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I shifted from DeepSeek v4 Flash 0731 to Gemini 3.7 flash on openrouter and price shoots up almost double with no visible change in outcome. So, today I reverte

by gagan2020 2mo ago

I shifted from DeepSeek v4 Flash 0731 to Gemini 3.7 flash on openrouter and price shoots up almost double with no visible change in outcome. So, today I reverted back.

Bayart 2mo ago
Try DS through their own API if that's feasible, AFAIK they're much cheaper than through OS due to cache hit rates.
- pimeys 2mo ago
  They just raised their prices sadly.
- bogdan 2mo ago
  Is there actually a difference in cache rates between OR and official API? I have a preset set up on OR so that I only send traffic to deepseek. The preset is important otherwise you will send traffic to different providers but if you weren't doing this already then what can I say, water is wet, of course cache rates will be awful. I get about 70% cache hit rate with the preset which is appropriate for what I'm doing. I haven't used the official API though.
  - irthomasthomas 2mo ago
    Zenmux say the cache hit rate is 98% for the deepseek flash API. I don't know why, but performance is definitely worse using openrouter. https://zenmux.ai/deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash https://zenmux.ai/deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash
    - Bayart 2mo ago
      Could be compression or metadata in their pipeline adding noise and making requests less generic.
- guntribam 2mo ago
  I'm using hermes and keep close control over open router provider to DSv4 flash 0731 Use only the deepseek provider, you can configure openrouter to do that(but they create some obstacles, go to configurations and allow all providers) Right now i'm testing deepseek harness, don't wait to test it. The plugin architecture and self awareness of workflows really make you think about "what is a tool vs what is a project". It has been an amazing experience
- r_lee 2mo ago
  they will train / retain your prompts though, so to me it's not a valid option
irthomasthomas 2mo ago
Openrouter is going to cost you a lot more than the 5% fee, unless you lock the provider.

I shifted from DeepSeek v4 Flash 0731 to Gemini 3.7 flash on openrouter and price shoots up almost double with no visible change in outcome. So, today I reverted back.

Bayart 2mo ago

Try DS through their own API if that's feasible, AFAIK they're much cheaper than through OS due to cache hit rates.

pimeys 2mo ago
They just raised their prices sadly.
bogdan 2mo ago
Is there actually a difference in cache rates between OR and official API? I have a preset set up on OR so that I only send traffic to deepseek. The preset is important otherwise you will send traffic to different providers but if you weren't doing this already then what can I say, water is wet, of course cache rates will be awful. I get about 70% cache hit rate with the preset which is appropriate for what I'm doing. I haven't used the official API though.
- irthomasthomas 2mo ago
  Zenmux say the cache hit rate is 98% for the deepseek flash API. I don't know why, but performance is definitely worse using openrouter. https://zenmux.ai/deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash https://zenmux.ai/deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash
  - Bayart 2mo ago
    Could be compression or metadata in their pipeline adding noise and making requests less generic.
guntribam 2mo ago
I'm using hermes and keep close control over open router provider to DSv4 flash 0731 Use only the deepseek provider, you can configure openrouter to do that(but they create some obstacles, go to configurations and allow all providers) Right now i'm testing deepseek harness, don't wait to test it. The plugin architecture and self awareness of workflows really make you think about "what is a tool vs what is a project". It has been an amazing experience
r_lee 2mo ago
they will train / retain your prompts though, so to me it's not a valid option

irthomasthomas 2mo ago

Openrouter is going to cost you a lot more than the 5% fee, unless you lock the provider.