How to use Windsurf through one API

Windsurf is a fast, agentic AI editor — but juggling separate accounts, billing, and rate limits for each model behind it gets old quickly. The fix is to point Windsurf at a single OpenAI-compatible gateway. With AnyModel, one base URL and one API key reach GPT, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, GLM, Kimi, Qwen, and Grok. Switching models becomes a one-field change, not a re-onboarding project.

Why route Windsurf through one API

Windsurf speaks the OpenAI Chat Completions format, so any OpenAI-compatible provider can slot in as a custom endpoint. Routing through one gateway gives you:

• One key, every model. No per-provider signups or scattered invoices.
• Instant model swaps. Change the model id; everything else stays the same.
• One bill, pay-per-token. No subscription, no minimums, no surprise tiers.

You can compare options on the model comparison page before you decide which to wire into your editor.

What you need first

1. An AnyModel account and API key. Signup gives you 1,000,000 free tokens — and a total of 6,000,000 if you link Telegram. No credit card required.
2. Windsurf installed and updated.
3. The two values every OpenAI-compatible client wants:
   • Base URL: https://anymodel.org/v1
   • API key: your AnyModel key

Note: Windsurf is not part of the one-line installer. That auto-setup only covers codex, claude, opencode, and hermes. Windsurf uses the manual OpenAI-compatible path below — which takes about a minute.

Step-by-step setup in Windsurf

1. Open Windsurf → Settings and find the AI / model configuration (look for "Custom" or "OpenAI-compatible" provider).
2. Set the Base URL to https://anymodel.org/v1.
3. Paste your AnyModel API key.
4. Enter a model id exactly as listed on the models page — for example gpt-5, claude-sonnet-4.5, gemini-2.5-pro, or deepseek-v3.
5. Save, then start a chat or an agent task to confirm responses come back.

That's the whole integration. The same base URL and key work across every supported model, so adding a second model later is just another id.

Verify the connection from your terminal

Before trusting the editor, it's worth a quick sanity check that your key and base URL talk to the gateway. This curl call hits the same endpoint Windsurf uses:

curl https://anymodel.org/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $ANYMODEL_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "model": "gpt-5",
    "messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Say hi from Windsurf"}]
  }'

If you get a JSON completion back, Windsurf will too. To try a different model, change only the model value — the request shape never changes.

Choosing models for editor work

Different tasks reward different models, and one key lets you mix freely:

Because billing is per-token with no plan lock-in, you can keep a cheap model as your default and reach for a stronger one only when a task needs it.

A note on privacy

If your prompts include proprietary code, enable Ghost Mode. It's opt-in, zero-retention: we don't store your prompts or responses — only a token counter for billing. Be honest with yourself about the limits, though: the underlying model provider still receives the prompt to generate a response. Ghost Mode removes our side of retention, not theirs.

Wrapping up

Pointing Windsurf at one OpenAI-compatible endpoint turns model choice into a single editable field and collapses your AI billing into one pay-per-token account. Set the base URL, paste your key, pick a model id, and you're done. For more setup walkthroughs across tools, browse the blog.

Ready to wire it up? Create your free AnyModel account and start with up to 6,000,000 tokens — no credit card needed.