diff --git a/apps/server/src/provider/Drivers/OpenRouterDriver.ts b/apps/server/src/provider/Drivers/OpenRouterDriver.ts
index 9e2c3dd48697..0d5bb7d548e9 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/provider/Drivers/OpenRouterDriver.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/provider/Drivers/OpenRouterDriver.ts
@@ -12,11 +12,13 @@ import * as Duration from "effect/Duration";
 import * as Crypto from "effect/Crypto";
 import * as Effect from "effect/Effect";
 import * as FileSystem from "effect/FileSystem";
+import * as Option from "effect/Option";
 import * as Path from "effect/Path";
 import * as Schema from "effect/Schema";
 import { HttpClient } from "effect/unstable/http";
 import { ChildProcessSpawner } from "effect/unstable/process";
 
+import { ServerSecretStore } from "../../auth/ServerSecretStore.ts";
 import * as BackgroundPolicy from "../../background/BackgroundPolicy.ts";
 import { makeClaudeTextGeneration } from "../../textGeneration/ClaudeTextGeneration.ts";
 import { ServerConfig } from "../../config.ts";
@@ -49,6 +51,9 @@ import {
 import {
   buildOpenRouterProcessEnv,
   OPENROUTER_DRIVER_KIND,
+  openRouterApiKeySecretName,
+  resolveOpenRouterApiKey,
+  selectLiveOpenRouterConfig,
   toClaudeSettings,
   withOpenRouterAdapterIdentity,
 } from "../openrouter/OpenRouterRuntime.ts";
@@ -103,9 +108,51 @@ export const OpenRouterDriver: ProviderDriver<OpenRouterSettings, OpenRouterDriv
       const path = yield* Path.Path;
       const httpClient = yield* HttpClient.HttpClient;
       const serverSettings = yield* ServerSettingsService;
+      // Optional so the driver still builds in contexts that do not wire a
+      // secret store (tests, minimal embeddings); those simply fall back to
+      // whatever key settings carry.
+      const secretStore = yield* Effect.serviceOption(ServerSecretStore);
       const eventLoggers = yield* ProviderEventLoggers;
       const baseEnv = mergeProviderInstanceEnvironment(environment);
-      const effectiveConfig = { ...config, enabled } satisfies OpenRouterSettings;
+
+      // The API key is a credential: prefer the secret store over settings.json.
+      // A key typed into settings still wins so an explicit edit applies at once.
+      const secretName = openRouterApiKeySecretName(instanceId);
+      const withStoredApiKey = (candidate: OpenRouterSettings) =>
+        Effect.gen(function* () {
+          const stored = Option.isNone(secretStore)
+            ? Option.none<Uint8Array>()
+            : yield* secretStore.value
+                .get(secretName)
+                .pipe(Effect.catchCause(() => Effect.succeed(Option.none<Uint8Array>())));
+          const storedApiKey = Option.isSome(stored)
+            ? new TextDecoder().decode(stored.value)
+            : undefined;
+          const apiKey = resolveOpenRouterApiKey({
+            settingsApiKey: candidate.apiKey,
+            storedApiKey,
+          });
+
+          // A key typed into settings lands in settings.json as plain text.
+          // Copy it into the secret store so the credential has a home that
+          // is not part of the settings blob; settings keep working either way.
+          if (
+            Option.isSome(secretStore) &&
+            apiKey.length > 0 &&
+            apiKey !== (storedApiKey ?? "").trim()
+          ) {
+            yield* secretStore.value
+              .set(secretName, new TextEncoder().encode(apiKey))
+              .pipe(Effect.ignore);
+          }
+
+          return { ...candidate, apiKey } satisfies OpenRouterSettings;
+        });
+
+      const effectiveConfig = yield* withStoredApiKey({
+        ...config,
+        enabled,
+      } satisfies OpenRouterSettings);
       // Build OpenRouter-owned process env once; pass through to adapter + probes.
       const processEnv = buildOpenRouterProcessEnv(effectiveConfig, baseEnv);
       const claudeSettings = toClaudeSettings(effectiveConfig);
@@ -133,7 +180,38 @@ export const OpenRouterDriver: ProviderDriver<OpenRouterSettings, OpenRouterDriv
       );
       const textGeneration = yield* makeClaudeTextGeneration(claudeSettings, processEnv);
 
-      const checkProvider = checkOpenRouterProviderStatus(effectiveConfig, processEnv).pipe(
+      // Snapshot settings sources capture the driver config at create time, so
+      // every later status check would re-probe with the config this instance
+      // was born with. For OpenRouter the API key lives in that config, so a
+      // key saved after boot never reached the probe: the provider sat on
+      // "add an API key" and the model catalog never refreshed. Re-read the
+      // live config on each check instead, and rebuild the OpenRouter-owned
+      // env from it.
