# Why should I use an OpenAI API key in a Pickaxe?

**URL:** <https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48>\
**Category:** General\
**Created:** [February 25, 2024, 9:22pm UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48 "2024-02-25T21:22:09Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![jmacpherson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e47774/32.png) [@jmacpherson](https://community.pickaxe.co/u/jmacpherson)\
**Post date:** [February 25, 2024, 9:22pm UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48/1 "2024-02-25T21:22:09Z")

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I’m wondering if there are any benefits to using an OpenAI API key within Pickaxe? Are there advantages to using OpenAI’s key as opposed to others, specifically ones that are free? As a more general question, I’m curious as to when I should use an API key?

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**Author:** ![admin\_mike](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex004/user_avatar/community.pickaxe.co/admin_mike/32/283_2.png) [@admin\_mike](https://community.pickaxe.co/u/admin_mike)\
**Post date:** [February 26, 2024, 7:17pm UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48/2 "2024-02-26T19:17:29Z")

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There are multiple benefits to using an OpenAI API key in Pickaxe. It doesn’t make always make sense to use your own API key, but if you are running a business with your Pickaxes and experiencing a lot of usage, it is almost certainly a good idea.

The main benefits are as follows:

- You will get _unlimited usage_.
- It is cheaper to buy usage from OpenAI than buying more credits from Pickaxe. This is because Pickaxe aims not to be a middle-man selling credits to you.

Here is a [little guide](https://beta.pickaxeproject.com/post/how-to-get-your-openai-api-key-a-step-by-step-guide) explaining the benefits and purposes of using your own OpenAI API key. Getting an API key might sound intimidating, but it’s actually quite simple. Here is a video explaining how to find it in a couple steps.

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**Author:** ![mercilssartist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5f8ce5/32.png) [@mercilssartist](https://community.pickaxe.co/u/mercilssartist)\
**Post date:** [March 31, 2024, 2:32am UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48/3 "2024-03-31T02:32:29Z")

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Is it possible to use an API for a language model that is not from OpenAI?

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**Author:** ![admin\_mike](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/flex004/user_avatar/community.pickaxe.co/admin_mike/32/283_2.png) [@admin\_mike](https://community.pickaxe.co/u/admin_mike)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2024, 5:33pm UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48/4 "2024-04-08T17:33:58Z")

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We will be adding more models (such as Mistral and Claude) soon. Right now we only support OpenAI models

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**Author:** ![hojeesum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3ab097/32.png) [@hojeesum](https://community.pickaxe.co/u/hojeesum)\
**Post date:** [August 30, 2024, 8:07pm UTC](https://community.pickaxe.co/t/why-should-i-use-an-openai-api-key-in-a-pickaxe/48/5 "2024-08-30T20:07:01Z")

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Would it be possible to first use all the Pickaxe credits and then use the API Key?