VS Code Copilot API: Add FreeTheAI Models (BYOK)
VS Code chat adds FreeTheAI through its Custom Endpoint provider (bring your own key). It works even without a Copilot plan.
Steps
Open the language models
In the chat model picker, press the gear (Manage Language Models), or run Chat: Manage Language Models.
Add a Custom Endpoint
Press Add Models, choose Custom Endpoint, enter a group name (FreeTheAI) and your key, and choose Chat Completions.
Describe the models
VS Code opens chatLanguageModels.json. Fill in the models and save:
json[ { "name": "FreeTheAI", "vendor": "customendpoint", "apiKey": "ftai_your_key_here", "apiType": "chat-completions", "models": [ { "id": "glm-5.3", "name": "GLM 5.3", "url": "https://api.freetheai.org/v1/chat/completions", "toolCalling": true, "vision": false, "maxInputTokens": 200000, "maxOutputTokens": 32000 } ] } ]Pick the model
Choose GLM 5.3 in the chat model picker. Restart VS Code if it does not show up.
How this guide was checked: Checked against the VS Code language models docs (Custom Endpoint provider) on 2026-09-29.
Tips
- If VS Code already wrote an apiKey value (a reference to its secret storage), keep that line instead of pasting your key.
- Without a GitHub sign-in, set chat.utilityModel and chat.utilitySmallModel to a FreeTheAI model so titles and commit messages work.
- Bring your own key covers chat and agent mode, not inline code completions.
Troubleshooting
I used the old "OpenAI Compatible" provider. Does it still work?
It is deprecated. Add FreeTheAI again with the Custom Endpoint provider and the chat-completions API type.
Why do I get a 401 "invalid API key" error?
The key is wrong or incomplete. Remove the FreeTheAI group, add it again, and paste the whole ftai_ key (53 characters).
The model does not show in the picker. What now?
Save chatLanguageModels.json and restart VS Code.
Agent mode does nothing with FreeTheAI. Why?
Keep "toolCalling": true and use a model that supports tools, such as glm-5.3 or kimi-k3.1-pro.
Why do I get a 403 error?
A 403 usually means the account follows no provider of that model, or your email is not confirmed. Follow a provider on freetheai.org/providers, then try again.
Common errors
- 401: the key is wrong or incomplete. Paste the whole key.
- 403: follow a provider of the model, or confirm your email.
- 404: the model ID or URL is wrong.
- 429: daily limit reached, or too many requests at once.