Find an answer and keep cooking.

Viandly does not resell model usage. AI features use an API credential from an AI service account you control, and that provider bills your account directly.

Add a provider

1. Open Account Settings.
2. Select AI provider.
3. Choose OpenAI-compatible, Anthropic, or Google.
4. Enter the API credential issued by that provider.
5. Load the provider's available models and select one appropriate for structured recipe work.
6. Select Test selected model. This sends small structured text and image requests. Viandly records text-model validity separately from image-input support, so a text-capable model can still be used when it does not accept images.
7. Save the connection.

After configuration, the page shows only Edit and Remove until you choose to change it.

Control feature usage

The AI features section separates usage into the Viandly jobs you recognize, such as recipe scanning, recipe import, draft adjustment, recipe development, cookbook design, and Cook Assist. Each feature has:

• an Enabled checkbox that permits or prevents that workflow from contacting your provider;
• an optional monthly estimated-cost limit;
• current-month request, token, page-image, audio, and estimated-cost totals.

Leave the monthly limit blank when you do not want a Viandly limit. Disabling a feature does not remove its previous usage history or your provider connection. It only prevents new work for that feature. Background jobs recheck the setting before they contact the provider.

Select Show provider and model details under Usage details when you need to understand which model or modality contributed to a feature total.

Understand cost estimates

Viandly records usage metadata returned by the provider and applies a dated catalog of public model prices. It does not store prompts, recipes, source text, images, model responses, or API keys in the usage ledger.

The displayed amount is an Estimated provider cost, not a Viandly charge. Provider credits, taxes, negotiated pricing, service tiers, activity outside Viandly, and provider billing changes can make your invoice differ. Your provider invoice is authoritative.

Change providers

Editing the model on the same provider does not require replacing the API key. Changing the provider removes the stored key because credentials are not interchangeable. Viandly warns before making that change.

If model testing fails

Loading a model list confirms only that the key can read provider metadata. It does not guarantee that the account has permission or quota to use every listed model. The selected-model test reports the most specific remedy the provider response supports:

• Recheck or replace a rejected API key.
• Choose another model when the selected model is unavailable or cannot perform structured text requests.
• Check provider billing, credits, quota, or project spending limits for persistent account-limit errors.
• Wait and retry when the provider reports a temporary rate limit or service outage.
• Choose a model with image input when you want scanner AI vision; otherwise scanner imports retain the local OCR option.

Viandly tests changed credentials and models again before saving, so a failed test does not replace a working connection.