---
title: "Auto Cheap"
description: "The least expensive model that still answers well. For high-volume or throwaway traffic."
canonical_url: "https://minirouter.sh/docs/routers/auto-cheap"
markdown_url: "https://minirouter.sh/docs/routers/auto-cheap.md"
last_updated: "2026-09-26"
---

# Auto Cheap

The least expensive model that still answers well. For high-volume or throwaway traffic.

## Call it

```sh
curl https://api.minirouter.sh/v1/chat/completions \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $MINIROUTER_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
  "model": "minirouter/auto:cheap",
  "messages": [
    {
      "role": "user",
      "content": "Explain an API gateway in one sentence."
    }
  ],
  "max_tokens": 256
}'
```

Examples read your key from `MINIROUTER_KEY`.

## How it picks

Best first. The first model that passes answers.

1. [xiaomi/mimo-v2.5](https://minirouter.sh/models/xiaomi/mimo-v2.5) · first available
2. [xiaomi/mimo-v2.5-pro](https://minirouter.sh/models/xiaomi/mimo-v2.5-pro) · available
3. [tencent/hy3](https://minirouter.sh/models/tencent/hy3) · available
4. [deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731](https://minirouter.sh/models/deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash-0731) · available
5. [zai/glm-5.3-flash](https://minirouter.sh/models/zai/glm-5.3-flash) · available

Live availability: [Auto models](https://minirouter.sh/models/auto).

Allowed on your key, within your cost tier, healthy, and able to take the request.

## Pricing

- **Price**: Provider cost plus 8%. Named in `x-minirouter-model`. You pay for the model that answered.
- **Bound**: At most $0.47 in and $0.94 out per million tokens. The dearest model in the list, at this router's rate.