One API vs Petals
A side-by-side comparison of two self-hosted local llm runners options — licensing, setup difficulty, resource needs, and what each one replaces.
| Feature | One API | Petals |
|---|---|---|
| Deploy effort | Under-an-hour setup | Under-an-hour setup |
| Health score | 61 · Good | 24 · At risk |
| Category | Local LLM Runners | Local LLM Runners |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Language | Go | Python |
| Setup difficulty | Medium | Hard |
| Min. RAM | 256 MB | 8,192 MB |
| Deployment | docker, binary | source, docker |
| GitHub stars | ★ 37,009 | ★ 10,585 |
| First released | 2023 | 2022 |
| Replaces | OpenAI API, OpenRouter | OpenAI API |
What are One API and Petals?
One API
One API is an LLM API management and distribution system that exposes a single OpenAI-compatible endpoint while routing to many upstream providers. It adds key management, channel load balancing, usage tracking and multi-user billing.
- Unified OpenAI-compatible API
- Channel load balancing
- Token and quota management
- Multi-user support
Petals
Petals lets you run and fine-tune large language models in a distributed, BitTorrent-style network where each participant hosts part of the model. It enables self-hosting models too large for a single machine.
- Distributed model hosting
- Run models larger than one GPU
- Collaborative inference swarm
- Fine-tuning support
One API vs Petals: key differences
One API is written in Go, while Petals is built with Python. One API is the lighter option, starting around 256 MB of RAM against 8,192 MB for Petals. One API has the considerably larger community, at 37,009 GitHub stars versus 10,585.
Why pick each one
Choose One API if…
- Single OpenAI-compatible endpoint
- Built-in usage billing
- Easy Docker deployment
Watch out for
- Documentation mostly Chinese
- Scaling needs external database
Choose Petals if…
- Released under the MIT license
- First-class Docker support for quick deployment
- Mature project with 10.6k GitHub stars
- Written in Python
Frequently asked questions
Is One API or Petals better?
One API is the stronger all-round pick: it has both the larger community and the simpler medium setup. Consider Petals if its specific feature set fits your needs better.
Are One API and Petals free and open-source?
Yes. One API is licensed under MIT and Petals under MIT. Both can be self-hosted at no software cost.
Can I run One API and Petals with Docker?
One API: yes. Petals: yes.
Which is lighter on resources, One API or Petals?
One API has the smaller minimum footprint at 256 MB of RAM, compared to about 8,192 MB for Petals. Real-world usage depends on library size, user count, and enabled features.