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Comparison

Alye vs Helicone: SDK or proxy for LLM observability

By the Alye team · Updated · Helicone facts checked on from its pricing page

Short answer
Helicone is a proxy: you change your client's base URL and it logs the traffic, which is the quickest start and adds gateway features such as caching. Alye is an SDK inside your service, so nothing sits in your request path, and it knows the service, customer and trace of every call.

At a glance

AlyeHelicone
How data is collectedSDK in your service; records are sent in the backgroundProxy or AI gateway in the request path
Request pathRequests go straight to the providerRequests pass through Helicone
Free plan500,000 calls a month, 14 days of history, 3 membersHobby: 10,000 requests, 7 days of retention, 1 seat
Entry paid planTeam: $49 a month for 10 million calls, then $5 per 100,000; 90 days; unlimited membersPro: $79 a month, usage-based beyond 10,000 requests; 1 month of retention; unlimited seats
Next planEnterprise from $500 a monthTeam: $799 a month, 3 months of retention
Regional and marketplace pricesAzure OpenAI, Vertex AI and Bedrock by regionNot listed on its pricing page
Caching and gateway featuresNot offeredYes, including caching
AlertsSpend, forecast, error rate, latency and silent services, to Slack, Teams or email, checked every minuteAlerts and reports on Pro

Which one to choose

Choose Helicone if

  • You want to start by changing one URL, without adding a library.
  • You want gateway features such as caching in the same tool.
  • You want to self-host.

Choose Alye if

  • You don't want another hop in front of your model provider.
  • You need cost per customer and per service, not just per request.
  • You need correct regional prices and alerts in Slack or Teams.
  • Your volume is high: 10 million calls a month for $49.

Why the request path matters

With a proxy, every model request waits on one more service, and an outage there can stop your AI features unless you build a fallback. With an SDK, Alye records each call after it happens and sends the record in the background; if Alye is slow or down, your requests carry on as normal.

Also compared: Alye vs Langfuse · Alye vs LangSmith. New to the topic? Start with what LLM observability is.

Questions

What is the difference between Alye and Helicone?

Helicone is a proxy and AI gateway: requests go through it on their way to the provider. Alye is an SDK inside your service: requests go straight to the provider and records are sent in the background, so nothing is added to your request path.

Is Alye a Helicone alternative?

Yes, if you want cost and reliability monitoring without a proxy. Alye shows cost by service, model and customer, prices calls for Azure OpenAI, Vertex AI and Bedrock regions, and alerts in Slack, Teams or email. It has no gateway features such as caching.

How do Alye and Helicone free plans compare?

Alye's free plan records 500,000 calls a month with 14 days of history. Helicone's free Hobby plan includes 10,000 requests with 7 days of retention.

Try it on one service. Free for 500,000 calls a month, set up in about five minutes.

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