Helicone
AI gateway & LLM observability for routing, debugging, and analyzing AI apps
A solid choice for teams juggling multiple LLM providers who need observability baked into a gateway. The free tier is stingy, but Pro and Team offer good value. The Mintlify acquisition adds uncertainty, but the product remains strong for production monitoring. If you need deep prompt evaluation, LangSmith might be better, but for routing and cost control, Helicone holds its own.
Verified 15h ago · liveness 87/100 · cite: rightaichoice.com/tools/helicone
- Teams needing a unified multi-provider AI gateway and observability
- Developers wanting cost tracking and alerts on LLM usage
- Companies migrating from OpenRouter to a richer gateway with 0% markup
- Organizations enforcing rate limits on production LLM calls
- Teams requiring a fully open-source self-hosted gateway (Helicone is open-core but cloud-dependent)
- Users looking for a free forever plan with unlimited requests (free tier capped at 10K/mo)
- Projects needing deep prompt engineering and evaluation tools (LangSmith is stronger there)
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Skip Helicone if you need deep prompt evaluation and experiment tracking (LangSmith is stronger) or if you only use a single LLM provider and don't need multi-provider routing.
Going past 10,000 free requests on Hobby triggers usage-based pricing, so costs kick in quickly once you scale.
Helicone's freemium pricing suits startups and growing teams that need multi-provider routing without a large upfront cost. Hobby is free for small projects, Pro at $79/mo is competitive against LangSmith's $99/mo for teams needing alerts and HQL, and Team at $799/mo offers compliance and Slack support, though Langfuse's self-hosted option can be cheaper for those avoiding cloud. Enterprise pricing is custom, similar to Braintrust and Arize AI.
In short
Helicone — AI gateway & LLM observability for routing, debugging, and analyzing AI apps. Best for Teams needing a unified multi-provider AI gateway and observability, Developers wanting cost tracking and alerts on LLM usage, Companies migrating from OpenRouter to a richer gateway with 0% markup. Free to start; paid plans from $79/mo.
What's new in Helicone
Checked todayAcross the latest 5 updates: 2 feature updates and 3 news mentions.
Helicone joins Mintlify
Helicone announced its acquisition by Mintlify after processing 14.2 trillion tokens; product roadmap unaffected.
MCPs: What, Why, and How
Explains Model Context Protocol and how to implement it with Helicone.
Claude Sonnet 4 and 4.5 now support 1M context window
Sonnet 4 models on the AI Gateway now support a 1M token context window by default across all providers.
OpenRouter Alternatives in 2025
Review of top 5 AI gateways, including Helicone, tested for routing and cost.
Control Reasoning Effort in Playground
Added reasoning effort control (minimal, low, medium, high) and visual thinking display in the Playground.
Viability Score
How well maintained and how widely used is Helicone? Built from what the vendor actually publishes (docs, changelog, tutorials, integrations, pricing), whether the site is live, and how much real users discuss it. How we calculate this
Last calculated: August 2026
How we score →Key Features
- AI Gateway routing to 100+ models
- Per-request LLM observability logging
- Playground with reasoning effort control (minimal/low/medium/high)
- Visual thinking display for reasoning models
- Datasets for versioning prompt data
- HQL (Helicone Query Language) for log analytics
- Sessions and users tracking
- Passthrough billing at 0% markup
- Caching to reduce latency and cost
- Automatic fallbacks between providers
- MCP (Model Context Protocol) compatibility
- 1M context window support (Claude Sonnet 4/4.5)
- Prompt Management V2 with version control
- SQL queries on shared ClickHouse
- Country-based request filtering
About Helicone
Helicone is an AI gateway and LLM observability platform that lets you route, debug, and analyze LLM applications through a single interface. Built for fast-growing AI companies managing calls across 100+ models from providers like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Azure, it offers request logging, latency tracking, cost monitoring, and alerting out of the box. With a recent acquisition by Mintlify and over 14.2 trillion tokens processed, Helicone has proven scale. Its flexible pricing and open-source core make it a strong choice for teams needing cost-effective multi-provider management. Core features include a Playground with configurable reasoning effort (minimal, low, medium, high) and visual thinking display for testing prompts, plus Datasets for versioning prompt data and HQL (Helicone Query Language) for log analytics. The gateway supports caching to reduce latency and cost, rate limits, automatic fallbacks between providers, and MCP compatibility. Prompt Management V2 adds typed variables, version control, and instant deployment, while Sessions & Users tracking helps debug complex interactions. Helicone recently added the ability to run SQL queries directly on a shared ClickHouse instance, enabling advanced custom analytics beyond HQL. This gives power users deeper insights into their LLM traffic. The platform also supports a 1M context window for Claude Sonnet 4 and 4.5 across Anthropic, Bedrock, and Vertex, and includes country-based request filtering for compliance. Pricing starts with a free Hobby tier (10,000 requests/month), then Pro at $79/mo, Team at $799/mo, and Enterprise with custom pricing. Compared to LangSmith, Helicone offers more provider flexibility, an open-source core, and more cost-effective scaling, making it ideal for teams that need a unified gateway with robust observability without getting locked into a single provider's ecosystem.
