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API keys and profiles

Vibe Code CLI needs a Mistral API key to call hosted models. This page covers how to create the key, give it to the CLI, and switch keys between accounts or providers.

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Information

Browser-based sign-in is enabled by default when your config targets a model with a Mistral provider. The flow provisions and stores credentials for you, so no API key is needed for typical Mistral-provider setups. This page remains useful for non-Mistral providers, automation, troubleshooting, or when you want to use a custom API key.

Where to create your API key

Where to create your API key

Create your key from Code › Vibe CLI. The same key works in Free mode, with a paid plan, or with pay-as-you-go enabled.

Tip

Keep keys safe:

  • Use the least-privileged key needed for the task.
  • Rotate keys regularly and revoke unused ones from the console.
  • Never paste API keys into prompts, logs, screenshots, or support tickets.
Give the API key to the CLI

Give the API key to the CLI

The CLI supports three ways to provide your key. When more than one is set, the CLI uses the first key it finds, in this order: your shell environment, then ~/.vibe/.env, then your OS keyring (for example, macOS Keychain or Windows Credential Manager), where the setup flow saves keys.

1. Interactive setup (recommended)

1. Interactive setup (recommended)

On first run, the CLI starts a setup flow if it cannot find a key:

vibe

You can also rerun the setup at any time:

vibe --setup

The setup flow saves your key to your OS keyring for future sessions. If no keyring is available, it saves the key to ~/.vibe/.env, readable only by you.

2. Environment variable

2. Environment variable

Export the key in your shell:

export MISTRAL_API_KEY="your_mistral_api_key"

Environment variables take precedence over values stored in ~/.vibe/.env and in the keyring. When a key set in your shell would override the key you save, the setup flow warns you.

3. .env file

3. .env file

You can also edit ~/.vibe/.env directly:

MISTRAL_API_KEY=your_mistral_api_key

The CLI loads ~/.vibe/.env automatically on startup.

Note

The .env file is for credentials only. General CLI configuration belongs in config.toml. See Configuration.

Check which credentials Vibe uses

Check which credentials Vibe uses

Run /status in a session to see the active model and provider, which credential source is in use, and which sources it overrides. Run /whoami to see your signed-in account, Workspace, plan, API key scope, and the credential source in use (shell, .env, or keyring).

Switch between accounts or providers

Switch between accounts or providers

The CLI supports multiple providers and models through presets in config.toml. Use this to switch between, for example, a Mistral key for production work and a key from another OpenAI-compatible provider for experiments.

Define a provider preset and a model preset:

[[providers]]
name = "openrouter"
api_base = "https://openrouter.ai/api/v1"
api_key_env_var = "OPENROUTER_API_KEY"
api_style = "openai"
backend = "generic"

[[models]]
name = "mistralai/devstral-2512:free"
provider = "openrouter"
alias = "devstral-openrouter"
temperature = 0.2
input_price = 0.0
output_price = 0.0

Set the active model:

active_model = "devstral-openrouter"

Then export the matching API key:

export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="your_openrouter_api_key"

You can also change the active model at any time inside the CLI with /config or /model.

Plan and billing notes

Plan and billing notes

Mistral plans include monthly usage that is shared across Studio, the API, and Vibe Code. Vibe Code uses this included monthly usage before any pay-as-you-go charges apply.

After included monthly usage is exhausted, what happens next depends on your Organization settings:

  • Pay-as-you-go off: Vibe Code can stop until the next billing period.
  • Pay-as-you-go on: Vibe Code keeps working, and additional usage draws from your prepaid credits. When your balance reaches zero, Vibe Code stops until you add credits.

Pay-as-you-go is off by default. Some Pro plans purchased through partners (Google, Apple, Free Mobile, Orange) cannot enable pay-as-you-go. On those plans, Vibe Code stops once included monthly usage is exhausted.