OpenRouter
OpenRouter connects your flows to AI models from many providers through a single OpenRouter account. You can use it in two ways: as the model of an agent, by connecting its Model output to the agent’s Model input, or on its own, so that it answers the text that reaches its Input.
When to use it
- Give an agent the model it uses to understand requests, decide which tools to use and answer.
- Write, summarise or classify texts inside a flow, without an agent.
- Process a list of texts one by one, for example all the reviews of a month, with Batch Mode.
- Try models from different providers without opening an account with each one.
Configuration
In the Common tab:
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| Provider (required) | The provider of the model. The list loads with the providers OpenRouter offers when you choose the credential. |
| Model | The model that answers. When you choose a provider, the list fills with its models and the first one is selected. Hover over each option to see its description. |
| Credential (required) | The credential of the service OpenRouter API. Pick one from the list (Choose an option) or create one with Add new credential. See Credentials. |
| Connection | What to connect |
|---|---|
| Input | The text the model must answer when it works on its own, for example the message of a Chat Input or the result of a Prompt. |
Advanced options
In the Advanced tab:
| Field | What it does |
|---|---|
| System Message | General instructions for the model when it works on its own: its role, the tone, what to avoid. You can type them or connect them from another component. |
| Stream | Shows the answer in the chat while it is being written, instead of waiting until it is finished. It only has an effect in the chat. Default: off. |
| Temperature | How varied the answers are: low values give steadier, more predictable answers; high values, more creative ones. Default: 0.7. |
| Max Tokens | The maximum length of the answer, in tokens (pieces of words). |
| Customized Model Name | The exact name of an OpenRouter model. If you fill it in, it replaces the one chosen in Model. |
| Site URL and App Name | Your website address and your app’s name, so they appear in OpenRouter’s rankings. They are optional. |
Batch processing
With the Batch Mode switch on, the component runs once for each item of the list you connect to Batch Input and returns all the results together as a list. Parallel Executions sets how many items are processed at the same time (1 to 5). Skip if Empty Batch Input skips the component when the list arrives empty, and Skip Branch if Empty Output stops the following components when the result is empty. More in Key concepts.
Output
| Output | What it contains |
|---|---|
| Model | The configured model. It sits at the top of the component. Connect it to the Model input of an agent or of any other component that asks for a model. |
| Text | The model’s answer to the text received in Input. Connect it, for example, to a Chat Output or to another component that works with text. |
The two ways of using it exclude each other: when you connect the Model output, the component hides Input and Text, because the model now works inside the other component; and if you connect Input, Model is hidden.
Example
The marketing agency Impulsa wants to compare how models from different providers write ads. It connects a Prompt to OpenRouter’s Input, chooses the credential, a provider in Provider and a model in Model, and repeats with another provider.
Good practices
- Use a low Temperature when you need exact answers, such as classifying or extracting data, and raise it for more creative texts.
- If you use the model with an agent, configure only the model here: the instructions and the tools are set in the agent.