---
title: "Track customer spend"
url: "/docs/proxy/customer_portal/api_reference_guide"
canonical_url: "https://docs.litellm.ai/docs/proxy/customer_portal/api_reference_guide"
type: "docs"
last_updated: "2026-11-13"
summary: "Import customers, pass their identity with LLM requests, and fetch usage and budgets for your product."
related:
  - "/docs/proxy/cost_tracking"
  - "/docs/proxy/customer_portal/api_reference"
---
# Track customer spend

> Index of all LiteLLM docs: https://docs.litellm.ai/llms.txt


Use one application API key for your customers. Pass the customer's organization alias and member ID with each request. LiteLLM resolves the member's team and organization, checks their budgets, and records spend, tokens, and requests at all three levels.

This guide imports Acme, its Support team, and two members. You then send an LLM request for Alice and fetch usage and budgets to display in your product.

[Image: Customer Portal usage for Acme, with $0.14 spend, one request, and 120 tokens]

*Local Customer Portal after one controlled-provider request, with usage read from the accounting ledger.*

Use a build containing the customer hierarchy APIs, identity headers, usage routes, and database migrations on `main`. Check `/openapi.json` for `/management/v1/customer_members`. Preview requirements appear beside the steps that need them; see the [availability reference](./api_reference.md#availability) for the required changes.

## Before you start

You need a running [LiteLLM Gateway](../docker_quick_start.md), a connected PostgreSQL database with the customer migrations, your existing application API key, and a proxy admin key for management and usage reads.

Make these values available in your application's environment and the terminal where you run curl:

| Variable | Value |
| --- | --- |
| `LITELLM_BASE_URL` | Gateway URL without `/v1`, for example `http://localhost:4000`. |
| `LITELLM_MODEL` | An existing gateway model alias your application key can use. |
| `LITELLM_API_KEY` | Your existing application API key. The same key serves every customer. |
| `LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY` | Proxy admin key for customer management, usage, and log reads. |
| `START_DATE`, `END_DATE` | Inclusive UTC dates in `YYYY-MM-DD` format. Use the current UTC date for both on your first run. |

Keep keys on your server. Your backend authenticates the customer and selects the identity headers from that customer's session before it calls LiteLLM. It also authorizes customer access before it returns usage to your product.

Keep the spend accounting ledger enabled in the gateway configuration:

```yaml title="config.yaml, addition to your existing configuration"
general_settings:
  use_spend_logs_ledger: true
```

## 1. Import a customer

Create the organization first, then its team and members. Use IDs from your application, or save the IDs LiteLLM returns when you omit them.

### Create the organization and default member budget

Acme has a $1,000 budget. Its default member template gives each member a $50 budget, a $40 soft threshold, and rate limits.

```bash title="POST /management/v1/customer_organizations"
curl --request POST "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "customer_org_id": "org-acme",
    "alias": "Acme",
    "budget": {
      "max_budget": 1000,
      "budget_duration": "30d"
    },
    "default_budgets": [
      {
        "name": "standard",
        "is_default": true,
        "max_budget": 50,
        "soft_budget": 40,
        "budget_duration": "30d",
        "rpm_limit": 60,
        "tpm_limit": 100000
      }
    ]
  }'
```

Expect `201 Created`. A soft budget is a notification threshold and does not block requests. [Webhook delivery](#7-receive-budget-events-preview) requires the customer budget callback.

### Create the team

```bash title="POST /management/v1/customer_teams"
curl --request POST "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_teams" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "customer_team_id": "acme-support",
    "parent_org_id": "org-acme",
    "alias": "Support",
    "budget": {
      "max_budget": 250,
      "budget_duration": "30d"
    }
  }'
```

Expect `201` with `parent_org_id: "org-acme"`.

### Create Alice and Bob

Create each member with the Support team's ID. Omitting `budget_id` selects Acme's default member template.

```bash title="Create Alice"
curl --request POST "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "customer_member_id": "acme-alice",
    "parent_team_id": "acme-support",
    "alias": "Alice"
  }'
```

```bash title="Create Bob"
curl --request POST "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "customer_member_id": "acme-bob",
    "parent_team_id": "acme-support",
    "alias": "Bob"
  }'
```

Expect `201` for each member. Read `effective_budget` in the response to verify the inherited $50 cap. Use `budget_id` to select another template or `budget_override` to customize a member. The current API rejects the old `budget_template_id` field.

