Your First Provider

Step-by-step guide to adding your first AI provider to ClawRouter. Choose from Quick Setup presets or create a custom configuration.

Version 1.0.18

Add a Provider via Quick Setup

Goal: Add a new AI provider using a pre-built preset.

  1. Open the dashboard at http://localhost:3030.
  2. Click Providers in the sidebar.
  3. Click Add Provider (button at the top).
  4. Click Quick Setup.
  5. A searchable grid of 51 presets appears, grouped into Free & Free-Tier and API Key Providers. Select your provider (e.g., Google Gemini, Groq, OpenRouter).
  6. All fields are automatically filled:
    • Name: Provider name
    • API Format: Correct format for this provider
    • Upstream URL: Official API endpoint
    • API Key Mode: Managed for most providers, None for keyless presets
  7. Review the fields. Customize the name or any field if you wish.
  8. Click Create Provider. The preset's recommended models are seeded into the Models tab automatically.
  9. You are taken to the provider's detail page.
  10. The Base URL at the top is your auto-generated proxy URL -- you will use this in your AI client.
  11. Go to the API Keys tab and add your API key(s) -- skip this for keyless presets. Use the built-in Test button to verify each key.

Add a Custom Provider

Goal: Add a provider that is not in the preset list.

  1. Go to Providers > Add Provider > Custom.
  2. Fill in the fields:
    • Provider Name: Internal reference name (e.g., My-Custom-LLM). This also generates the provider ID (slug).
    • API Format: Select the correct format:
      • OpenAI Chat Completions -- for most OpenAI-compatible providers
      • OpenAI Responses -- for OpenAI Responses API
      • Anthropic Messages -- for Anthropic Claude
      • Google Generative AI -- for Google Gemini
      • ElevenLabs (Audio) -- for ElevenLabs Speech-to-Text / Text-to-Speech (passthrough audio, no chat)
    • Upstream URL: The full base URL of the provider's API (e.g., https://api.example.com/v1).
    • API Key Mode:
      • Managed -- ClawRouter manages multiple keys with rotation
      • None -- No API key (for free/keyless endpoints)
      • Pass Through -- Forward client's key directly
  3. Click Create Provider.
  4. Copy the auto-generated Base URL.
  5. Add your API keys in the API Keys tab.

Add a Keyless Provider (No API Key)

Goal: Set up a provider that requires no API key at all.

Keyless presets access high-performance models without signup or keys. ClawRouter sends the required headers automatically (via the preset's default headers).

  1. Go to Providers > Add Provider > Quick Setup.
  2. Select OpenCode Zen, Kilo AI (Free), or Ollama (Local) from the preset grid.
  3. Click Create Provider -- the API Key Mode is already set to None.
  4. Do NOT add any API keys -- the keys tab shows an informational card for these providers.
  5. Copy the auto-generated Base URL from the top of the provider page.
  6. (Optional but recommended) Go to the Models tab:
    • The preset's recommended models are already seeded.
    • Click Fetch Models to retrieve the full live list.
    • For Kilo AI and OpenCode Zen, models show Free and Paid badges.
    • Click + Add next to free models you want in your fallback list, or Add All Free.

Available Free Models -- Kilo AI (Free):

  • minimax/minimax-m2.5:free, stepfun/step-3.5-flash:free, kilo-auto/free, openrouter/free

Available Free Models -- OpenCode Zen:

  • gpt-5-nano, minimax-m2.5-free, big-pickle, trinity-large-preview-free

What's Next?

After creating your first provider:

  • Add API keys -- see the Managing API Keys guide for single, bulk, and connection-testing operations
  • Enable Model Fallback -- automatically switch models when one is unavailable
  • Set up Provider Fallback Chain -- route to a backup provider when the primary fails (Fallback tab)
  • Configure your AI client -- dedicated per-client guides live in the Client Setup section (OpenClaw, OpenCode, Claude Code, Codex CLI, Qwen Code, DeepSeek Harness, Other/Custom), or use the "Prompt for AI" dialog (7 client tabs)