OpenAI API Setup Guide

Getting Your OpenAI API Key

Step 1: Create an OpenAI Account

1. Visit platform.openai.com 
2. Click “Sign Up” to create an account
3. Verify your email and complete the setup process

Step 2: Add Payment Method

1. Navigate to your account settings
2. Go to “Billing” section
3. Add a payment method to enable API access

Step 3: Generate API Key

1. Go to platform.openai.com/api-keys 
2. Click “Create new secret key”
3. Name your key and copy it securely (starts with sk-)

Available OpenAI Models

GPT-4.1 Family (Latest - 2025)

• gpt-4.1 - Most advanced model with improved reasoning
• gpt-4.1-mini - Smaller, faster, and cheaper alternative
• gpt-4.1-nano - Ultra-efficient for simple tasks

GPT-4o Family

• gpt-4o - Multimodal model with vision, audio, and text
• gpt-4o-mini - Fast, affordable small model
• gpt-4o-mini-audio-preview - Audio input capabilities

GPT-4 Family

• gpt-4-turbo - Enhanced GPT-4 with larger context
• gpt-4 - Original GPT-4 model

GPT-3.5 Family

• gpt-3.5-turbo - Fast and cost-effective for many tasks
• gpt-3.5-turbo-instruct - Instruction-following optimized

Key Features

• Up to 1 million tokens of context (GPT-4.1 family)
• Multimodal capabilities (text, images, audio)
• Function calling and tool use
• JSON mode for structured outputs
• Improved coding and instruction following

Context Windows

• GPT-4.1 family: Up to 1 million tokens
• GPT-4o: 128K tokens
• GPT-4: 8K-32K tokens
• GPT-3.5-turbo: 16K tokens

Pricing

• Usage-based pricing per token
• Different rates for input/output tokens
• Volume discounts available
• Monitor usage in your OpenAI dashboard

Security Tips

• Never commit keys to version control
• Regularly rotate your API keys
• Monitor usage for unexpected charges