Model Providers & Models

jcode works with any OpenAI-compatible API. Configure multiple providers and switch between models mid-session.

Supported Providers

Any provider that implements the OpenAI chat completion API is supported. Common options include:

Provider	Base URL	Notes
OpenAI	https://api.openai.com/v1	Default if no base URL specified
Anthropic	Via compatible proxy	Use a provider that exposes OpenAI-compatible API
Azure OpenAI	Your Azure endpoint	Set base_url to your Azure endpoint
Local models	http://localhost:PORT	Ollama, LM Studio, vLLM, etc.
Any compatible API	Custom base_url	Any server implementing the chat completion protocol

Configure a Provider

Add a provider to ~/.jcode/config.json:

{
  "providers": {
    "openai": {
      "api_key": "sk-...",
      "base_url": "https://api.openai.com/v1"
    },
    "local": {
      "api_key": "not-needed",
      "base_url": "http://localhost:11434/v1"
    }
  },
  "model": "openai/gpt-4o"
}

The model field uses the format "provider/model". For example:

• "openai/gpt-4o" — GPT-4o via OpenAI
• "anthropic/claude-3-5-sonnet" — Claude via Anthropic
• "local/llama3" — A local model via Ollama

The model registry is auto-generated from models.dev at build time. If your model isn’t listed, you can still use it by specifying the provider and model name.

Switch Models Mid-Session

Press Ctrl+L in the TUI or type /model to open the model picker. You can switch models without restarting your session.

  ┌──────── Model Picker ────────┐
  │  > openai / gpt-4o           │
  │    openai / gpt-4o-mini      │
  │    anthropic / claude-3.5    │
  └──────────────────────────────┘

Special Model Roles

jcode supports different models for different purposes:

Role	Config Key	Purpose
Primary	model	Main model for agent interactions
Small	small_model	Lightweight model for summaries and context compaction
Fallback	fallback_model	Used when the primary model fails

{
  "model": "openai/gpt-4o",
  "small_model": "openai/gpt-4o-mini",
  "fallback_model": "anthropic/claude-3-5-sonnet"
}

Add a Provider at Runtime

jcode includes a setup wizard. Run it from the TUI with /setting → “Add Model”, or press Ctrl+L and select “Add new provider”.

Verify Model Connectivity

jcode doctor

This sends a test message to your configured model and reports any connection issues.