Documentation
Everything you need to stop paying for AI.
Getting Started
Install & Run
# one-shot, no install required
$ npx xswarm-freeloader
$ npx xswarm-freeloader
This starts an OpenAI-compatible proxy on http://localhost:4011. Point any OpenAI SDK at it.
Global Install
$ npm install -g xswarm-freeloader
$ freeloader start
$ freeloader start
Set your base URL
# .env
OPENAI_BASE_URL=http://localhost:4011
OPENAI_API_KEY=free # any string
OPENAI_BASE_URL=http://localhost:4011
OPENAI_API_KEY=free # any string
Configuration
Create freeloader.config.json in your project root:
{
"port": 4011,
"budget": {
"monthly_usd": 0 // hard cap at $0
},
"strategy": "free-first",
"trust_tier": "standard",
"providers": ["google", "groq", "together", "ollama"]
}
"port": 4011,
"budget": {
"monthly_usd": 0 // hard cap at $0
},
"strategy": "free-first",
"trust_tier": "standard",
"providers": ["google", "groq", "together", "ollama"]
}
strategy "free-first" | "cheapest" | "fastest" | "best" How to select models trust_tier "open" | "standard" | "private" Maximum trust level for routing budget.monthly_usd number Hard monthly spend cap (0 = free only) providers string[] Enabled provider adapters cache boolean Enable prompt-level caching (default: true) API Reference
Freeloader implements the OpenAI API spec. All existing OpenAI SDK calls work unchanged.
POST
/v1/chat/completions Chat completions (streaming supported) POST
/v1/completions Text completions GET
/v1/models List available models POST
/v1/embeddings Text embeddings GET
/health Health check + current routing status GET
/stats Token usage, cost savings, model breakdown Trust Tiers
Control where your data goes based on sensitivity.
openOpen Source Models
Routes only to fully open-source models (Llama, Mistral, Qwen). Weights are public — no data retention promises needed.
standardStandard Providers
Includes reputable commercial free tiers (Gemini, Mistral API) with standard data processing agreements.
privateAll Providers
No restrictions. Uses any available model including paid commercial APIs when free options are exhausted.
Provider Adapters
Freeloader ships adapters for:
✓ Google Gemini
✓ Groq
✓ Together AI
✓ Mistral
✓ Ollama (local)
✓ LM Studio (local)
✓ OpenRouter
✓ Hugging Face