### Add an email (preview)

The `email` field requires [#51617](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51617). On a build containing that change, add Alice's email:

```bash title="PATCH /management/v1/customer_members/acme-alice"
curl --request PATCH "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members/acme-alice" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "email": "alice@acme.example"
  }'
```

### Repeat an import

A repeated create returns `409` for an existing ID. Retrieve that ID, confirm its parent, then patch the fields you need to change. This gives your backend an upsert flow with the existing APIs.

```bash title="Retrieve the existing member"
curl "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members/acme-alice" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY"
```

After confirming `parent_team_id` is `acme-support`, update Alice:

```bash title="Update the existing member"
curl --request PATCH "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members/acme-alice" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "alias": "Alice"
  }'
```

Use the same create, retrieve, and update flow for organizations and teams. Native upserts and automatic organization creation remain under review in [#51607](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51607).

## 2. Send a request for Alice

Use your existing application key and pass Alice's identity in request headers:

```http
x-litellm-customer-org-alias: Acme
x-litellm-customer-member-id: acme-alice
```

LiteLLM resolves `acme-alice` to `acme-support`, then `org-acme`. The same identity headers work with Responses, Chat Completions, and Anthropic Messages.

### OpenAI Responses SDK

Run `pip install openai` in your application project. The raw response exposes `x-litellm-call-id`, which you use to find this request in spend logs.

```python
import os

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["LITELLM_API_KEY"],
    base_url=f"{os.environ['LITELLM_BASE_URL'].rstrip('/')}/v1",
)
raw_response = client.responses.with_raw_response.create(
    model=os.environ["LITELLM_MODEL"],
    input="Write a short welcome message.",
    max_output_tokens=128,
    extra_headers={
        "x-litellm-customer-org-alias": "Acme",
        "x-litellm-customer-member-id": "acme-alice",
    },
)
response = raw_response.parse()
print(response.output_text)
print("LiteLLM call ID:", raw_response.headers.get("x-litellm-call-id"))
```

Expect a successful Responses result. LiteLLM checks the organization, team, and member budgets, model access, and rate limits, then attributes usage to all three records.

### LangChain Deep Agents

Run `pip install deepagents langchain-openai`. Use a model alias that supports tool calling. Configure the model for the authenticated customer's request:

```python
import os

from deepagents import create_deep_agent
from langchain_openai import ChatOpenAI

model = ChatOpenAI(
    model=os.environ["LITELLM_MODEL"],
    base_url=f"{os.environ['LITELLM_BASE_URL'].rstrip('/')}/v1",
    api_key=os.environ["LITELLM_API_KEY"],
    use_responses_api=True,
    default_headers={
        "x-litellm-customer-org-alias": "Acme",
        "x-litellm-customer-member-id": "acme-alice",
    },
)
agent = create_deep_agent(model=model)
result = agent.invoke({"messages": [{"role": "user", "content": "Say hello to Alice."}]})
print(result["messages"][-1].text)
```

Select the customer's headers for each authenticated request. Do not change a shared model instance's headers while it serves other customers.

An existing member ID can resolve its parents without the organization header. With an existing organization alias and a new member ID, LiteLLM registers the member under `org-acme:default` and assigns the organization's default member template. An alias alone attributes usage to the organization.

With [#51617](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51617), replace the member-ID header with `x-litellm-customer-member-email: alice@acme.example`; keep the organization alias header. An email string in the member-ID header is an ID, not an email lookup.

## 3. Check budget enforcement

Create a separate customer with a zero budget to check rejection without changing Acme's settings:

```bash title="Create a zero-cap test customer"
curl --request POST "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "customer_org_id": "org-budget-check",
    "alias": "Budget check",
    "budget": {
      "max_budget": 0
    }
  }'
```

Use the `client` from step 2 with the same application key and model, and this customer's alias:

```python
from openai import APIStatusError

try:
    client.responses.create(
        model=os.environ["LITELLM_MODEL"],
        input="Budget check",
        extra_headers={"x-litellm-customer-org-alias": "Budget check"},
    )
except APIStatusError as error:
    print(error.status_code)
```

Expect `422` and a budget error naming `customer_org=org-budget-check`, before a provider request. A deployment can customize the budget error status.

