BYOAIK (Bring Your Own AI Key) is a directory of AI tools that run on your own API key.

llm.nvim

Neovim ghost-text completion pointed at whatever endpoint you choose, including your own.

Website Source code

Category:
IDE Plugins
Maintenance:
Actively developed (last commit 11 days ago)
Pricing:
Open Source
Open source:
Yes (Apache-2.0)
Self-hostable:
No
Local-first:
No
Platforms:
CLI, Local-only
AI providers (bring your own key):
Hugging Face, Ollama, Custom / OpenAI-compatible
API key storage:
Configured by environment variable
Key risk level:
LOW
Trust score:
77/100

llm.nvim is Hugging Face's Neovim plugin for LLM-backed code completion, using llm-ls as its backend. It can talk to the Hugging Face Inference API or any HTTP endpoint you nominate, with the backend URL overridable through the LLM_NVIM_URL environment variable, which means it works equally against a local Ollama or vLLM server and against a hosted provider on your own token. Apache-2.0.

How this tool was scored

Key handling 77/100 (where your key rests and who sees it, comparable across any licence) and verifiability 70/100 (how much of that BYOAIK could confirm, lower for closed source). Neither contains a popularity signal.

  • Key Safety 22/25: The key is supplied by an environment variable or local config file you control.
  • Request Routing 17/20: Requests go straight from you to the AI provider.
  • Transparency 20/20: Source is public under Apache-2.0, so anyone can check how the key is handled.
  • Privacy 7/15: Nothing specific is known about its data handling beyond the key itself.
  • Maintenance 10/10: Actively developed, with commits within the last three months.
  • Verification Confidence 1/10: Compiled from public documentation by an AI-assisted pass, not independently confirmed.

What was checked

Verification tier RESEARCH_ASSISTED, derived from the evidence below and not set by hand.

  • [REPORTED · RESEARCH] This listing was compiled by an AI-assisted research pass over the tool's public website, README and documentation. No person independently confirmed it.
  • [STRONG · SOURCE_SCAN] Supports a local model backend, so it can run with no cloud provider key at all. source
  • [CONFIRMED · SOURCE_SCAN] Most recent commit 2026-09-23, about 0 month(s) ago. source

How your API key is handled

Your API key is supplied via an environment variable or local config file. Requests are sent directly to the AI provider.

Setup

Install the tool, set your provider API key as an environment variable (or in its config file), and pick a model.