Cheap Channels for Accessing Claude

Cheap Channels for Accessing Claude | Generated by AI

Home 2026.03

Question: What other cheap channels can we consider for accessing Claude (as alternatives or supplements to the current setup with claude-relay-service)?

Answer:

Here are several cheap or cost-effective alternatives/channels commonly discussed in 2026 for accessing Claude models (especially via proxies, relays, shared accounts, or compatible APIs). These focus on low-cost options beyond your current reverse channel (CC-逆向渠道B) and official Anthropic API/subscriptions. Note that many involve reverse-engineering, shared accounts, or third-party relays — these carry risks like instability, potential bans, privacy issues, or ToS violations.

1. Other Chinese/Asia-based affordable relay services (often the cheapest for heavy use)

These provide direct or proxied Claude access at rates far below official Anthropic pricing, frequently ¥0.4–0.5 per $1 of usage equivalent.

SSSAiCode — Offers trial plans (~¥9.9 for $20 quota) and monthly options (¥149 for $300 quota). Pay-as-you-go at ~¥0.5/$1. Known for stability over ultra-cheap options and direct China connectivity (low latency for some regions).
1.88code (or similar ultra-low-cost ones) — Frequently mentioned as the absolute cheapest, though less stable than mid-tier like SSSAiCode.
z.ai / GLM-integrated proxies — Use Chinese models like GLM-4.5/4.6 (often 6–7× cheaper than equivalent Claude performance) via $3/month subscriptions or proxies that mimic Claude Code behavior.

2. Open-source/self-hosted proxy routers (free to run, pay only upstream)

These let you route to multiple cheap/free providers while keeping claude-relay-service style setup.

9Router (GitHub: decolua/9router) — Free local proxy/router connecting tools to 40+ providers and 100+ models (including cheap/free ones). Smart fallback routing; no billing/markup from the router itself.
better-ccflare (GitHub: tombii/better-ccflare) — Advanced Claude API proxy with load balancing across multiple accounts to avoid rate limits. Self-hosted and cost-optimized.
claude-code-proxy variants (e.g., fuergaosi233 or jodavan forks) — Convert Claude requests to OpenAI-compatible APIs, allowing routing to cheaper providers like GLM, DeepSeek, or local models.

3. Aggregator / unified cheap API platforms

These offer Claude (or close equivalents) at discounted rates compared to direct Anthropic.

Wisdom Gate / JuheAPI — ~20% cheaper than OpenRouter for Claude Sonnet 4 equivalents (e.g., $2.40 input / $12 output per M tokens).
OpenRouter — Multi-model access (including Claude); not the absolute cheapest but reliable and broad.
AnyAPI.ai or similar unified routers — Route to budget models (DeepSeek V3 ~$5–15/month moderate use) while supporting Claude-like endpoints.

4. Free/low-cost indirect options (not pure Claude but close substitutes)

Gemini CLI — 1,000 free requests/day with strong models (Gemini 2.5 Pro, 1M context); often the cheapest high-quality terminal/coding access.
Local models via Ollama + tools (Aider, Cline, OpenCode) — Zero API cost if you run on your hardware; pair with cheap BYOK providers for fallback.
Shared/official subscriptions — Cost-share Claude Max/Pro with 3–5 friends (divide $200/month) for “free” Opus access per person.

Recommendations & Tips

For pure cheap Claude-like access: Start with SSSAiCode trials or 9Router + cheap upstreams (GLM/DeepSeek).
If stability matters more than rock-bottom price: Stick with mid-tier relays like your CC-逆向渠道B or SSSAiCode.
Always test small quotas first — many cheap channels face sudden blocks or quality drops.
Self-hosted proxies give most control but require setup/maintenance.

These options are popular in communities (GitHub, Reddit, Telegram channels for relays) as of March 2026, but availability and pricing change quickly.

References:

Back Donate