Home/Compare/litellm vs gateway

Comparison

litellm vs gateway

Verdict

Pick litellm if litellm is a Rust core with a Python SDK that serves as an AI gateway for over 100 LLM APIs, offering features like cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging; pick gateway if a high-performance AI Gateway named 'gateway', supporting over 1,600 LLM connections and featuring various guardrail mechanisms for safer utilization.

Markdown twin · litellm alternatives · gateway alternatives

GraphCanon updated Sep 20, 2026

15views this month

litellm logo

litellm

BerriAI/litellm

★ 59kpushed Sep 18, 2026
vs
gateway logo

gateway

Portkey-AI/gateway

★ 13kpushed May 25, 2026

Trust & integrity

Signallitellmgateway
Maintenance
Very active (0d since push)
As of Sep 18, 2026 · github_public_v1
Slowing (104d since push)
As of Sep 7, 2026 · github_public_v1
Provenance
Not a fork · Organization account
As of Sep 18, 2026 · github_public_v1
Not a fork · Organization account
As of Sep 7, 2026 · github_public_v1
OSV dependency advisories
Published findings
As of Sep 18, 2026 · osv@v1
No lockfile (source not queried)
As of Jul 11, 2026 · osv@v1
deps.dev advisories
Not queried
deps.dev@v1
Not queried
deps.dev@v1
OpenSSF Scorecard
Not queried
openssf-scorecard@v1
Not queried
openssf-scorecard@v1

Tagline

litellm
The fastest, lightest AI Gateway
gateway
A high-performance AI Gateway connecting to over 1,600 LLMs with guardrails.

Stars

litellm
59k
gateway
13k

Forks

litellm
12k
gateway
1.3k

Open issues

litellm
5.2k
gateway
258

Language

litellm
Python
gateway
TypeScript

Adopt for

litellm
litellm is a Rust core with a Python SDK that serves as an AI gateway for over 100 LLM APIs, offering features like cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging.
gateway
A high-performance AI Gateway named 'gateway', supporting over 1,600 LLM connections and featuring various guardrail mechanisms for safer utilization.

Persona

litellm
-
gateway
-

Runtime

litellm
-
gateway
-

License

litellm
Other
gateway
MIT

Last pushed

litellm
Sep 18, 2026
gateway
May 25, 2026

Categories

litellm
Inference & Serving
gateway
Evaluation & Observability, LLM Frameworks

Trust and health

Maintenance

litellm
Very active (96%)
gateway
Slowing (36%)

Days since push

litellm
0d
gateway
104d

Open issues (now)

litellm
5.2k
gateway
258

Stars delta

litellm
+3.8k (30d)
gateway
+252 (30d)

Open issues delta

litellm
+578 (30d)
gateway
+16 (30d)

OSV dependency advisories

litellm
Published findings
gateway
No lockfile (source not queried)

Full report

Typed relationship

litellm integrates gatewayGateway integrates with litellm as both are AI gateway solutions that route requests to various language models, though gateway supports a larger number of models (over 1600) compared to litellm's over 100. The integration could enable extended model support and feature complementarity between the two tools.

Choose litellm if…

  • litellm is primarily Python; gateway is TypeScript.
  • License: litellm is Other, gateway is MIT.
  • Gateway integrates with litellm as both are AI gateway solutions that route requests to various language models, though gateway supports a larger number of models (over 1600) compared to litellm's over 100. The integration could enable extended model support and feature complementarity between the two tools.
  • Tags unique to litellm: anthropic, azure-openai, bedrock, litellm.
  • Also covers Inference & Serving.
  • When you need a fast and lightweight AI gateway that supports over 100 LLM APIs in OpenAI or native format.

When NOT to use litellm

  • If you are working in an environment where Rust or Python is not supported or preferred.
  • When you need a tool that is not focused on performance and lightweight operations, as litellm is optimized for speed and efficiency.
  • If you require a tool that does not support a wide range of LLM APIs and providers, as litellm is designed to work with over 100 APIs.
  • When you need a tool that does not offer cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging, as these are key features of litellm.

Choose gateway if…

  • gateway is primarily TypeScript; litellm is Python.
  • License: gateway is MIT, litellm is Other.
  • Pricing: The service is open source and MIT licensed; specific pricing for related services (if any) not detailed in repository..
  • Requirements: Developed using TypeScript; no Docker requirement specified for operation or development..
  • Gateway integrates with litellm as both are AI gateway solutions that route requests to various language models, though gateway supports a larger number of models (over 1600) compared to litellm's over 100. The integration could enable extended model support and feature complementarity between the two tools.
  • Tags unique to gateway: gateway, generative-ai, llmops.
  • Also covers Evaluation & Observability, LLM Frameworks.
  • Use gateway when you need a versatile platform capable of connecting to more than 1,600 LLM providers.

When NOT to use gateway

  • Avoid using gateway if your application only requires connection to a limited number of LLM providers, as its extensive provider support might introduce unnecessary complexity.
  • If you don't require sophisticated cost management features such as smart caching or usage analytics provided by the tool, consider simpler alternatives.

Explore

Sources

Every stat on this page traces to a dated GitHub sync, license file, enrichment field, or trust scan.

GitHub stars on cards: litellm 59k · gateway 13k (synced Sep 20, 2026).

Common questions

What is the difference between litellm and gateway?
litellm: The fastest, lightest AI Gateway. gateway: A high-performance AI Gateway connecting to over 1,600 LLMs with guardrails.. 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 TypeScript; License: litellm is Other, gateway is MIT; Gateway integrates with litellm as both are AI gateway solutions that route requests to various language models, though gateway supports a larger number of models (over 1600) compared to litellm's over 100. The integration could enable extended model support and feature complementarity between the two tools; Tags unique to litellm: anthropic, azure-openai, bedrock, litellm; Also covers Inference & Serving; When you need a fast and lightweight AI gateway that supports over 100 LLM APIs in OpenAI or native format.
When should I choose gateway over litellm?
Choose gateway over litellm when gateway is primarily TypeScript; litellm is Python; License: gateway is MIT, litellm is Other; Pricing: The service is open source and MIT licensed; specific pricing for related services (if any) not detailed in repository.; Requirements: Developed using TypeScript; no Docker requirement specified for operation or development.; Gateway integrates with litellm as both are AI gateway solutions that route requests to various language models, though gateway supports a larger number of models (over 1600) compared to litellm's over 100. The integration could enable extended model support and feature complementarity between the two tools; Tags unique to gateway: gateway, generative-ai, llmops; Also covers Evaluation & Observability, LLM Frameworks; Use gateway when you need a versatile platform capable of connecting to more than 1,600 LLM providers.
When should I avoid litellm?
If you are working in an environment where Rust or Python is not supported or preferred. When you need a tool that is not focused on performance and lightweight operations, as litellm is optimized for speed and efficiency. If you require a tool that does not support a wide range of LLM APIs and providers, as litellm is designed to work with over 100 APIs. When you need a tool that does not offer cost tracking, guardrails, load balancing, and logging, as these are key features of litellm.
When should I avoid gateway?
Avoid using gateway if your application only requires connection to a limited number of LLM providers, as its extensive provider support might introduce unnecessary complexity. If you don't require sophisticated cost management features such as smart caching or usage analytics provided by the tool, consider simpler alternatives.
Is litellm or gateway more popular on GitHub?
litellm has more GitHub stars (59,051 vs 12,920). 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: MIT).
Where can I find alternatives to litellm or gateway?
GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at litellm alternatives and gateway alternatives (litellm markdown twin, gateway markdown twin), 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 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: Slowing. 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; gateway trust report.

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