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Helicone vs LiteLLM
Quick verdict
Helicone and LiteLLM are closely matched on licensing, self-hosting and OpenTelemetry support — the decision comes down to pricing and framework integrations below.
Side-by-side comparison from the Agent Observability Index: licensing, self-hosting, pricing model and integrations — no vendor copy, primary sources linked.
| Helicone | LiteLLM | |
|---|---|---|
| One-liner | Proxy/gateway-based LLM logging with one-line setup, unified cost and latency visibility across providers; now under Mintlify ownership. | Open-source LLM proxy/SDK that normalizes 100+ providers behind the OpenAI format with per-key budgets, spend tracking and rate limits. |
| Category | Observability & Tracing | Cost & FinOps |
| OpenTelemetry-native | No | — |
| Open source | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hostable | Yes | Yes |
| Pricing model | freemium | freemium |
| Pricing notes | Free tier + per-seat paid plans; reported in maintenance mode after Mintlify acquisition (Mar 2026) | MIT OSS proxy free; enterprise tier adds SSO/audit features |
| Frameworks | openai-sdk, anthropic, langchain, litellm, vercel-ai | openai-sdk, anthropic, langchain, llamaindex |
| GitHub stars | 5.8k | 50.2k |
| Maturity (GitHub signal) | 97/100 (Mature) | 90/100 (Mature) |
| Funding / ownership | YC W23; acquired by Mintlify (Mar 2026) | YC W23 (BerriAI) |
How to choose
- Both link to primary pricing sources below — verify current tiers before committing; this market shifts monthly.
Frequently asked questions
Is Helicone or LiteLLM open source?
Helicone: Yes. LiteLLM: Yes.
Can Helicone and LiteLLM be self-hosted?
Helicone: Yes. LiteLLM: Yes.
Helicone vs LiteLLM: which should I choose?
Helicone and LiteLLM are closely matched on licensing, self-hosting and OpenTelemetry support — the decision comes down to pricing and framework integrations below.