Skip to main content
Beta Claude Desktop can authenticate to OpenRouter with interactive sign-in through OpenID Connect (OIDC). Each user signs in to OpenRouter in the browser and approves access, and Claude Desktop sends requests to OpenRouter with the resulting access token. Nobody copies an API key into Claude Desktop, and usage is attributed to the user who signed in. For Anthropic’s documentation of this setup, see Single sign-on with your identity provider in the Claude Desktop LLM gateway guide. To connect Claude Desktop with a static API key instead, see Claude Desktop.
Claude Desktop with OpenRouter is only guaranteed to work with the Anthropic first-party provider. For maximum compatibility, we recommend setting Anthropic 1P as top priority provider when using Claude Desktop.

​
Prerequisites

  • Claude Desktop installed: Download the latest version from Anthropic.
  • An OpenRouter account: Sign in at openrouter.ai.

​
Step 1: Enable Developer Mode

Launch Claude Desktop — you do not need to sign in. Open Help > Troubleshooting and click Enable Developer Mode. This adds a Developer menu to your menu bar.
Claude Desktop Help menu showing Troubleshooting submenu with Enable Developer Mode highlighted

​
Step 2: Open the Third-Party Inference panel

Click Developer > Configure Third-Party Inference… in the menu bar.
Claude Desktop Developer menu with Configure Third-Party Inference highlighted

​
Step 3: Configure the gateway for OpenRouter sign-in

On the Connection tab, set the connection to Gateway, then enter the following values: Under Identity provider (OIDC), enter the OpenRouter sign-in settings: With Credential kind set to Identity provider sign-in (OIDC), Claude Desktop uses only the token from your OpenRouter sign-in and does not fall back to another credential source. Append offline_access lets Claude Desktop refresh your session without asking you to sign in again each time the access token expires.
Claude Desktop Configure third-party inference panel with Gateway selected, Credential kind set to Identity provider sign-in (OIDC), and the OpenRouter Client ID, Issuer URL, Bearer token, Scopes, and Append offline_access fields highlighted

​
Step 4: Apply changes and sign in

Click Apply Changes. Claude Desktop restarts and shows Sign in with your organization.
Claude Desktop welcome screen with the Sign in with your organization button
Click Sign in with your organization to open the OpenRouter sign-in page in your browser, and sign in to your OpenRouter account.

​
Step 5: Approve access for Claude

After you sign in, OpenRouter asks you to approve access for Claude Desktop. Choose where usage is billed and which key Claude Desktop uses:
  • Org and Workspace: The organization and workspace that pay for Claude Desktop usage.
  • Key source: Select New key to create a key for Claude Desktop, or Existing key to reuse a key you already have, for example to share a credit limit with other tools.
  • Key label, Expiration, and Credit limit (optional): Settings for a new key.
Confirm that the callback URL is a local address on your computer (http://127.0.0.1:...), then click Allow. If the callback URL points anywhere else, don’t click Allow. Close the page and start the sign-in again from Claude Desktop.
OpenRouter consent page asking to allow Claude to access OpenRouter, with Org, Workspace, and Key source options
The browser returns you to Claude Desktop, which is now signed in to OpenRouter.

​
Step 6: Select your model

The model picker displays the models available through your OpenRouter connection.

​
Deploy with MDM

If you manage Claude Desktop with a mobile device management (MDM) profile, set these values in the managed configuration instead of the Third-Party Inference panel. When a managed profile is present, Claude Desktop reads its inference settings from that profile and users cannot edit the panel. In the managed configuration, set the credential kind to identity provider sign-in (inferenceCredentialKind) and set the gateway OIDC settings (inferenceGatewayOidc) to the values from Step 3. Each user then signs in with their own OpenRouter account, so you do not need to distribute API keys to their devices. For the exact key format, see Single sign-on configuration keys and the Claude Desktop configuration reference.

​
Troubleshooting

  • “Sign in with your organization” not showing: Make sure Credential kind is set to Identity provider sign-in (OIDC) and you clicked Apply Changes. If Claude Desktop doesn’t restart on its own, fully quit and reopen it.
  • Sign-in fails or returns to the start screen: Confirm that Client ID, Issuer URL, and Scopes match Step 3 and that Bearer token is set to Access token, then sign in again. Make sure you clicked Allow on the OpenRouter approval page.
  • Connection errors: Check that Gateway base URL is exactly https://openrouter.ai/api.
  • No models appearing: Make sure the account or workspace you approved has credits. Check your balance at openrouter.ai/credits.
For sandbox, egress, and other issues that apply to every Claude Desktop setup, see Claude Desktop troubleshooting.