Vercel AI Gateway alternative

The Vercel AI Gateway alternative hosted in Europe

The same pass-through prices and OpenAI compatibility, with 700+ models, the API in the EU by default, zero data retention routes on every plan and no Vercel team required.

Opper vs Vercel AI Gateway in short

Both pass provider prices through with no markup and keep no prompts at the gateway. Opper's API runs in the EU (Stockholm) by default, while Vercel's gateway can process a request in any Vercel region and pins only the inference leg to the EU. Vercel charges no platform fee and Opper 3% on credit purchases, and Opper's zero data retention routes work on every plan, with no Vercel team.

Fees are on the pricing page, and every model and route is in the model directory.

Vercel facts from its pricing, retention docs and public model list, checked October 2026.

At a glance

Vercel AI Gateway alternatives, compared

Vercel AI Gateway vs Opper feature comparison
FeatureVercel AI GatewayOpper
Models on one unified API460+ in its public API, all modalities700+, all modalities
No markup on tokens
Yes
Yes
Drop-in OpenAI SDK compatibility
Yes
Yes
OpenAI, Anthropic and Gemini formats on one base URL
OpenAI Chat, Responses, Anthropic; no Gemini
Yes
Automatic failover across providers
Yes
Yes
Gateway hosted in Europe
Any Vercel region; pinned hosts coming
Stockholm, every plan
European inference routes
Opt-in pinning, supported models
Self-serve on every plan
Prompts stored by the gatewayNone, deleted immediatelyNone, metadata only
Provider-level zero data retention
Pro/Enterprise; team-wide metered
Most routes, every plan
Span-level tracing and evals built in
Request logs; deep traces via metered drains
Control Plane
PII and prompt-injection guards
No
Control Plane
Per-key and per-project spend caps
Yes
Yes
Standalone account
Requires a Vercel team
Yes
Agent CLI and Opper Account
Coding agents via Vercel CLI, no user wallet
Yes
Platform feeNone on tokens, governance metered3% on credit purchases (5.5% with Control Plane)

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Which one

When to choose Vercel AI Gateway or Opper

Choose Vercel AI Gateway if

Your app already deploys on Vercel and uses the AI SDK's zero-config auth, and no platform fee on tokens matters more than tracing and checks in the gateway.

Choose Opper if

The gateway and the inference both have to stay in Europe, you want zero data retention routes and tracing without per-request meters, or nothing else in your stack runs on Vercel.

Switch from Vercel AI Gateway in one line

Change the base URL from ai-gateway.vercel.sh/v1 to api.opper.ai/v3/compat and keep your prompts, tool calls and AI SDK code. 700+ models, including Claude, GPT, Gemini and DeepSeek, hosted in the EU and the US.

View all 700+ models →

Why Opper

Europe end to end, nothing metered

Hosted in Europe, end to end

Opper's API runs in Stockholm by default, so every request lands in Europe with nothing to opt into. Call an EU route and the model answers in Europe too, on every plan.

  • API in Stockholm on every plan
  • EU routes end to end
  • ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certified
Browse EU-hosted models
Two legs to every request, both pinned
Typical gateway path
Gateway leg
any region
Inference leg
opt-in pinning
Opper path
Gateway leg
Stockholm
Inference leg
EU route
Gateway and inference stay in Europe
Metadata only, no prompts stored

Zero data retention on every plan

Vercel deletes prompts at the gateway, and routing only to zero data retention providers is a Pro and Enterprise feature, metered team-wide. On Opper, zero data retention is on most routes, on every plan, with no meter.

  • No prompts or responses stored by default
  • Zero data retention routes on every plan
Browse models with zero data retention
What a call leaves behind:
Promptnot stored
Responsenot stored
Provider, on a ZDR routenot stored
Usage for billingkept
Tracing stays off unless you turn it on

Tracing and checks, no drains

On Control Plane, every span, model call and tool call is kept with cost and latency, score checks grade answers, and checks redact PII or block prompt injection, in the same dashboard that routes your traffic. No trace drains to set up or meter.

  • Span-level tracing across agent runs
  • Score checks and PII checks
See how traces work
Live trace
span 4 of 6
classify
retrieve
generate
validate
Latency
2.4s
Tokens
1,847
Cost
$0.0092

Move from Vercel AI Gateway to a gateway hosted in Europe by changing one line.

FAQ

Opper vs Vercel AI Gateway FAQ

What's the difference between Opper and Vercel AI Gateway?

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Both route hundreds of models through one key and pass provider list prices through with no markup on tokens. The differences are where the gateway runs (Opper's API endpoint runs in Europe by default and EU routes keep inference there too, Vercel's terminates in any Vercel region with EU pinning for the inference leg only), what ships included (Opper builds in span-level tracing, evals, PII and prompt-injection checks, while Vercel meters custom reporting, trace drains and team-wide zero data retention as add-ons), and coupling (Opper is a standalone account, Vercel AI Gateway requires a Vercel team).

Is Opper a drop-in replacement for Vercel AI Gateway?

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Yes. Both expose OpenAI-compatible endpoints, so you swap the base URL from ai-gateway.vercel.sh/v1 to api.opper.ai/v3/compat, change the API key, and your existing calls route through Opper. The same base URL also accepts Anthropic Messages and Gemini formats, and Opper's 700+ model catalog covers the major model families.

Can I keep using the Vercel AI SDK with Opper?

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Yes. The AI SDK supports custom OpenAI-compatible providers; Vercel's own gateway is simply its zero-config default. Point the SDK at Opper's compatible endpoint and keep your streaming, tool calls and framework code unchanged.

Does Vercel AI Gateway keep data in the EU?

+
Partly. Regional inference, shipped in July 2026, lets you pin the inference leg and provider-stored data to the EU, opt-in and fail-closed, for supported models and often at a regional premium. Per Vercel's own docs the gateway request itself can still terminate and be processed in any Vercel region before it is forwarded to the provider, with region-pinned gateway hosts listed as coming. Opper's API endpoint runs in Stockholm by default, and calling an EU route keeps inference in Europe too, on any plan, documented at opper.ai/ai-compliance.

How does pricing compare between Opper and Vercel AI Gateway?

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On tokens they are the same, both pass provider list prices through with no markup. Vercel charges no platform fee and meters team-wide governance features such as provider allowlists, team-wide zero data retention, custom reporting and trace drains, while Opper charges 3% on credit purchases (5.5% with Control Plane) and keeps observability and governance in the plan. The live numbers are on opper.ai/pricing.

Does Vercel AI Gateway store my prompts?

+
No. Its docs state that prompts and outputs are deleted immediately after the request completes, and a separate request flag disallows prompt training. Provider-side retention is a separate question: routing that keeps traffic on zero-retention providers is a Pro and Enterprise feature, and some models have no zero-retention provider at all. Opper stores metadata only by default, and every route in its model directory shows its data retention, with zero data retention on most routes, on every plan.

How do I migrate from Vercel AI Gateway to Opper?

+
Change the base URL and the API key and the first call works; model ids stay provider-prefixed, and nothing else has to change up front. Add EU routes, checks or tracing when you are ready.

The Vercel AI Gateway alternative hosted in Europe

Get an API key and make your first call in minutes, with no markup on tokens, the API in the EU and zero data retention routes.

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