AetherGate vs Helicone: features, pricing and which is better in 2026
Helicone pioneered one-line URL proxy observability for OpenAI and Anthropic, later adding gateway caching and fallback controls. According to official pricing verified in August 2026, Helicone offers a Free Hobby tier (10,000 requests/month, 7-day retention, 1 seat), a $79/month Pro tier, and a $799/month Team tier. Importantly, in March 2026 Helicone was acquired by documentation platform Mintlify and entered maintenance mode. AetherGate provides an actively customizable, self-contained gateway and observability workspace without 7-day retention limits or $79–$799 monthly seat/tier jumps.
Executive Verdict: Which Should You Choose in 2026?
Choose Helicone if you already rely on its HQL (Helicone Query Language) and session trace UI and are comfortable with its post-Mintlify maintenance status. Choose AetherGate if you want an active, unified gateway with encrypted server-side BYOK storage (so you don't pass raw provider keys in client headers), built-in PII redaction, and no 7-day log expiration.
When to Choose AetherGate
- You want to avoid adopting a platform that entered maintenance mode after its March 2026 acquisition by Mintlify.
- You want provider API keys stored encrypted on the gateway server rather than passed in every request header.
- You need more than 7 days of log retention and 10,000 requests/month without jumping to a $79/mo or $799/mo subscription.
When to Choose Helicone
- You want HQL (Helicone Query Language) for SQL-like querying over historical prompt datasets.
- You qualify for Helicone's startup discount and primarily need multi-step session trace visualization.
Side-by-Side Comparison: AetherGate vs Helicone
Covering Pricing & Billing, Free Options, Routing Features, Speed, Model Accuracy, and Developer Usability.
| Category & Dimension | AetherGate | Helicone | Advantage |
|---|---|---|---|
Subscription Pricing Pricing & Billing | $9/mo Relay subscription + provider-direct BYOK billing | Hobby $0; Pro $79/mo + usage; Team $799/mo + usage (verified Aug 2026) | AetherGate |
Free Tier Limits Free Option | No 7-day log deletion or 1-seat lock | 10,000 req/mo, 1 GB storage, 1 seat, 7-day retention | AetherGate |
Key Management & Security Features & Routing | Server-side AES-256-GCM vault + pre-flight PII redaction | Proxy headers or gateway keys | AetherGate |
Observability & Querying Usability & DX | Real-time cost/latency ledger, filterable logs, CSV/JSON export | Deep session traces, prompt datasets, and HQL query language | Helicone |
Speed & Accuracy Speed & Latency | Direct upstream dispatch; 100% native model accuracy | Edge proxy dispatch; 100% native model accuracy | Tie / Parity |
AetherGate vs Helicone: security comparison
Standardized comparison of credential custody, encryption, guardrails, retention, access controls, private deployment and compliance claims. Security facts for Helicone are based on public vendor documentation reviewed October 2026.
| Security dimension | AetherGate | Helicone |
|---|---|---|
| Provider credentials | Provider API keys are encrypted before storage with AES-256-GCM and are not returned raw after storage. Application-facing gateway keys are stored as hashes and can be scoped with rate and spend controls. | Helicone publishes API-key vault/key-management capabilities in its own product comparisons and documentation. |
| Encryption | Provider credentials use application-level AES-256-GCM encryption before database storage. Production traffic is served over HTTPS by the hosting layer. | Exact encryption implementation should be verified against Helicone's current security/trust documentation for regulated use. |
| PII / guardrails | Request previews are redacted for common PII and secret patterns before logging. The gateway also validates outbound provider targets and blocks private/internal destinations before dispatch. | Vendor materials describe prompt-injection/jailbreak protections and the ability to omit sensitive request logging. |
| Retention / ZDR | AetherGate stores request telemetry for observability; it does not currently claim a universal zero-data-retention mode. Upstream provider retention remains governed by the connected provider account and contract. | Retention varies by plan in Helicone's published comparisons; self-hosting gives the operator greater control over storage. |
| Access / audit | Production sessions use HTTPOnly Secure cookies. Gateway keys can be revoked and constrained with rate/spend limits. Request and mission telemetry provide operational traces, but AetherGate does not claim a formal enterprise audit-log product today. | Team/enterprise controls exist, but a complete current RBAC/audit matrix should be verified against the current Helicone plan. |
| Deployment | Managed AetherGate control plane today. Provider inference is sent to the upstream providers configured by the customer. | Managed cloud and self-hosted options. |
| Compliance | No SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA, FedRAMP or similar certification is claimed today. | Helicone's own published comparison materials state SOC 2, HIPAA and GDPR support/compliance; buyers should verify current scope in its trust materials. |
Helicone is observability-first, so carefully configure what request/response content is logged for sensitive workloads.
AetherGate Pros & Cons
- +Server-side AES-256-GCM encrypted BYOK vault—applications only use a scoped ag-live-... key
- +No separate per-log overage meter; paid plans start at $9/month
- +Built-in PII redaction and interactive failover Playground
- Does not include a custom SQL query language like HQL in the dashboard
Helicone Pros & Cons
- +Frictionless 1-line baseURL integration with rich request and session tracing
- +Includes HQL query language and unlimited seats on the $79/mo Pro plan
- +Open-source self-hosting option via Docker
- Acquired by Mintlify on March 3, 2026 and placed into maintenance mode
- Free Hobby plan is capped at 1 seat, 10,000 requests/month, and 7-day log retention
- Steep price jump from Pro ($79/mo) to Team ($799/mo) for SOC-2/HIPAA and 3-month retention
Frequently Asked Questions: AetherGate vs Helicone
Is Helicone still actively developed in 2026?
On March 3, 2026, documentation company Mintlify announced the acquisition of Helicone, and independent industry reviews in May–August 2026 note that the standalone Helicone platform entered maintenance mode.
How much does Helicone cost compared to AetherGate?
Helicone's Hobby plan is free for up to 10,000 requests/month with 7-day retention. Paid plans start at $79/month (Pro, 1-month retention) and $799/month (Team, 3-month retention) plus usage overages. AetherGate runs on your own PostgreSQL database with no seat fees or retention caps.
Test AetherGate Side-by-Side with Your Own Provider Keys
Launch the interactive Control Plane, test PII guardrails and same-request failover in the Playground, or issue a scoped ag-live-... key in seconds.