OpenMeter is open-source usage metering and billing infrastructure for AI and API products, now part of Kong. See features, pricing, and alternatives for 2026.
Category
Finance
Pricing
Open Source, from Free (open-source, self-hosted); managed cloud pricing is custom via Kong sales
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 19, 2026
Founded
2023
Headquarters
San Francisco, California, USA (now a subsidiary of Kong Inc.)
Free PlanAPIFreemium
Overview
OpenMeter is usage metering and billing infrastructure for AI, API, and infrastructure products, letting developers turn raw usage events into billable records and enforce quotas in real time.
Founded in 2023 in San Francisco and backed by Y Combinator, OpenMeter was acquired by Kong Inc. in September 2025 and now operates as Kong Metering and Billing, while its open-source metering engine remains available for self-hosting.
Key Features
OpenMeter ingests events, logs, and metrics and converts them into real-time usage records, supporting edge-based quota enforcement and per-token billing for AI workloads.
A no-code product catalog lets teams change pricing plans, credits, and commitments without engineering work, and SDKs for TypeScript, Python, and Go integrate it into existing OpenTelemetry, Kubernetes, and PostgreSQL-based stacks.
Pricing
The core OpenMeter engine is open source under the Apache 2.0 license and free to self-host.
The managed cloud service, now branded Kong Metering and Billing, is priced on a custom basis through Kong's sales team rather than published self-serve tiers.
Key Features
Real-time usage metering — Converts events, logs, and metrics into real-time, billable usage records.
Edge-based quota enforcement — Enforces usage limits at the edge to control costs without adding latency to requests.
No-code pricing catalog — Change pricing plans, credits, and commitments without new engineering work.
Per-token AI billing — Purpose-built support for billing AI and LLM usage on a per-token or per-call basis.
Revenue insight dashboards — Surface expansion opportunities and churn risk based on customer usage patterns.
Multi-language SDKs — Official SDKs for TypeScript, Python, and Go for straightforward integration.
OpenTelemetry and Kubernetes integration — Connects to existing observability and infrastructure pipelines via OpenTelemetry and Kubernetes.
Pros & Cons
Pros
Purpose-built for AI and API usage-based billing use cases
Backed by Kong's enterprise API infrastructure since the 2025 acquisition
Developer-friendly SDKs across TypeScript, Python, and Go
No-code pricing catalog speeds up plan and pricing changes
Cons
Managed cloud pricing now requires contacting Kong sales, reducing transparency
Product direction is shifting toward Kong's Konnect ecosystem post-acquisition
Open-source self-hosted community is smaller than dedicated billing platforms like Stripe Billing
Still a relatively new product with limited long-term track record at massive scale
Recent rebrand to Kong Metering and Billing may cause confusion for existing OpenMeter users
Pricing
Open Source (Self-Hosted) Free N/A
Kong Metering and Billing (Cloud) Custom Custom
Frequently Asked Questions
Is OpenMeter still an independent company?
No, OpenMeter was acquired by Kong Inc. in September 2025 and now operates as Kong Metering and Billing, though its open-source engine remains available.
Is OpenMeter free to use?
The open-source metering engine is free to self-host under the Apache 2.0 license; the managed cloud service is custom-priced through Kong.
What programming languages does OpenMeter support?
OpenMeter offers official SDKs for TypeScript, Python, and Go.
Can I self-host OpenMeter?
Yes, the core metering engine is open source and can be self-hosted independently of Kong's managed cloud offering.
What is Kong Metering and Billing?
It is the rebranded managed cloud version of OpenMeter, offered within Kong's Konnect platform following Kong's 2025 acquisition of OpenMeter.
Who is OpenMeter designed for?
It is designed for AI companies, API providers, and SaaS platforms that need to implement usage-based billing and metering.
When was OpenMeter founded?
OpenMeter was founded in 2023 by Peter Marton and Andras Toth and went through Y Combinator's Winter 2023 batch.