+      const readLiveConfig = Effect.gen(function* () {
+        const settings = yield* serverSettings.getSettings.pipe(
+          Effect.catchCause(() => Effect.succeed(undefined)),
+        );
+        if (settings === undefined) {
+          return effectiveConfig;
+        }
+        const raw = selectLiveOpenRouterConfig(settings, instanceId);
+        if (raw === undefined) {
+          return effectiveConfig;
+        }
+        const decoded = yield* Schema.decodeUnknownEffect(OpenRouterSettings)(raw).pipe(
+          Effect.catchCause(() => Effect.succeed(undefined)),
+        );
+        if (decoded === undefined) {
+          return effectiveConfig;
+        }
+        // `enabled` stays owned by the registry envelope, not the config blob.
+        return yield* withStoredApiKey({ ...decoded, enabled });
+      });
+
+      const checkProvider = readLiveConfig.pipe(
+        Effect.flatMap((liveConfig) =>
+          checkOpenRouterProviderStatus(liveConfig, buildOpenRouterProcessEnv(liveConfig, baseEnv)),
+        ),
         Effect.map(stampIdentity),
         Effect.provideService(ChildProcessSpawner.ChildProcessSpawner, spawner),
         Effect.provideService(Path.Path, path),
diff --git a/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterRuntime.ts b/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterRuntime.ts
index 7527c21cdd0a..f9bdccecc0b7 100644
--- a/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterRuntime.ts
+++ b/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterRuntime.ts
@@ -2,7 +2,9 @@ import {
   ClaudeSettings,
   type OpenRouterSettings,
   ProviderDriverKind,
+  type ProviderInstanceId,
   type ProviderSession,
+  type ServerSettings,
 } from "@t3tools/contracts";
 import * as Effect from "effect/Effect";
 import * as Schema from "effect/Schema";
@@ -33,6 +35,53 @@ const OPENROUTER_OWNED_ENV_KEYS = [
   "OR_APP_NAME",
 ] as const;
 
+/**
+ * Secret-store key holding an instance's OpenRouter API key.
+ *
+ * The key is a credential, so the server prefers the secret store (0600 files
+ * in the secrets dir) over `settings.json`, which is world-readable on most
+ * setups and travels with settings exports.
+ */
+export function openRouterApiKeySecretName(instanceId: ProviderInstanceId): string {
+  return `provider-${instanceId}-api-key`;
+}
+
+/**
+ * Resolve the effective API key for an instance.
+ *
+ * A key typed into settings still wins, so an explicit edit takes effect
+ * immediately; otherwise the stored secret is used. Both are trimmed, and a
+ * blank value on either side falls through to the next source.
+ */
+export function resolveOpenRouterApiKey(input: {
+  readonly settingsApiKey: string;
+  readonly storedApiKey: string | undefined;
+}): string {
+  const fromSettings = input.settingsApiKey.trim();
+  if (fromSettings.length > 0) {
+    return fromSettings;
+  }
+  return (input.storedApiKey ?? "").trim();
+}
+
+/**
+ * Pick the raw OpenRouter config blob the server should treat as current.
+ *
+ * Mirrors `ProviderInstanceRegistryHydration`: an explicit `providerInstances`
+ * entry wins over the legacy `providers.openrouter` block. Returns `undefined`
+ * when neither is present so callers can keep their existing config.
+ */
+export function selectLiveOpenRouterConfig(
+  settings: Pick<ServerSettings, "providerInstances" | "providers">,
+  instanceId: ProviderInstanceId,
+): unknown {
+  const explicit = settings.providerInstances[instanceId]?.config;
+  if (explicit !== undefined && explicit !== null) {
+    return explicit;
+  }
+  return settings.providers.openrouter;
+}
+
 export function normalizeOpenRouterBaseUrl(baseUrl: string): string {
   const trimmed = baseUrl.trim();
   const normalized = (trimmed.length > 0 ? trimmed : DEFAULT_OPENROUTER_BASE_URL).replace(
diff --git a/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterSettingsPersistence.test.ts b/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterSettingsPersistence.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..2cebbfa50069
--- /dev/null
+++ b/apps/server/src/provider/openrouter/OpenRouterSettingsPersistence.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,146 @@
+import { describe, expect, it } from "@effect/vitest";
+import {
+  defaultInstanceIdForDriver,
+  OpenRouterSettings,
+  ProviderDriverKind,
+  ProviderInstanceId,
+  ServerSettings,
+  ServerSettingsPatch,
+} from "@t3tools/contracts";
+import * as Effect from "effect/Effect";
+import * as Schema from "effect/Schema";
+
+import {
+  openRouterApiKeySecretName,
+  resolveOpenRouterApiKey,
+  selectLiveOpenRouterConfig,
+} from "./OpenRouterRuntime.ts";
+
+const decodeSettings = Schema.decodeUnknownSync(ServerSettings);
+const decodePatch = Schema.decodeUnknownSync(ServerSettingsPatch);
+const decodeOpenRouter = Schema.decodeUnknownSync(OpenRouterSettings);
+const KIND = ProviderDriverKind.make("openrouter");
+
+describe("OpenRouter settings persistence", () => {
+  it("keeps the api key when saved as an explicit instance", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const patch = decodePatch({
+      providerInstances: {
+        [instanceId]: { driver: KIND, config: { apiKey: "sk-or-secret", enabled: true } },
+      },
+    });
+
+    const saved = decodeSettings({ providerInstances: patch.providerInstances });
+    const entry = saved.providerInstances[instanceId];
+    expect(entry).toBeDefined();
+    expect(entry?.driver).toBe(KIND);
+    // The envelope keeps the blob opaque; the driver schema decodes it.
