiniMax-M2.7, minimax/MiniMax-M2.5

Pro Tip: Cheapest option for long context (1M tokens)!

Kimi K2.5 ($9/month flat)

1. Subscribe: Moonshot AI
2. Get API key
3. Dashboard → Add API Key

Use: kimi/kimi-k2.5, kimi/kimi-k2.5-thinking

Pro Tip: Fixed $9/month for 10M tokens = $0.90/1M effective cost!

Kiro AI (Claude 4.5 + GLM-5 + MiniMax FREE)

Dashboard → Connect Kiro
→ AWS Builder ID, AWS IAM Identity Center, Google, or GitHub
→ Unlimited usage

Models:
  kr/claude-sonnet-4.5
  kr/claude-haiku-4.5
  kr/glm-5
  kr/MiniMax-M2.5
  kr/qwen3-coder-next
  kr/deepseek-3.2

Pro Tip: Best free option for Claude. No API key, no payment, fully unlimited.

OpenCode Free (No auth, auto-fetch models)

Dashboard → Connect OpenCode Free
→ No login required (passthrough proxy)
→ Models auto-fetched from opencode.ai/zen/v1/models

Pro Tip: Fastest setup. Just connect and start coding.

Vertex AI ($300 free credits for new GCP accounts)

Dashboard → Connect Vertex AI
→ Upload Google Cloud Service Account JSON
→ Enable Vertex AI API in your GCP project

Models:
  vertex/gemini-3.1-pro-preview
  vertex/gemini-3-flash-preview
  vertex/gemini-2.5-flash

Vertex Partner (Anthropic / DeepSeek / GLM / Qwen via Vertex):
  vertex-partner/glm-5-maas
  vertex-partner/deepseek-v3.2-maas
  vertex-partner/qwen3-next-80b-a3b-thinking-maas

Pro Tip: New Google Cloud accounts get $300 credits free for 90 days. Plenty for daily coding.

Example 1: Maximize Subscription → Cheap Backup

Dashboard → Combos → Create New

Name: premium-coding
Models:
  1. cc/claude-opus-4-7 (Subscription primar