Frequently Asked Questions
FAQ
General
What is Barq?
Barq is a unified AI API gateway — one API key, 40+ AI models. We handle routing, billing, rate limiting, and compliance so you can focus on building.
Is Barq OpenAI-compatible?
Yes, 100%. Our API is a drop-in replacement for OpenAI. Change base_url and api_key and your code just works.
Which models do you support?
40+ models from OpenAI (GPT-5.5, GPT-4o, GPT-5-mini), Anthropic (Claude Opus, Sonnet), Google (Gemini), DeepSeek, MiMo, and more. Call GET /v1/models for the full list.
Billing & Pricing
How does billing work?
Pay-as-you-go by token usage. Each model has transparent per-token pricing. If you hold Barq tokens in wallet, you get VIP discounts (20-50% off).
Is there a free tier?
Yes! New accounts get $5 free credit after email verification. No credit card required to start.
Can I set spending limits?
Yes. Set monthly budget caps in your dashboard. You'll get alerts at 50%, 80%, and 100% of your limit.
Technical
Do you support streaming?
Yes. Set "stream": true for SSE-based real-time token streaming.
What's your latency?
Average TTFT (Time to First Token) is under 100ms for most models.
Do you store my data?
No. Barq operates with zero data retention. We route your requests to AI providers and never store prompts or responses.
Is Barq SDAIA / PDPL compliant?
Yes. Our enterprise tier includes Saudi SDAIA and UAE PDPL compliance features: data residency routing, audit logging, and SHA-256 content fingerprinting.
Getting Help
Where can I get support?
Email us at support@barqapi.com, or use the in-dashboard chat. Enterprise customers get a dedicated customer success manager with minute-level response.