Providers

TatsuCode supports multiple provider types so you can choose the best tradeoff between cost, speed, privacy, and model variety.

Independent product. TatsuCode is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, GitHub/Microsoft, OpenRouter, or any other provider listed below. All product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. See Third-Party Services for full attributions.

Primary command: /connect Alias: /providers
See also: CLI vs API/Subscription Providers — when to use which, what each can and cannot do as a Task Agent or SubAgent, and how Cross-Agent Relay fits in.

Provider Options at a Glance

Provider Type	Cost Model	Best For
OAuth Subscriptions	Usually $0 extra	Reusing plans you already pay for
OpenRouter API	Pay-per-use	Maximum model variety in one place
Local Providers	Free after setup	Privacy, offline work, fixed cost hardware
CLI Providers (Claude Code, Gemini CLI on roadmap)	Subscription-backed	Delegated, archived agent runs with Cross-Agent Relay

OAuth Providers (Use Existing Subscriptions)

If you already pay for AI subscriptions, connect supported routes directly and use that quota inside TatsuCode.

OpenAI Plus / Pro

Subscription: chatgpt.com

To connect:

Run /connect
Select OpenAI Plus/Pro
Sign in and approve access
Complete sign-in and return to TatsuCode when prompted

GitHub Copilot

Subscription: github.com/features/copilot/plans

To connect:

Run /connect
Select GitHub Copilot
Sign in and approve access
Complete sign-in and return to TatsuCode when prompted

For broader model coverage, use OpenRouter API key access.

Claude Agent (Claude Code)

Subscription: Claude Pro, Max, Team, or Enterprise on claude.ai

To connect:

Sign in to the Claude Code CLI first — run claude and complete its own /login flow with your Anthropic account. TatsuCode does not handle this step (it stays out of the Anthropic login to respect Anthropic's terms of service); the CLI stores your token under ~/.claude/.
In TatsuCode, run /connect
Select Claude Agent (Claude Code) to enable it
The Claude Code models appear in /models

Claude Code runs as a CLI provider — it brings its own auth and tool loop, and produces archived report.md artifacts on every run. For deep details, see Claude Code and the CLI Providers overview.

Free Claude.ai accounts can't run Claude Code; an active paid subscription is required.

OpenRouter (API Key)

OpenRouter gives you access to a large cross-provider catalog from one key.

Why OpenRouter

One API key for many model families
Fast switching between providers
Pay only for usage
Easy fallback when one provider is unavailable

Setup

Create account: openrouter.ai
Add credits
Create API key: openrouter.ai/keys
Run /connect
Open OpenRouter
Paste key and save

Quota and Spend Monitoring

Use:

/usage
/usage-quota

/usage-quota now includes clearer subscription/quota visibility and OpenRouter balance/usage summaries in recent builds.

Local Providers (llama.cpp recommended)

For local, fully-offline, and privacy-first workflows, TatsuCode connects to any local OpenAI-compatible endpoint. llama.cpp is the recommended runtime — it's the lightest, most portable, and most direct way to serve a GGUF model to TatsuCode, and it runs anywhere from a laptop to an air-gapped workstation with no extra layers in between.

Recommended: llama.cpp

Build or download llama.cpp and grab a GGUF model (Gemma, Qwen, Kimi, DeepSeek, or any GGUF you already have)
Start its server, e.g. llama-server -m your-model.gguf --port 8080
In TatsuCode, run /connect → Add Custom Provider
Enter a name and the server URL (e.g. http://localhost:8080/v1)
Save and test, then run /models to pick the model

Alternative local runtimes

If you'd rather use a managed app, Ollama and LM Studio both expose an OpenAI-compatible endpoint and connect the same way — add them as a custom provider using the URL each one prints when it starts. Any other OpenAI-compatible local server works too.

Setup Flow (any local server)

Start your local server (llama.cpp, Ollama, LM Studio, or another OpenAI-compatible endpoint)
Run /connect
Choose Add Custom Provider
Enter name + URL
Save and test
Run /models to pick a model

Web Search Providers

TatsuCode can be configured with your own search API keys.

Google Programmable Search
Brave Search API

Configure them inside /connect under the Web Search section.

Connection Management Tips

Inside Provider Connections you can:

Connect/disconnect providers
Verify API keys
View available model counts
Switch fallback providers if one is down

If a provider is removed, TatsuCode now handles model fallback more gracefully so you can keep working.

Troubleshooting

Invalid API Key

Re-copy key from provider dashboard
Remove leading/trailing spaces
Confirm key is active

OAuth Won't Complete

Try disconnect + reconnect
Retry promptly if the sign-in step expires
Retry from a fresh browser session

Local Provider Not Reachable

Confirm your local server is running
Re-check the configured endpoint
Validate local network/firewall policy

Next Steps

Models — choose the best model per task
Settings — tune behavior and defaults
Troubleshooting — common issues and fixes