Brandwave

Cloudflare AI Gateway vs OpenRouter:Which is more popular?

In September 2026, OpenRouter had more branded searches than Cloudflare AI Gateway among AI gateway platforms worldwide. OpenRouter had about 1.2 million branded searches, while Cloudflare AI Gateway had 9,900. OpenRouter made up 86.7% of all AI gateway platform searches we track, and Cloudflare AI Gateway accounted for 0.7%. When we asked ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews about AI gateway platforms, both Cloudflare AI Gateway and OpenRouter appeared in all five answers. Cloudflare AI Gateway was mentioned before OpenRouter in three out of five answers.

Among AI gateway platforms worldwide in September 2026

Who do people search for more?

OpenRouter, about 123 searches for every 1 for Cloudflare AI Gateway

OpenRouter 1.2M searchesCloudflare AI Gateway 9.9K searches

Who does AI mention more?

Both are mentioned in every answer we collected.

Cloudflare AI Gateway in 5 of 5OpenRouter in 5 of 5

Who does AI recommend more?

Cloudflare AI Gateway, named ahead of OpenRouter in 3 of 5 answers

Cloudflare AI Gateway first in 3OpenRouter first in 2

Follow Cloudflare AI Gateway vs OpenRouter and get free monthly updates on what changed

By continuing you'll get index updates and occasional product news from Brandwave. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy

Track your brand against a rival →

Top AI gateway platforms in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, both Cloudflare AI Gateway and OpenRouter showed up in all five answers. Cloudflare AI Gateway was listed before OpenRouter in three of them.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

  1. LiteLLM1st
  2. Portkey2nd
  3. Cloudflare AI Gateway3rd
  4. Kong4th
  5. OpenRouter5th
  6. TrueFoundry6th
  7. Helicone7th

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

  • OpenRouter5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • LiteLLM5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Portkey5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Cloudflare AI Gateway5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • Kong4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
  • TrueFoundry2 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
  • Helicone1 of 5Named in 1 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about AI gateway platforms

5 answers

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in the United States on October 20, 2026.

Is Cloudflare AI Gateway or OpenRouter more popular in search?

This chart shows how often people search Google for Cloudflare AI Gateway and OpenRouter by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all seven AI gateway platforms we track, month by month, from English-language searches worldwide.

Cloudflare AI Gateway and OpenRouter among AI gateway platforms worldwide, by month

Share of searches by month for OpenRouter, Cloudflare AI Gateway. The figures are in the table below the chart.

View monthly share of searches table
MonthOpenRouterLiteLLMPortkeyCloudflare AI GatewayTrueFoundryKongHelicone
Oct 202583.7%9.2%2.8%0.45%0.67%2.2%1%
Nov 202579.7%13.1%3.2%0.52%0.63%1.7%1.2%
Dec 202582.5%11.1%2.7%0.53%0.53%1.4%1.2%
Jan 202682.6%11.1%2.7%0.66%0.54%1.2%1.2%
Feb 202685.8%9.4%1.9%0.84%0.46%0.76%0.84%
Mar 202673.8%22.2%1.6%0.6%0.4%0.66%0.73%
Apr 202684.5%11.4%1.9%0.69%0.37%0.51%0.69%
May 202683.4%11.3%2.8%0.83%0.55%0.5%0.68%
Jun 202686.2%9.5%1.9%0.7%0.7%0.49%0.47%
Jul 202686.4%9.6%1.6%0.86%0.7%0.5%0.38%
Aug 202688.7%8%1.3%0.72%0.59%0.34%0.32%
Sep 202686.7%9.6%1.6%0.7%0.7%0.41%0.31%

How has the Cloudflare AI Gateway and OpenRouter comparison changed over the last 12 months?

3 findings

How did search popularity change for AI gateway platforms worldwide in September 2026?

2 changes

  1. In September 2026, OpenRouter lost share of searches among AI gateway platforms worldwide, from 88.7% to 86.7%.

  2. Estimated monthly branded searches for Cloudflare AI Gateway worldwide rose 312.5% over 12 measured months, from 2.4K to 9.9K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted?

2 search terms

Brandwave collects information about searches that people make online using Cloudflare AI Gateway’s and OpenRouter’s names. When viewed over time, estimated search volumes for these branded terms can be used to understand whether interest in the brands is growing, holding steady, or fading.

Cloudflare AI Gateway

1 branded search term

  • cloudflare ai gateway

OpenRouter

1 branded search term

  • openrouter

How the Brand Demand Index is measured

Other head-to-heads among AI gateway platforms

Creator with pink hair and a pink jacket

Put your own brand in this comparison

Brandwave tracks your branded demand next to the rival you actually watch, with your campaigns, spend and outcomes on the same timeline.

Start free