---
type: Guide
title: "Best AI Gateways & LLM Routing Tools 2026"
description: "Compare the best AI gateways & LLM routing tools for 2026: LiteLLM, OpenRouter, Portkey, Vercel AI Gateway, Cloudflare AI Gateway, Kong AI Gateway, TrueFoundry and Requesty — routing, fallback, caching and cost control across models."
resource: "https://www.contextstudios.ai/guides/best-ai-gateways-llm-routing-2026"
language: en
timestamp: "2026-07-13T00:00:00.000Z"
---

# Best AI Gateways & LLM Routing Tools 2026

## TL;DR

The best AI gateways in 2026 put one unified API in front of many model providers, adding routing, automatic fallback, caching, cost tracking and governance. LiteLLM leads for open-source, self-hosted control; OpenRouter is the fastest zero-setup way to reach 400+ models; Portkey is the enterprise gateway with observability and guardrails; Vercel AI Gateway and Cloudflare AI Gateway are edge-native for web stacks; Kong AI Gateway adds AI controls to existing API management; TrueFoundry and Requesty focus on governed, cost-weighted routing. Choose by hosting, integration and open-source needs.