Do I need to be a developer to use an API key? No

Do I need some special knowledge? No, anyone can use it, either through the OpenAI playground (https://platform.openai.com/playground) or other 3rd party apps that allow you to use your key.

Where can I get my own API key? You need to register and log in here: https://platform.openai.com/account/api-keys you also need to set up your payment details with OpenAI to activate your API key.

What's an API key, and why do I need it? ChatGPT is great, but the app has only a limited set of features. OpenAI provides programmatic access to their models via the APIs so devs can use it to build other apps for any use case. An API key is like a personal password. When you use apps with your key, the usage will be billed to your account. The reason why it's become a popular model nowadays is because you only get to pay for what you use and avoid subscriptions.

How and when can I use it? An example could be getbeam.ai, a native ChatGPT app for Mac. This app provides an alternative ChatGPT UI and lets you use your API key. This means you only pay for what you use instead of paying some subscription or monthly fee.

How much does it cost? Is it expensive to use APIs? GPT-3.5 is very cheap; you can use it all day, every day, and your monthly bill will most likely stay under $5

- GPT-4 is more expensive (input: $0.03 / 1K tokens, output: $0.06 / 1K tokens), but it still depends on your usage.

I mostly use GPT-4 as a Google replacement for programming; my prompts are usually quite short, and I don't need 5000-word essays. So, my monthly bill has constantly stayed around $5. But I know some power users who spend $100+/mo

Is it safe to share my API key with 3rd party apps? Yes and No. If some bad actor gets access to your API key two things can happen: they'll use it, and you'll end up paying the bill. They misuse it, and your account can be banned.

The first can be mitigated by setting the spending limit so it will never exceed $20, for example.

If you're using apps from credible sources and have a spending limit on your account, you should be OK.

Can I have multiple API keys? Yes, you can generate multiple API keys. This can be useful if you want to track usage across different applications.

Can APIs replace ChatGPT? Not entirely. When OpenAI rolls out new features to ChatGPT, they're usually unavailable via the APIs immediately. They're not always in sync.

In summary, if you see 3rd party apps saying "Requires OpenAI API Key," it only takes a few clicks to set up. Be careful with how you manage your key to avoid potential misuse. Never share it with random people. Make sure to set the spending limit and only use apps that you can trust.