Available to users on the new pricing plans (currently not available on legacy plans)

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Overview

Zencoder now has a model selector in the chat input. Use the dropdown to pick which LLM runs your messages. The options you see depend on your plan and entitlements.
  • Currently, the model selector is available to users on the new pricing plans ( not available on legacy plans)
  • Model choices may differ by plan; higher plans unlock additional models
  • Select the model that fits your task from the selector (Default, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Sonnet 4, Sonnet 4 Parallel Thinking, Opus 4.1, Opus 4.1 Parallel Thinking, GPT-5).
As a truly vendor-agnostic platform, Zencoder supports flagship models from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, allowing you to choose your preferred model while benefiting from our infrastructure, capabilities, and excellent user experience.
Model selection is fixed per chat session. To use a different model, start a new chat.

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Available models (subject to change)

The default model routes across a tuned mix of self-hosted and vendor models for the best balance of speed, quality, and cost. Model selector showing available models and multipliers
ModelProviderMultiplierPlan Requirements
DefaultZencoder1×All plans
Sonnet 4Anthropic1×All plans
Sonnet 4 Parallel ThinkingAnthropic1.5×Starter, Core, Advanced, Max
Opus 4.1**Anthropic5×Advanced, Max
Opus 4.1 Parallel Thinking**Anthropic7.5×Advanced, Max
Gemini 2.5 ProGoogle0.75×All plans
GPT-5*OpenAI1×Starter, Core, Advanced, Max
*GPT-5 support has been available in Zencoder since August 8 - less than 24 hours after its public release.**Opus 4.1 models are strongest and most capable models, available exclusively on Advanced and Max plan.
Gemini 2.5 Pro at 0.75× multiplier is our most cost-efficient model offering. All multipliers and model availability are subject to change. Model availability evolves over time. We may add, remove, or upgrade models without notice as providers change capabilities and pricing. Your selector will always reflect the currently supported set for your plan.

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Cost multipliers and Premium LLM calls

Zencoder measures usage in Premium LLM calls. Some models use a multiplier to reflect provider costs or parallel reasoning. See the table above and the screenshot for current multipliers.
Example: If a response would normally consume 10 Premium LLM calls, running it with Opus 4.1 (5×) would count as 50 calls. For details about daily limits and accounting, see Pricing & Plans.

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Plan-based availability

Not all plans have access to all models. The selector shows what your current plan can use. If you recently upgraded but don’t see expected options, restart your IDE to refresh entitlements.
  • Starter, Core, Advanced and Max plans: Model model selector with allocated models, including GPT-5 access
  • Legacy plans: Model selector is not available

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Bring Your Own Key (BYOK)

You can use your own API key for certain providers. This is useful if you:
  • Want to remove daily Premium LLM call limits for those requests
  • Prefer billing directly with the provider
Supported providers in the UI today: Anthropic and OpenAI.
BYOK is currently available on all plans, including Free, Starter, Core, Advanced, and Max.

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Enable BYOK

1

Open Zencoder menu

Click the Zencoder icon in your IDE, then click the ⋯ (three dots) menu.
2

Choose User API key

Select User API key from the dropdown to open Custom API keys.
3

Enter keys and use

Paste your Anthropic or OpenAI key, save, then pick a matching provider model in the model selector.Custom API keys screen with Anthropic and OpenAI fields
When BYOK is active for a given provider/model, those requests can bypass Zencoder’s daily Premium LLM call limits - usage and billing are governed by your provider account. Make sure you understand the provider’s pricing before enabling heavy workloads.
Keep your keys secure. Only paste keys into the official Zencoder UI. If you rotate/regenerate keys at the provider, update them in Zencoder as well.

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When to switch models

  • Use the Default model for most coding tasks - it balances speed, quality, and cost
  • Use Gemini 2.5 Pro when you need the most cost-efficient option (0.75× multiplier)
  • Use Parallel/advanced reasoning models (e.g., Sonnet 4 Parallel Thinking, Opus 4.1 Parallel Thinking) for complex planning or intricate refactors
  • Use Opus 4.1 models (Advanced and Max plan) for the most challenging tasks requiring maximum capability, keeping the higher multiplier in mind
Heavier reasoning models may produce better results on difficult tasks but at higher call consumption. Keep separate chats for different experiments to maintain clarity.

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Troubleshooting

Pricing & Plans

Learn how Premium LLM calls and daily limits work

Coding Agent

See how models are applied in the full agentic workflow