Behind the Verdict
Helicone positions itself as a unified AI gateway and observability layer, and it largely delivers on that promise. The standout strength is its provider flexibility—you can route to OpenAI, Anthropic, Azure, LiteLLM, Anyscale, Together AI, OpenRouter, and more, all through one interface. This is a huge win for teams that want to avoid vendor lock-in or who need to switch models based on cost or latency. The gateway features like caching, rate limits, and automatic fallbacks are genuinely useful for production, and the 0% markup on passthrough billing is a refreshing contrast to other gateways that charge a premium on tokens. Observability is deep: per-request logs, sessions, user tracking, and HQL give you granular insight, and the recent addition of direct SQL queries on a shared ClickHouse instance is a nice power-user feature. The Playground's reasoning effort control (minimal/low/medium/high) and visual thinking display are thoughtful touches for developers experimenting with reasoning models. Prompt Management V2 with typed variables and version control is practical and integrates directly with the gateway. That said, there are weaknesses. The free Hobby tier caps at 10,000 requests per month, which is quite limiting for anything beyond a hobby project. Pro and Team tiers have usage-based pricing for overages, so costs can escalate if you're not careful—though the pricing calculator helps estimate. The Mintlify acquisition (announced March 2026) introduces some uncertainty about the product's long-term roadmap, though the product remains actively maintained with recent changelog updates. For teams that need deep prompt evaluation and experiment tracking, LangSmith is a stronger fit, but Helicone's routing and cost control make it a compelling choice for teams that prioritize multi-provider flexibility and production reliability. It's not for teams that are fine with a single provider and don't need routing, nor for those seeking a fully open-source self-hosted solution (Helicone is open-core but cloud-dependent).
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Real-world workflow fit
Concrete scenarios for the personas Helicone actually fits — and what changes day-one when you adopt it.
Integrate Helicone into a Python app by changing the base URL, then route OpenAI and Anthropic calls through the gateway, set up caching and fallbacks.
Outcome: Within a day, you can see per-request logs, cost breakdowns, and latency metrics in the dashboard, and turn on alerts for error rates and spending.
Upgrade to Team plan to get SOC-2 compliance, then use HQL to query logs and create custom reports for executive reviews.
Outcome: You gain compliance readiness and can analyze usage patterns across 100+ models, then adjust routing to reduce costs by 20%.
Use the Sessions feature to trace a user's failed request across multiple API calls, identify the failing model, and set up a fallback.
Outcome: Debugging time drops from days to hours, and you can proactively fix issues before they affect more users.
Use Cases
- Monitor all LLM API calls in real-time with detailed logs and cost breakdowns
- Route requests across multiple providers to optimize for latency, cost, or reliability
- Debug failed requests and analyze user sessions to improve app performance
- Experiment with different prompts and models in the playground before deploying
- Set up alerts for rate limits, errors, or spending thresholds across your AI stack
- Meet compliance requirements (SOC-2, HIPAA) while using an open-source observability platform
Models Under the Hood
as of 2026-08-10
Limitations
- The free Hobby plan caps at 10,000 requests per month, 10 logs/min ingestion, and 7-day data retention.
- Pro and Team plans include usage-based pricing for overages, which can increase costs.
- The Team plan offers 15,000 logs/min and 30,000 logs/min ingestion for Team, while Enterprise provides configurable retention and on-prem deployment options.
as of 2026-08-14
Verification history
We have re-verified Helicone 16 times since . Each pass re-reads the vendor's own pages and re-checks every listed field against that evidence; passes where nothing had changed are marked as such.
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-checked, vendor evidence unchanged
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
- — re-verified summary, description, our verdict, our analysis, pricing model, pricing tiers, features, integrations, who it suits, who should skip it
Showing the 6 most recent of 16 verification passes.
