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Direct API keys

Get your OpenAI Direct API key

On this page

Your OpenAI Direct API key lets this app use your OpenAI account. Paste it into the app. Outlet checks its format on your device and passes it to the app. Outlet never receives it.

Heads up: this is your API account, not ChatGPT. An OpenAI API account lives at platform.openai.com and has its own balance, separate from a ChatGPT subscription. The key only works once that balance has credit, so add a few dollars under Billing if your account is new.

Steps

A

Sign in to the OpenAI platform

Go to platform.openai.com and sign in, creating the account if you don't have one.

B

Open the API keys page

Go straight to platform.openai.com/api-keys, or click API Keys in the sidebar.

The OpenAI API keys page with the sidebar entry and the Create new secret key button marked
1  API Keys in the sidebar.  2  Create new secret key, top right.
C

Create the key

Click Create new secret key. Under Owned by, choose You. Name it after the app. Keep Project on Default project. Set Expiration to Never if it is offered. An expired key stops the app until you paste a new one. Keep Permissions on All. Click Create secret key.

Service account only changes who owns the key. It is not a Vault admin key. Either owner works in Direct.

The Create new secret key dialog with the Name field, Project menu and Create secret key button marked
1  Name  ·  2  Project  ·  3  Create secret key
D

Copy the key and paste it into the app

Copy the key before closing the dialog. Paste it into the app’s Direct API key field. OpenAI shows the full key only once. Delete this Direct API key on OpenAI’s API keys page to stop that app’s access.

Vault admin keys start with sk-admin-. Use a Direct API key in this app. For Vault, create a Vault admin key on OpenAI’s Admin keys page and enter it on Outlet.

Learn more

OpenAI's official quickstart: platform.openai.com/docs/quickstart.