5 AI API Tips Every Developer Should Know in 2026

1. Use an API Gateway Instead of Direct Keys Stop juggling multiple API keys. An API gateway like Crazyrouter gives you one key for 600+ models — GPT, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, all through OpenAI-compatible format. # One key, any model export OPENAI_API_KEY = "sk-your-gateway-key" export OPENAI_BASE_URL = "https://crazyrouter.com/v1" 2. Match Model to Task Complexity Don't use GPT-4o for everything. Use cheap models for simple tasks: Task Model Cost/1M tokens Tab completion gpt-4o-mini $0.15 Daily coding deepseek-chat $0.14 Complex review claude-sonnet-4 $3.00 This alone can cut your AI bill by 90%. 3. Set Environment Variables Once Most AI tools (Cursor, Cline, Aider, Continue) auto-detect OPENAI_API_KEY and OPENAI_BASE_URL . Set them in your shell profile and forget about per-tool configuration. 4. Stream Responses for Better UX from openai import OpenAI client = OpenAI ( base_url = " https://crazyrouter.com/v1 " ) stream = client . chat . completions . create ( model = " deepseek-ch