Question 1

What is RelayPlane?

Accepted Answer

RelayPlane is an npm-native Node.js LLM proxy. Install with npm install @relayplane/proxy, point your ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL or OPENAI_BASE_URL at http://localhost:4100, and get per-request cost tracking, complexity-based model routing, and Ollama local fallback — no Docker required.

Question 2

How does RelayPlane compare to LiteLLM?

Accepted Answer

LiteLLM is a Python library with a proxy server option. RelayPlane is npm-native for Node.js developers — no Python, no Docker, just npm install. RelayPlane has per-request cost tracking built in and integrates directly with Claude Code, Cursor, and OpenClaw via a simple base URL override.

Question 3

How does RelayPlane compare to Portkey or Helicone?

Accepted Answer

Portkey and Helicone offer cloud observability and are npm-compatible. RelayPlane runs entirely locally (no cloud required), is open source under MIT, and focuses on cost tracking plus complexity-based routing for Node.js developers using Claude Code, Cursor, and OpenClaw.

Question 4

Does RelayPlane work with Claude Code and Cursor?

Accepted Answer

Yes. RelayPlane is designed for Claude Code, Cursor, and any tool that supports ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL or OPENAI_BASE_URL. Set ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=http://localhost:4100 and RelayPlane intercepts every request, tracks costs, and routes to cheaper models for simple tasks.

Question 5

Is RelayPlane free?

Accepted Answer

Yes. RelayPlane is open source (MIT license) and free to self-host. All features work locally with no account required. There are no paid tiers currently.

Question 6

How do I install the RelayPlane npm LLM proxy?

Accepted Answer

Run: npm install -g @relayplane/proxy. Then: relayplane init && relayplane start. The local dashboard runs at http://localhost:4100. Set ANTHROPIC_BASE_URL=http://localhost:4100 in your environment and all Claude requests route through RelayPlane automatically.

Variable	Default	Where used
`RELAYPLANE_API_URL`	https://api.relayplane.com	CLI login flow, telemetry, swarm client
`RELAYPLANE_API_KEY`	unset	Cloud auth for telemetry/swarm
`RELAYPLANE_CONFIG_PATH`	~/.relayplane/config.json	Custom standalone proxy config path
`RELAYPLANE_QUALITY_MODEL`	claude-opus-4-6	Quality fallback model
`RELAYPLANE_PROXY_PORT`	4100	launcher.ts default port
`RELAYPLANE_PROXY_HOST`	127.0.0.1	launcher.ts default host

Environment Variables

Provider API keys

RelayPlane variables

System/runtime variables