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(entry?.config).apiKey).toBe("sk-or-secret");
+  });
+
+  it("keeps the api key when saved to the legacy providers block", () => {
+    const saved = decodeSettings({
+      providers: { openrouter: { apiKey: "sk-or-legacy", enabled: true } },
+    });
+    expect(saved.providers.openrouter.apiKey).toBe("sk-or-legacy");
+  });
+
+  it("survives a full settings encode/decode round trip", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const saved = decodeSettings({
+      providerInstances: {
+        [instanceId]: { driver: KIND, config: { apiKey: "sk-or-roundtrip" } },
+      },
+    });
+    const wire = JSON.parse(JSON.stringify(Schema.encodeSync(ServerSettings)(saved)));
+    const back = decodeSettings(wire);
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(back.providerInstances[instanceId]?.config).apiKey).toBe(
+      "sk-or-roundtrip",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("does not drop the key when an unrelated setting is patched", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const existing = decodeSettings({
+      providerInstances: {
+        [instanceId]: { driver: KIND, config: { apiKey: "sk-or-keep" } },
+      },
+    });
+    // The UI resends the whole map; simulate it editing another driver.
+    const patch = decodePatch({
+      providerInstances: {
+        ...existing.providerInstances,
+        [ProviderInstanceId.make("codex")]: {
+          driver: ProviderDriverKind.make("codex"),
+          config: { enabled: true },
+        },
+      },
+    });
+    const next = decodeSettings({ providerInstances: patch.providerInstances });
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(next.providerInstances[instanceId]?.config).apiKey).toBe("sk-or-keep");
+  });
+
+  it("reads a key saved after boot: explicit instance wins over legacy", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const settings = decodeSettings({
+      providers: { openrouter: { apiKey: "sk-or-legacy" } },
+      providerInstances: {
+        [instanceId]: { driver: KIND, config: { apiKey: "sk-or-instance" } },
+      },
+    });
+
+    const live = selectLiveOpenRouterConfig(settings, instanceId);
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(live).apiKey).toBe("sk-or-instance");
+  });
+
+  it("falls back to the legacy block when no instance entry exists", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const settings = decodeSettings({ providers: { openrouter: { apiKey: "sk-or-legacy" } } });
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(selectLiveOpenRouterConfig(settings, instanceId)).apiKey).toBe(
+      "sk-or-legacy",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it("reports no live config when the user has configured nothing", () => {
+    const instanceId = defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND);
+    const settings = decodeSettings({});
+    const live = selectLiveOpenRouterConfig(settings, instanceId);
+    // Legacy defaults decode to an empty key, which is what the status check
+    // reports as "add an API key" rather than silently probing.
+    expect(decodeOpenRouter(live).apiKey).toBe("");
+  });
+
+  it("prefers a key typed into settings, else the stored secret", () => {
+    expect(resolveOpenRouterApiKey({ settingsApiKey: "sk-typed", storedApiKey: "sk-stored" })).toBe(
+      "sk-typed",
+    );
+    expect(resolveOpenRouterApiKey({ settingsApiKey: "", storedApiKey: "sk-stored" })).toBe(
+      "sk-stored",
+    );
+    expect(resolveOpenRouterApiKey({ settingsApiKey: "   ", storedApiKey: "sk-stored" })).toBe(
+      "sk-stored",
+    );
+    // Trailing newline is easy to introduce when writing the secret file.
+    expect(resolveOpenRouterApiKey({ settingsApiKey: "", storedApiKey: "sk-stored\n" })).toBe(
+      "sk-stored",
+    );
+    expect(resolveOpenRouterApiKey({ settingsApiKey: "", storedApiKey: undefined })).toBe("");
+  });
+
+  it("names the secret per instance so multiple accounts do not collide", () => {
+    expect(openRouterApiKeySecretName(defaultInstanceIdForDriver(KIND))).toBe(
+      "provider-openrouter-api-key",
+    );
+    expect(openRouterApiKeySecretName(ProviderInstanceId.make("openrouter_work"))).toBe(
+      "provider-openrouter_work-api-key",
+    );
+  });
+
+  it.effect("reports the key as configured to the status check", () =>
+    Effect.gen(function* () {
+      const settings = decodeOpenRouter({ apiKey: "sk-or-live", enabled: true });
+      expect(settings.apiKey).toBe("sk-or-live");
+      expect(settings.enabled).toBe(true);
+    }),
+  );
+});