Agent Infrastructure · Head-to-head
gateway vs steel-browser
gateway and steel-browser are both agent infrastructure. gateway is A blazing fast AI Gateway with integrated guardrails. Route to 1,600+ LLMs, 50+ AI Guardrails with 1 fast & friendly API, while steel-browser is open Source Browser API for AI Agents & Apps. Steel Browser is a batteries-included browser sandbox that lets you automate the web without worrying about infrastructure. Here's an independent, side-by-side look at how they compare — and which fits.
A blazing fast AI Gateway with integrated guardrails. Route to 1,600+ LLMs, 50+ AI Guardrails with 1 fast & friendly API.
Visit gateway →
Open Source Browser API for AI Agents & Apps. Steel Browser is a batteries-included browser sandbox that lets you automate the web without worrying about infrastructure.
Visit steel-browser →gateway and steel-browser are both open-source agent infrastructure you can self-host for free. gateway has wider GitHub adoption — 13k stars vs 7.5k. Neither is universally better — pick by fit.
Side by side
| Spec | gateway | steel-browser |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Infrastructure | Infrastructure |
| Model | Open source | Open source |
| Pricing | Open source | Open source |
| GitHub stars | 12,677 | 7,458 |
| Language | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| License | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Last activity | May 2026 | Aug 2026 |
Key differences
- gateway has wider GitHub adoption — 13k stars vs 7.5k.
- Licensing differs: gateway is MIT, steel-browser is Apache-2.0.
Routing a single fast API across 250+ LLMs from 40+ providers.
Open Source Browser API for AI Agents & Apps. Steel Browser is a batteries-included browser sandbox that lets you automate the web without worrying about infrastructure.
About gateway
A blazing fast AI Gateway with integrated guardrails. Route to 1,600+ LLMs, 50+ AI Guardrails with 1 fast & friendly API.
Full gateway profile →About steel-browser
Open Source Browser API for AI Agents & Apps. Steel Browser is a batteries-included browser sandbox that lets you automate the web without worrying about infrastructure.
Full steel-browser profile →Frequently asked
- What's the main difference between gateway and steel-browser?
- gateway has wider GitHub adoption — 13k stars vs 7.5k.
- Is gateway or steel-browser better?
- Neither is universally better. gateway is the stronger fit for Routing a single fast API across 250+ LLMs from 40+ providers; steel-browser for open Source Browser API for AI Agents & Apps. Steel Browser is a batteries-included browser sandbox that lets you automate the web without worrying about infrastructure. Use the side-by-side specs to decide by your own constraints.
- Is gateway or steel-browser free?
- gateway is free to run and self-host; steel-browser is free to run and self-host. Both are free to self-host — you only pay for the infrastructure and any model or API usage.
- Which is more popular, gateway or steel-browser?
- By GitHub stars — a proxy for open-source adoption — gateway is ahead (13k vs 7.5k). Stars measure attention, not necessarily the better fit for you.
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