Bring Your Own Key (BYOK)
Use your own provider API keys in Verdent Desktop and understand where BYOK models are available
Overview
BYOK (Bring Your Own Key) lets you connect your own provider API keys and use those models directly inside Verdent's built-in agents.
BYOK vs BYOA
Verdent offers two "bring your own" paths—don't confuse them:
| BYOK | BYOA | |
|---|---|---|
| What you bring | A provider API key | An Agent runtime (Codex / Claude Code) |
| What runs your task | Verdent's built-in agent, using the provider behind your key | The external CLI agent on your machine |
| Typical use case | Access a model under your own billing, or use a provider not bundled by default | Keep your existing Codex / Claude Code workflow while letting Manager dispatch Worker tasks to it |
| Configure at | Settings → Models → Configure Models | Settings → Models → CLI Agents |
See BYOA for running Worker tasks on an external Agent runtime.
Supported Providers
- Anthropic
- OpenAI
- OpenRouter
Add an API Key
Open model configuration
Go to Settings → Models → Configure Models.
Start adding a key
Click Add API Key + in the top-right corner.
Choose provider and models
Select a provider and choose the models you want to enable.
Enter credentials
Add your API key.
Save and validate
Click Save. Verdent validates the key automatically.
Validation Results
- If validation succeeds, the key is saved and the selected models become available.
- If validation fails, Verdent shows an error so you can update the key and try again.
Manage Existing API Keys
Under Settings → Models → Configure Models, you can:
- Enable or disable all models for a provider
- Enable or disable individual models
- Edit an existing API key
- Delete an API key
Where BYOK Models Appear
After you add a valid key, BYOK models appear in:
- The chat model selector
- Preset model configuration
- Subagent settings
- Reviewer settings
BYOK models behave like built-in models once they are enabled.
Limitations
- Built-in features such as Smart Suggestions do not support BYOK API keys.
- Automatic compression does not support BYOK API keys.