Troubleshooting Deepseek via Openrouter

If you're encountering errors when using DeepSeek models through OpenRouter, here’s a breakdown of common error codes, their causes, and how to fix them.

ERROR 400: Bad Request

Cause: Incorrect proxy settings.

Fix: Double-check the model name, proxy URL, and API key for any extra spaces or typos.

Correct Model Names:

• R1 Free: deepseek/deepseek-r1:free
• R1 Paid: deepseek/deepseek-r1
• V3 Free: deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3-0324:free
• V3 Paid: deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3-0324
• Legacy V3 Free: deepseek/deepseek-chat:free

Proxy URL:

https://openrouter.ai/api/v1/chat/completions

ERROR 401: Invalid Credentials

Cause: Problem with your API key.

Fix:

• Generate a new API key.
• Ensure you're using it on the same device it was created on.
• Make sure “Model Training” is set to "On" in OpenRouter settings for free models.

ERROR 402: Insufficient Credits

Cause: You’ve run out of paid credits.

Fix:

• Add more credits to your OpenRouter account.
• Or switch to a Free version of the DeepSeek model.

ERROR 429: Rate Limited

Cause: Too many requests.

Fix:

• Daily limits:
• • Free users with < $10 credits: 50 messages/day.
  • Free users with $10+ credits: 1000 messages/day.
• Message cap: Max 10 messages per minute (resets every 3 hours).
• Wait for your quota to reset at 12AM GMT.
• If error log includes ErrorUpstreamFault:True, DeepSeek servers may be down.

ERROR 500: Server Error

Cause: DeepSeek servers are having issues.

Fix: Try again later — typically due to high traffic or outages.

ERROR 502: Invalid Response / Model Down

Cause: The selected model is down or returned an invalid response.

Fix:

• Wait and try again later.
• Check model uptime at:

👉 DeepSeek R1 Free Uptime

Updated on: 22/07/2025