Free

OpenMeter

Open-source metering for usage-based billing on AI and API products.

4.1 Very good 4.1
Open source and self-hostable for a billing-critical component Hosted pricing tiers render client-side
Reviewed by Challenging Voice Editorial · Updated Aug 2026 How we rate
PricingFree
Free planYes
CompanyKong
PlatformsAPI, Web
CategoryAI Infrastructure & Agent Tooling
Last reviewedAug 2026
Ask AI about OpenMeter ChatGPT Claude Perplexity

Overview

OpenMeter measures consumption so a product can bill for it: real-time metering of AI token usage and API calls, entitlements, and the flexible pricing models that usage-based products need.

Metering is a genuinely hard engineering problem that companies keep rebuilding badly. Counting events accurately enough to charge for them, at high volume and without dropping records, is the sort of thing that looks simple until the first billing dispute arrives.

It is open source, now under Kong, and can be self-hosted. Pricing tiers for the hosted service render client-side, self-hosting is operational work you own, and billing infrastructure is a component you cannot afford to get wrong once customers are on it.

Key features

  • Real-time usage metering
  • Token and API call measurement
  • Entitlements management
  • Flexible usage-based pricing models
  • Open source, self-hostable

Screenshots & demo

Demo video

Screenshots

OpenMeter screenshot 1

Pricing

OpenMeter offers a free plan, with paid upgrades for higher limits and more features.

  • Pricing modelFree
  • Starting priceFree
  • Free planYes
Visit OpenMeter

Pricing is provided as a guide. Check the official site for the latest plans.

Is OpenMeter expensive?

OpenMeter has no advertised paid tier. Among the 70 priced tools we list in AI Infrastructure & Agent Tooling, the median entry price is $29 a month.

54% of AI Infrastructure & Agent Tooling tools in the directory offer a free tier, and this is one of them.

Compared against every priced listing in AI Infrastructure & Agent Tooling, recalculated as the catalogue changes. Method and the full market breakdown are in our AI tool pricing study.

Pros & cons

Pros

  • Open source and self-hostable for a billing-critical component
  • Handles a problem companies repeatedly rebuild badly
  • Backed by Kong rather than a lone maintainer

Cons

  • Hosted pricing tiers render client-side
  • Self-hosting billing infrastructure is real operational responsibility
  • Metering errors surface as customer billing disputes

How it compares

ToolRatingFreeFromBest known for
OpenMeter (this tool)4.1YesFreeReal-time usage metering
Meteron AI3.6YesFreeUsage metering for LLM and generative AI products
LLMStack3.9YesFreeNo-code builder for agents and chatbots
Avian.io3.9No—OpenAI-compatible API for open-source frontier models (DeepSeek, Kimi, GLM, MiniMax)

Alternatives to OpenMeter

4 tools matched to OpenMeter on what they do, their category and their price.

Frequently asked questions

What is OpenMeter?
OpenMeter measures consumption so a product can bill for it: real-time metering of AI token usage and API calls, entitlements, and the flexible pricing models that usage-based products need.
Is OpenMeter free?
Yes, OpenMeter offers a free plan. Paid plans unlock more features and higher usage limits.
What are the best OpenMeter alternatives?
The closest matches in the directory are Meteron AI, LLMStack, and Avian.io, compared side by side above.

Reviews

4.1 Editorial rating No reviews yet

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