To check admission after changing the budget, set the test cap to $1, rerun that SDK call, then restore the cap to zero. A successful request can incur provider cost.

```bash title="Set the test cap to $1"
curl --request PATCH "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations/org-budget-check" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "budget": {
      "max_budget": 1
    }
  }'
```

```bash title="Restore the test cap after the check"
curl --request PATCH "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations/org-budget-check" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --header "Content-Type: application/json" \
  --data '{
    "budget": {
      "max_budget": 0
    }
  }'
```

The first exhausted scope rejects a request: organization, then team, then member. Fresh customer spend counters across workers require [#51568](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51568). Without that change, admission can use cached spend until refresh. Allow for requests already in flight and background accounting when you show balances.

## 4. Fetch usage for your product

The organization aggregated endpoint returns complete spend, token, and request totals for the date range, without pagination. It accepts up to 100 customer organization IDs.

```bash title="Complete Acme usage"
curl --get "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations/daily/activity/aggregated" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --data-urlencode "customer_org_ids=org-acme" \
  --data-urlencode "start_date=$START_DATE" \
  --data-urlencode "end_date=$END_DATE"
```

Read the response's top-level metadata:

```json title="Usage response excerpt from the local example"
{
  "metadata": {
    "total_spend": 0.14,
    "total_tokens": 120,
    "total_api_requests": 1
  }
}
```

Dates are inclusive UTC days, with at most a 400-day difference between start and end. `total_spend` is cost in USD. You can use it in your product's pricing or chargeback calculation; this API does not create invoices or collect payment. The key breakdown shows the top key, while totals include every key.

### Team and member usage

```bash title="Support team usage, first page"
curl --get "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_teams/daily/activity" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --data-urlencode "customer_team_ids=acme-support" \
  --data-urlencode "start_date=$START_DATE" \
  --data-urlencode "end_date=$END_DATE" \
  --data-urlencode "page=1" \
  --data-urlencode "page_size=100"
```

```bash title="Alice's usage, first page"
curl --get "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members/daily/activity" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --data-urlencode "customer_member_ids=acme-alice" \
  --data-urlencode "start_date=$START_DATE" \
  --data-urlencode "end_date=$END_DATE" \
  --data-urlencode "page=1" \
  --data-urlencode "page_size=100"
```

These endpoints paginate stored rows. Follow `metadata.has_more` and increment `page` until it is `false`. Sum each page's totals once; the same date can occur on several pages. See the [pagination contract](./api_reference.md#usage-pagination). Do not add organization, team, and member totals together: they include the same requests.

Accounting runs in the background. If usage has not appeared after a successful request, check accounting completion, the UTC dates, and the identity headers. Zero-cost models can report requests and tokens with $0 spend.

## 5. Fetch budgets and caps

Retrieve Acme's running budget spend and organization cap:

```bash title="Organization budget"
curl "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_organizations/org-acme" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY"
```

Retrieve the Support team's running spend and cap:

```bash title="Team budget"
curl "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_teams/acme-support" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY"
```

Retrieve Alice's inherited budget and active overrides:

```bash title="Member budget"
curl "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/management/v1/customer_members/acme-alice" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY"
```

Read `budget.max_budget` for an organization or team and `effective_budget.max_budget` for a member. The same objects contain `rpm_limit`, `tpm_limit`, model limits, and allowed models. A member's effective budget combines the selected template with active overrides; an expired override no longer applies.

`spend` is the running budget counter. `budget_reset_at` records the next reset. Use date-range usage for historical costs because a reset changes the counter without erasing historical usage. To resolve a member's parents in your product, read its `parent_team_id`, then retrieve that team and read `parent_org_id`.

Open **Customer Portal → Customers**, select **Acme**, and choose **Select Time Range** to include your requests. The usage page shows spend, requests, tokens, and the member caps. Choose **Teams** in **Break down by** to inspect Support.

[Image: Acme member usage showing Alice and Bob and their configured budgets]

*Actual customer records and accounting data in the local Customer Portal. Alice's controlled-provider request records $0.14 and 120 tokens.*

## 6. Debug a request in spend logs

Use the `x-litellm-call-id` printed by the Responses SDK. Make that value available as `LITELLM_CALL_ID` in the environment where you run curl.

```bash title="Find a request by its LiteLLM call ID"
curl --get "$LITELLM_BASE_URL/spend/logs/v2" \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer $LITELLM_ADMIN_KEY" \
  --data-urlencode "request_id=$LITELLM_CALL_ID" \
  --data-urlencode "start_date=$START_DATE 00:00:00" \
  --data-urlencode "end_date=$END_DATE 23:59:59"
```

This API requires a date range even with a request ID. Customer identity fields require [#51596](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51596). Check the saved metadata to verify Alice → Support → Acme:

```json title="Saved customer identity excerpt"
{
  "metadata": {
    "user_api_key_customer_member_id": "acme-alice",
    "user_api_key_customer_member_alias": "Alice",
    "user_api_key_customer_team_id": "acme-support",
    "user_api_key_customer_team_alias": "Support",
    "user_api_key_customer_org_id": "org-acme",
    "user_api_key_customer_org_alias": "Acme"
  }
}
```

Compare `spend` and `total_tokens` with usage. A `metadata.status` of `"failure"` identifies a failed request; an absent or null status follows the default success behavior.

