--- title: "litellm vs gateway" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/berriai-litellm-vs-missingstudio-gateway" tools: ["berriai-litellm", "missingstudio-gateway"] --- # litellm vs gateway *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick litellm when litellm is primarily Python; gateway is Go; pick gateway when gateway is primarily Go; litellm is Python. [litellm](https://docs.litellm.ai/docs/) reports 53k GitHub stars, 9.7k forks, and 3.9k open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. [gateway](https://www.missing.studio) has 159 stars, 17 forks, and 10 open issues, last pushed Apr 8, 2024. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [litellm's repository](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm) and [gateway's repository](https://github.com/missingstudio/gateway). | | [litellm](/tools/berriai-litellm.md) | [gateway](/tools/missingstudio-gateway.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | Python SDK and Proxy Server for calling multiple LLM APIs | [deprecated] AI Gateway - core infrastructure stack for building production-ready AI Applications | | Stars | 53,271 | 159 | | Forks | 9,671 | 17 | | Open issues | 3,915 | 10 | | Language | Python | Go | | Adopt for | litellm is a Python SDK and Proxy Server that facilitates the interaction with over 100 LLM APIs, offering features such as cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging. | - | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | The licensing terms for LiteLLM are provided under a license type categorized as 'Other'; details of the exact license should be referenced directly from its source. | Apache-2.0 | | Categories | Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | Computer Vision, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [litellm](/tools/berriai-litellm.md) | [gateway](/tools/missingstudio-gateway.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Very active (96%) | Dormant (18%) | | Days since push | 0d | 824d | | Open issues (now) | 3.9k | 10 | | Security scan | 2 low (2 low) | No lockfile | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/berriai-litellm/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: litellm - **Pricing:** freemium - While the core functionality is provided free, specific extended features might require a paid plan. - **Requirements:** Requires Docker - **Adopt for:** litellm is a Python SDK and Proxy Server that facilitates the interaction with over 100 LLM APIs, offering features such as cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging. - **License detail:** The licensing terms for LiteLLM are provided under a license type categorized as 'Other'; details of the exact license should be referenced directly from its source. ## Choose when ### Choose litellm if… - litellm is primarily Python; gateway is Go. - License: litellm is Other, gateway is Apache-2.0. - Pricing: While the core functionality is provided free, specific extended features might require a paid plan.. - Requirements: Requires Docker. - Tags unique to litellm: ai-gateway, azure-openai, bedrock, llm. - When you need to integrate multiple LLM (Language Learning Modelling) APIs into your application across different providers like Bedrock, Azure, OpenAI, VertexAI, Cohere, Anthropic, Sagemaker, Hugging ### Choose gateway if… - gateway is primarily Go; litellm is Python. - License: gateway is Apache-2.0, litellm is Other. - Tags unique to gateway: ai, aistudio, api, gateway. - Also covers Computer Vision. ## When NOT to use litellm - If your project only requires interaction with a single LLM API and basic functionalities, litellm may be overkill. ## When NOT to use gateway - Last GitHub push was 825 days ago (dormant maintenance, Apr 8, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on gateway. - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ## Common questions ### What is the difference between litellm and gateway? litellm: Python SDK and Proxy Server for calling multiple LLM APIs. gateway: [deprecated] AI Gateway - core infrastructure stack for building production-ready AI Applications. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose litellm over gateway? Choose litellm over gateway when litellm is primarily Python; gateway is Go; License: litellm is Other, gateway is Apache-2.0; Pricing: While the core functionality is provided free, specific extended features might require a paid plan.; Requirements: Requires Docker; Tags unique to litellm: ai-gateway, azure-openai, bedrock, llm; When you need to integrate multiple LLM (Language Learning Modelling) APIs into your application across different providers like Bedrock, Azure, OpenAI, VertexAI, Cohere, Anthropic, Sagemaker, Hugging. ### When should I choose gateway over litellm? Choose gateway over litellm when gateway is primarily Go; litellm is Python; License: gateway is Apache-2.0, litellm is Other; Tags unique to gateway: ai, aistudio, api, gateway; Also covers Computer Vision. ### When should I avoid litellm? If your project only requires interaction with a single LLM API and basic functionalities, litellm may be overkill. ### When should I avoid gateway? Last GitHub push was 825 days ago (dormant maintenance, Apr 8, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on gateway. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ### Is litellm or gateway more popular on GitHub? litellm has more GitHub stars (53,271 vs 159). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are litellm and gateway open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (litellm: Other, gateway: Apache-2.0). ### Where can I find alternatives to litellm or gateway? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [litellm alternatives](/tools/berriai-litellm/alternatives) and [gateway alternatives](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/alternatives) ([litellm markdown twin](/tools/berriai-litellm/alternatives.md), [gateway markdown twin](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/berriai-litellm-vs-missingstudio-gateway.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, litellm or gateway? litellm: Very active. gateway: Dormant. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for litellm and gateway? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [litellm trust report](/tools/berriai-litellm/trust); [gateway trust report](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=berriai-litellm`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=berriai-litellm) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_