# Open WebUI

> Connect a self-hosted Open WebUI to the gateway as an OpenAI-compatible connection, so every model your key can use appears in its model picker.

Source: https://oneaiapikey.com/docs/apps/open-webui

[Open WebUI](https://openwebui.com) is a self-hosted chat interface. It talks to the gateway as an OpenAI-compatible connection and reads the model list from `GET /v1/models`, so you do not have to type model ids. Checked against Open WebUI v0.11.4.

You need an API key from [API keys](https://oneaiapikey.com/console/keys) and this base URL:

Base URL `https://api.oneaiapikey.com/v1`

## Add the connection

1. Sign in to Open WebUI as an admin and open **Admin Panel → Settings → Connections**.
2. Next to **OpenAI API**, click **+** (Add Connection).
3. Set **URL** to the base URL above, including `/v1`, and paste your key as the API key.
4. Save. Open WebUI fetches the model list; the models your key can use appear in the model picker of a new chat.
5. Start a chat, pick a model such as `claude-haiku-4-5`, and send a message. The request shows up on your [usage page](https://oneaiapikey.com/console/usage).

## Or set it at first start

With Docker, you can pass the connection as environment variables. Open WebUI reads them only the first time it starts; after that, the settings saved in the admin panel take over.

First start with Docker:

```bash
docker run -d -p 3000:8080 \
  -e OPENAI_API_BASE_URL=https://api.oneaiapikey.com/v1 \
  -e OPENAI_API_KEY=$RELAYKIT_API_KEY \
  -v open-webui:/app/backend/data \
  --name open-webui ghcr.io/open-webui/open-webui:main
```

## Keep costs down

- Open WebUI makes extra background requests to title chats and suggest tags. Under **Admin Panel → Settings → Interface**, set the task model to a cheap, fast model so those calls do not run on an expensive one.
- To show only some models, create a key whose model list contains just those models (see [per-key settings](https://oneaiapikey.com/docs/authentication#per-key-settings)). The picker then lists only them.
- Give Open WebUI its own key with a spend limit, separate from your other apps.

## Troubleshooting

- **No models in the picker**: the URL must end in `/v1`, and the key must be valid. Check the key with the request on [Authentication](https://oneaiapikey.com/docs/authentication#check-that-a-key-works).
- **A model fails with 403**: the key’s model list does not include it, or your balance is empty. See [Errors](https://oneaiapikey.com/docs/errors#access-denied).

> **Source:** Steps follow Open WebUI’s guide for [OpenAI-compatible providers](https://docs.openwebui.com/getting-started/quick-start/connect-a-provider/starting-with-openai-compatible/). Menu names can change between releases; check there if yours differ.