Free to cite with attribution — this page re-verifies continuously.
12-month cost
Project the real annual outlay, including the implied monthly cost when only an annual tier is published.
Vendor list price only. Add-on usage, seat overages, and contract minimums are surfaced under Hidden costs & gotchas.
Plans compared
For each published Helicone tier: who it actually fits, and what it adds vs. the previous tier. Cross-reference the cost calculator above for projected annual outlay.
Hobby
$0/mo
Ideal for
Solo developers or hobbyists wanting to try Helicone with up to 10K requests/month without a credit card.
What this tier adds
Free entry point with 10K requests, 1 GB storage, 1 seat, 7-day retention, and community support.
Pro
$79/mo
Ideal for
Growing teams that need unlimited seats, alerts, and HQL analytics but don't require SOC-2 compliance.
What this tier adds
Adds unlimited seats, alerts, reports, HQL, and 1-month retention, with usage-based overages.
Team
$799/mo
Ideal for
Scaling companies that need SOC-2/HIPAA compliance, multiple orgs, and a dedicated Slack channel.
What this tier adds
Adds 5 organizations, SOC-2 & HIPAA compliance, dedicated Slack support, and 3-month retention.
Enterprise
Custom
Ideal for
Large enterprises with custom security, SSO, on-prem deployment, and volume discount needs.
What this tier adds
Adds custom MSA, SAML SSO, on-prem deployment, bulk cloud discounts, and configurable retention.
Where the pricing makes sense
The company stage and team size where Helicone's pricing actually pencils out — and where peers do it cheaper.
Helicone's freemium pricing suits startups and growing teams that need multi-provider routing without a large upfront cost. Hobby is free for small projects, Pro at $79/mo is competitive against LangSmith's $99/mo for teams needing alerts and HQL, and Team at $799/mo offers compliance and Slack support, though Langfuse's self-hosted option can be cheaper for those avoiding cloud. Enterprise pricing is custom, similar to Braintrust and Arize AI.
Setup time & first value
How long it actually takes to get something useful out of Helicone — broken out by persona, not the marketing-page minute.
For a developer already using OpenAI, adding Helicone takes under an hour: change the base URL in your SDK and add an API key. Full observability (logs, sessions, alerts) is visible immediately, though setting up custom HQL reports may take a few hours. For teams needing compliance features, expect a few days to configure Team plan and run through security reviews.
Switching to or from Helicone
How to bring data in from common predecessors and how to get it back out — written for the switcher, not the buyer.
- →From OpenRouter: Switch base URL to Helicone and keep your existing provider keys; Helicone supports 0% markup on passthrough billing.
- →From LangSmith: Use Helicone's gateway to route calls and export historical logs via the export tool for continuity.
- →From a custom-built logging solution: Use Helicone's one-line integration to replace homegrown middleware, and leverage the dashboard for analytics.
- →From other gateways (e.g., LiteLLM): Point your proxy to Helicone for unified observability and routing.
- ↗To LangSmith: Use Helicone's data export tool to pull logs and then import into LangSmith for deeper prompt evaluation.
- ↗To Langfuse: Export your traces from Helicone and import into Langfuse for a fully open-source self-hosted option.
- ↗To Braintrust: Use Helicone's export to move logs and set up equivalent experiments in Braintrust.
- ↗To a custom setup: Export your data via the API or export tool, then build your own logging/analytics stack.
Integrations
Resources & Guides
- Resourcehelicone.ai
What Is An Ai Gateway
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
Complete Guide To Helicone Ai Gateway
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
How To Use Helicone In N8n Workflows
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
How To Migrate From Openrouter To Helicone Ai Gateway
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
10 Ways To Use Your Llm Logs
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
How To Use Ai Gateways To Enhance Ai App Reliability
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
What To Do When Openrouter Is Down
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
Top 5 Llm Gateways 2025
Helpful link from helicone.ai
- Resourcehelicone.ai
OpenRouter Alternatives in 2025
We tested every AI gateway on the market. Here are the results for the top 5 AI Gateways on the market.
- Resourcehelicone.ai
The Helicone Ai Gateway Now On The Cloud
Helpful link from helicone.ai
Tutorials & Learning
Tools that pair well with Helicone
Common stack mates teams adopt alongside Helicone, with the specific reason each pairing earns its keep.
Alternatives to Helicone
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Arize Phoenix
Open-source LLM agent observability with tracing, evals, and experiments
Frequently Asked Questions
Best-of guides
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