openclaw/docs/providers/litellm.md

summary, title, read_when

summary	title	read_when
Run OpenClaw through LiteLLM Proxy for unified model access and cost tracking	LiteLLM	You want to route OpenClaw through a LiteLLM proxy You need cost tracking, logging, or model routing through LiteLLM

LiteLLM is an open-source LLM gateway that provides a unified API to 100+ model providers. Route OpenClaw through LiteLLM to get centralized cost tracking, logging, and the flexibility to switch backends without changing your OpenClaw config.

**Why use LiteLLM with OpenClaw?**

• Cost tracking — See exactly what OpenClaw spends across all models
• Model routing — Switch between Claude, GPT-4, Gemini, Bedrock without config changes
• Virtual keys — Create keys with spend limits for OpenClaw
• Logging — Full request/response logs for debugging
• Fallbacks — Automatic failover if your primary provider is down

Quick start

**Best for:** fastest path to a working LiteLLM setup.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Run onboarding">
    ```bash
    openclaw onboard --auth-choice litellm-api-key
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

**Best for:** full control over installation and config.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Start LiteLLM Proxy">
    ```bash
    pip install 'litellm[proxy]'
    litellm --model claude-opus-4-6
    ```
  </Step>
  <Step title="Point OpenClaw to LiteLLM">
    ```bash
    export LITELLM_API_KEY="your-litellm-key"

    openclaw
    ```

    That's it. OpenClaw now routes through LiteLLM.
  </Step>
</Steps>

Configuration

Environment variables

export LITELLM_API_KEY="sk-litellm-key"

Config file

{
  models: {
    providers: {
      litellm: {
        baseUrl: "http://localhost:4000",
        apiKey: "${LITELLM_API_KEY}",
        api: "openai-completions",
        models: [
          {
            id: "claude-opus-4-6",
            name: "Claude Opus 4.6",
            reasoning: true,
            input: ["text", "image"],
            contextWindow: 200000,
            maxTokens: 64000,
          },
          {
            id: "gpt-4o",
            name: "GPT-4o",
            reasoning: false,
            input: ["text", "image"],
            contextWindow: 128000,
            maxTokens: 8192,
          },
        ],
      },
    },
  },
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      model: { primary: "litellm/claude-opus-4-6" },
    },
  },
}

Advanced configuration

Image generation

LiteLLM can also back the image_generate tool through OpenAI-compatible /images/generations and /images/edits routes. Configure a LiteLLM image model under agents.defaults.imageGenerationModel:

{
  models: {
    providers: {
      litellm: {
        baseUrl: "http://localhost:4000",
        apiKey: "${LITELLM_API_KEY}",
      },
    },
  },
  agents: {
    defaults: {
      imageGenerationModel: {
        primary: "litellm/gpt-image-2",
        timeoutMs: 180_000,
      },
    },
  },
}

Loopback LiteLLM URLs such as http://localhost:4000 work without a global private-network override. For a LAN-hosted proxy, set models.providers.litellm.request.allowPrivateNetwork: true because the API key will be sent to the configured proxy host.

Create a dedicated key for OpenClaw with spend limits:

```bash
curl -X POST "http://localhost:4000/key/generate" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_MASTER_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "key_alias": "openclaw",
    "max_budget": 50.00,
    "budget_duration": "monthly"
  }'
```

Use the generated key as `LITELLM_API_KEY`.

LiteLLM can route model requests to different backends. Configure in your LiteLLM `config.yaml`:

```yaml
model_list:
  - model_name: claude-opus-4-6
    litellm_params:
      model: claude-opus-4-6
      api_key: os.environ/ANTHROPIC_API_KEY

  - model_name: gpt-4o
    litellm_params:
      model: gpt-4o
      api_key: os.environ/OPENAI_API_KEY
```

OpenClaw keeps requesting `claude-opus-4-6` — LiteLLM handles the routing.

Check LiteLLM's dashboard or API:

```bash
# Key info
curl "http://localhost:4000/key/info" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk-litellm-key"

# Spend logs
curl "http://localhost:4000/spend/logs" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_MASTER_KEY"
```

- LiteLLM runs on `http://localhost:4000` by default - OpenClaw connects through LiteLLM's proxy-style OpenAI-compatible `/v1` endpoint - Native OpenAI-only request shaping does not apply through LiteLLM: no `service_tier`, no Responses `store`, no prompt-cache hints, and no OpenAI reasoning-compat payload shaping - Hidden OpenClaw attribution headers (`originator`, `version`, `User-Agent`) are not injected on custom LiteLLM base URLs For general provider configuration and failover behavior, see [Model Providers](/concepts/model-providers).

Related

Official LiteLLM documentation and API reference. Overview of all providers, model refs, and failover behavior. Full config reference. How to choose and configure models.