Open `/ui/logs/?log_id=<x-litellm-call-id>`. In the request details, check **Customer** for the resolved hierarchy and **Metrics** for cost and tokens:

[Image: Spend log request details with Acme, Support, Alice, $0.14 cost, and 120 tokens]

*Actual saved request in the local gateway, using a controlled provider and the accounting ledger. The Customer section requires #51596.*

The log API has no customer organization, team, or member filter. `user_id`, `team_id`, and `end_user` refer to separate LiteLLM entities. Find an individual request by its call ID and use the customer usage APIs for customer totals.

## 7. Receive budget events (preview)

This setup requires [#51579](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51579), verified at commit `a129fa7`. Add the callback and restart the gateway:

```yaml title="config.yaml, additions to your existing configuration"
litellm_settings:
  callbacks: [customer_budget_webhook]

callback_settings:
  customer_budget_webhook:
    endpoint: https://billing.example.com/litellm/customer-budget
    headers:
      X-Source: litellm
```

Merge these entries with existing callback settings. For values supplied through your secret store, use `CUSTOMER_BUDGET_WEBHOOK_URL` and `CUSTOMER_BUDGET_WEBHOOK_HEADERS`; see [configuration precedence](./api_reference.md#customer-budget-events-preview).

After a positive spend update commits, LiteLLM checks the affected organization, team, and member. Spend at or above `soft_budget` produces `soft_budget_crossed`; spend at or above `max_budget` produces `budget_crossed`. One update can produce both events at several levels. Free requests and requests rejected before inference do not produce a customer budget spend event.

```json title="Example event for Alice's $40 soft threshold"
{
  "event": "soft_budget_crossed",
  "scope": "customer_member",
  "entity_id": "acme-alice",
  "customer_org_id": "org-acme",
  "customer_org_alias": "Acme",
  "customer_team_id": "acme-support",
  "customer_team_alias": "Support",
  "customer_member_id": "acme-alice",
  "customer_member_alias": "Alice",
  "spend": 41.25,
  "budget": 40,
  "period": "2026-12-13T12:00:00+00:00",
  "timestamp": "2026-11-13T12:00:00Z"
}
```

`budget` is the triggering threshold. `period` is the recorded next reset timestamp, or `"lifetime"` if no reset is recorded. Route the event with `customer_org_id` to update the customer's balance in your product.

Return a successful `2xx` response within 10 seconds. Delivery is best effort: a cache claim suppresses the same event, scope, entity, and period for 24 hours, including after failure. Cross-worker deduplication needs shared Redis; a local fallback can produce duplicates. The HTTP client retries a connection error once, but there is no durable retry queue or schedule for timeouts or unsuccessful HTTP responses. Reconcile through the usage APIs to recover missed events.

## Fail-open handling (pending)

Fail-open identity handling remains under review in [#51604](https://github.com/BerriAI/litellm/pull/51604). Main rejects identities it cannot resolve or register, and identities that conflict. A validated configuration that preserves asserted customer IDs in logs is required before this guide can provide a setup.

## Troubleshooting

| Result | Check |
| --- | --- |
| `409` during import | Retrieve the existing ID, verify its parent, then patch mutable fields. |
| `422` during member creation | Use `budget_id`. Supply a template or override if the organization has no default template. |
| `401` on inference | Check the organization alias and member ID. A new member needs an existing organization alias and default template for registration. |
| `403` on inference | Confirm that the organization alias matches the member's organization. |
| Budget `422` | Read organization, team, and member spend and caps to find the first exhausted scope. |
| `429` | Check the scope's RPM, TPM, and model limits. |
| Missing customer IDs in logs | Check whether your build includes #51596. |

## Related pages

- [Spend Tracking](https://docs.litellm.ai/docs/proxy/cost_tracking.md)
- [API reference](https://docs.litellm.ai/docs/proxy/customer_portal/api_reference.md)