CRS vs magpie
Which should you use? A side-by-side look at what each one does, who it suits, what it costs, how hard it is to set up, and where each falls short.
Open source · MIT
Self-hosted relay that lets a small group share Claude, OpenAI, Gemini and Droid subscriptions through one ser
Open source · MIT
A local gateway that lets AI coding agents like Claude Code and Codex use models from other providers.
The short answer
Choose CRS if you need…
- Developers comfortable running a Node.js server and Redis themselves
- Small groups who want to split one shared Claude subscription with known members
- People who want usage tracking and per-user keys for their own AI tool access
- Users who are willing to maintain the server and handle OAuth setup
Choose magpie if you need…
- People who use more than one AI coding agent and want one place to manage their models
- Users with several provider accounts or API keys who want automatic fallback when a quota runs out
- People who want to switch models per agent without editing each agent's config files by hand
- Users who want to mask keys, passwords, or emails in prompts before they leave their machine
Side-by-side
| CRS | magpie | |
|---|---|---|
| Type | App | App |
| Price | Free and open source | Free and open source |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| GitHub stars | 12.8k | 28.2k |
| Setup difficulty | Advanced | Intermediate |
| How you get it | See the README | Download the app |
| Main language | JavaScript | Go |
| Last code update | 5 days ago | 4 days ago |
What each one is
CRS
Claude Relay Service is a server you host yourself that sits between tools like Claude Code and the official AI APIs. You add your subscription accounts to it, create separate API keys for each person, and point your tools at your server instead of the vendor directly. It tracks token usage per key and rotates across accounts when one has a problem.
magpie
magpie is a desktop app (menu bar, window, terminal UI, or CLI) that runs a local gateway on your computer. You point your AI coding agents at it, then choose which model each agent uses, such as Claude Code running on DeepSeek or Codex running on Kimi. It can also move a request to another account or model when a quota runs out, and it can mask sensitive data in prompts if you turn that option on.
Best for
CRS
- Developers comfortable running a Node.js server and Redis themselves
- Small groups who want to split one shared Claude subscription with known members
- People who want usage tracking and per-user keys for their own AI tool access
- Users who are willing to maintain the server and handle OAuth setup
magpie
- People who use more than one AI coding agent and want one place to manage their models
- Users with several provider accounts or API keys who want automatic fallback when a quota runs out
- People who want to switch models per agent without editing each agent's config files by hand
- Users who want to mask keys, passwords, or emails in prompts before they leave their machine
Strengths
CRS
- Keeps requests between your own server and the upstream API rather than a third-party mirror, as the README describes
- Supports multiple accounts with automatic switching when one fails
- Provides per-key limits and usage statistics in a web admin panel
magpie
- One local gateway serves many agents and translates between OpenAI, Anthropic, and Gemini request formats, per the README
- Edits only the relevant key in each agent's own config and keeps comments and formatting intact
- Available on macOS, Windows, Linux, Docker, and Termux, with a CLI and terminal UI as well as an app
Not ideal for
CRS
- Anyone who wants a turnkey hosted service with no server to maintain, since the README describes self-hosting only
- Users who need guaranteed access, because the README warns that using the project may violate Anthropic's terms and may lead to account bans
- Beginners with no command-line experience, since setup involves Redis, environment files and OAuth steps
magpie
- People who use a single agent on its vendor's own plan and are happy with it, since the README says they do not need magpie in that case
- Users who do not want a background local gateway or an app that reads existing agent sign-ins, since it discovers subscriptions by reading those files unless turned off
Trade-offs
CRS
- The README includes a security notice that versions v1.1.248 and below have an admin authentication bypass, so you must run a recent release
- The README states that using the project may violate Anthropic's terms of service and that users bear the risk
- Cloud servers in some regions may be blocked by Cloudflare, according to the README's experience notes
magpie
- Many features depend on the specific agents and providers you have, and the README lists a long set of supported agents without detailing each one
- Privacy masking is off by default and must be turned on, and subscription discovery reads sign-in files unless disabled
- Failover only helps when you have more than one account or a routing group; with one account the error reaches the agent
Getting started
CRS
Run the management script installer (recommended)
curl -fsSL https://pincc.ai/manage.sh -o manage.sh && chmod +x manage.sh && ./manage.sh installClone the repository for manual setup
git clone https://github.com/Wei-Shaw//claude-relay-service.gitmagpie
Install with the install script
curl -fsSL https://usemagpie.ai/install.sh | shInstall with Go
go install github.com/yetone/magpie@latestFrequently asked questions
What is the difference between CRS and magpie?
CRS: Self-hosted relay that lets a small group share Claude, OpenAI, Gemini and Droid subscriptions through one ser. magpie: A local gateway that lets AI coding agents like Claude Code and Codex use models from other providers. CRS suits developers comfortable running a node.js server and redis themselves, while magpie suits people who use more than one ai coding agent and want one place to manage their models.
Are CRS and magpie free?
CRS: Free and open source. magpie: Free and open source.
Which is easier to set up, CRS or magpie?
magpie is easier to get started with (rated intermediate); CRS is rated advanced and usually needs more setup.
Is CRS or magpie more popular?
magpie has more GitHub stars (28.2k) than CRS (12.8k). Popularity isn't the same as fit — check which one matches your use case above.
What are other alternatives to CRS and magpie?
Other options people compare them with include Happy, OmniRoute, AI Website Cloner, Claude HUD, MindsHub.
Keep comparing
Built from our catalogue entries for both products: open-source details come from each project's README (AI-assisted, refreshed weekly) and GitHub data; AI-tool details are editorial. Spotted something wrong? Let us know from either product's page.