Helicone vs vLLM Semantic Router
Helicone
helicone.aivLLM Semantic Router
vllm-sr.aiSide by side
| Figure | Helicone | vLLM Semantic Router |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $79/mo | — |
| Free plan | Yes | — |
| Free trial | Yes | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| API | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 4 | 0 |
| Spec score · LLM Gateway Software | 8.3 (#9) | 7.2 (#31) |
| Spec score · LLM gateways | 8.3 (#12) | 7.3 (#26) |
| Purpose | Helicone routes, debugs, and analyzes AI applications. | vLLM Semantic Router is an open, programmable decision layer that selects or combines models for each call according to policy. |
| Routing | The platform provides smart load balancing, automatic failovers, and response caching across providers. | It selects a model backend per request using signals that can include context, intent, safety, preferences, and system state. |
| Support | The pricing page lists community support through GitHub and Discord. | The site links to GitHub Discussions as a community resource. |
Plans
In their own words
Helicone
Helicone routes, debugs, and analyzes AI applications through a gateway and observability tools. The gateway provides access to more than 100 models through the OpenAI SDK by changing the model name, and supports load balancing, automatic failovers, and response caching across providers. Helicone logs requests in real time and visualizes multi-step LLM interactions to help locate error causes. Listed integrations include OpenAI, Anthropic, Azure, LiteLLM, Anyscale, Together AI, and OpenRouter. It can run in customer infrastructure through single-click deployment or a production-ready Helm chart; Helicone also states that its cloud is SOC 2, HIPAA, and GDPR compliant. A LangGraph integration tracks calls, sessions, performance, and costs, while an API cost calculator covers more than 300 models and providers. The free Hobby plan includes 10,000 requests, 1 GB storage, one seat, one organization, and seven days of retention. Pro costs $79.00 per month. A seven-day trial is advertised. Helicone says its services remain live in maintenance mode following acquisition by Mintlify, with security updates, new models, and bug and performance fixes continuing.
vLLM Semantic Router
vLLM Semantic Router has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.