Use the OpenAI and Anthropic SDKs with BetterToken

Use the OpenAI SDK with Base URL https://bettertoken.ai/v1, or the Anthropic SDK with https://bettertoken.ai. The examples below send a short text request through Chat Completions, Responses, or Messages using your BetterToken API Key.

Choose an SDK and Base URL

API	SDK	Base URL	Authentication on the wire	Reference
Chat Completions	OpenAI	`https://bettertoken.ai/v1`	`Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY`	Chat Completions
Responses	OpenAI	`https://bettertoken.ai/v1`	`Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY`	Responses
Messages	Anthropic	`https://bettertoken.ai`, without `/v1`	`x-api-key: YOUR_API_KEY`	Messages

The SDK adds the endpoint path and authentication headers. The Anthropic SDK also sends the API version header. See the protocol comparison if you are adapting existing code.

Prerequisites

Complete the quickstart to create a BetterToken API Key and add credit. Copy a Model ID from the model plaza that is available for the endpoint you plan to call. Replace both placeholders below before running a request. Set these variables in the terminal where you will run the examples. The shell commands on this page use macOS / Linux syntax:

export BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY="YOUR_API_KEY"
export BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID="YOUR_MODEL_ID"

For Python, install the SDKs inside your project’s virtual environment:

python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install openai anthropic

For JavaScript, install the packages in your project and save each example as a separate .mjs file, then run it with node:

npm install openai @anthropic-ai/sdk

All examples read the Key from BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY. They disable SDK retries so one test does not silently become several attempts. For application retry policies, see errors and limits.

Call Chat Completions

Use messages for the input conversation. A successful text response contains choices[0].message.content.

Python
JavaScript
curl

import os
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://bettertoken.ai/v1",
    timeout=120.0,
    max_retries=0,
)
response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID"],
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Reply with one word: OK"}],
)
print(response.choices[0].message.content)

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  apiKey: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY,
  baseURL: "https://bettertoken.ai/v1",
  timeout: 120000,
  maxRetries: 0,
});
const response = await client.chat.completions.create({
  model: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID,
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: "Reply with one word: OK" }],
});
console.log(response.choices[0].message.content);

curl --fail-with-body --max-time 120 "https://bettertoken.ai/v1/chat/completions" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"model\":\"$BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID\",\"messages\":[{\"role\":\"user\",\"content\":\"Reply with one word: OK\"}]}"

Call Responses

Use input for the prompt. OpenAI SDKs expose output_text as a text convenience property; the HTTP JSON response contains an output array. Inspect message items and their text content rather than assuming every output item is text.

Python
JavaScript
curl

import os
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://bettertoken.ai/v1",
    timeout=120.0,
    max_retries=0,
)
response = client.responses.create(
    model=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID"],
    input="Reply with one word: OK",
)
print(response.output_text)

import OpenAI from "openai";

const client = new OpenAI({
  apiKey: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY,
  baseURL: "https://bettertoken.ai/v1",
  timeout: 120000,
  maxRetries: 0,
});
const response = await client.responses.create({
  model: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID,
  input: "Reply with one word: OK",
});
console.log(response.output_text);

curl --fail-with-body --max-time 120 "https://bettertoken.ai/v1/responses" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"model\":\"$BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID\",\"input\":\"Reply with one word: OK\"}"

Call Messages

Use messages and supply max_tokens. For this short text request, a successful text response includes a text block such as content[0].text. In general, iterate through content and read only blocks with type: "text".

Python
JavaScript
curl

import os
from anthropic import Anthropic

client = Anthropic(
    api_key=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://bettertoken.ai",
    timeout=120.0,
    max_retries=0,
)
response = client.messages.create(
    model=os.environ["BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID"],
    max_tokens=256,
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Reply with one word: OK"}],
)
for block in response.content:
    if block.type == "text":
        print(block.text)

import Anthropic from "@anthropic-ai/sdk";

const client = new Anthropic({
  apiKey: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY,
  baseURL: "https://bettertoken.ai",
  timeout: 120000,
  maxRetries: 0,
});
const response = await client.messages.create({
  model: process.env.BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID,
  max_tokens: 256,
  messages: [{ role: "user", content: "Reply with one word: OK" }],
});
for (const block of response.content) {
  if (block.type === "text") console.log(block.text);
}

curl --fail-with-body --max-time 120 "https://bettertoken.ai/v1/messages" \
  -H "x-api-key: $BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY" \
  -H "anthropic-version: 2023-06-01" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d "{\"model\":\"$BETTERTOKEN_MODEL_ID\",\"max_tokens\":256,\"messages\":[{\"role\":\"user\",\"content\":\"Reply with one word: OK\"}]}"

Common errors

Symptom	Check and fix
Wrong URL or `404`	OpenAI SDK Base URL includes `/v1`; Anthropic SDK Base URL does not. Do not append the final route to an SDK Base URL.
`401` or missing credential	The examples pass the Key explicitly from `BETTERTOKEN_API_KEY`. Direct OpenAI requests use Bearer; direct Messages requests use `x-api-key`.
Model not found	Replace `YOUR_MODEL_ID` with an exact, available Model ID from the model plaza. Check it for the selected endpoint.
Requests reach an old endpoint	Inspect SDK arguments and inherited variables; see clear conflicting environment variables.
Empty text or an incomplete answer	Inspect the full response and stop reason; check output token limits.

Can I reuse one Key for both SDKs?

Yes. One BetterToken API Key works with all available models. Use the Base URL and request format for each SDK.

Can I add streaming, tools, or structured output?

Streaming and tool calling support varies by model. Test a small request with your Model ID first; follow streaming and tool calling. For JSON validation and model-dependent structured output, see the structured JSON FAQ.

API Reference

Developer guides

Use the OpenAI and Anthropic SDKs with BetterToken

Choose an SDK and Base URL

Prerequisites

Call Chat Completions

Call Responses

Call Messages

Common errors

Can I reuse one Key for both SDKs?

Can I add streaming, tools, or structured output?

Official references

​Choose an SDK and Base URL

​Prerequisites

​Call Chat Completions

​Call Responses

​Call Messages

​Common errors

​Can I reuse one Key for both SDKs?

​Can I add streaming, tools, or structured output?

​Related

​Official references

Choose an SDK and Base URL

Prerequisites

Call Chat Completions

Call Responses

Call Messages

Common errors

Can I reuse one Key for both SDKs?

Can I add streaming, tools, or structured output?

Related

Official references