How to beginner · 3 min read

How to use DeepSeek with OpenAI SDK

Quick answer

Use the OpenAI SDK with the base_url parameter set to DeepSeek's API endpoint and your DEEPSEEK_API_KEY. Call client.chat.completions.create() with the deepseek-chat model and your messages to get AI completions from DeepSeek.

PREREQUISITES

Python 3.8+
DeepSeek API key
pip install openai>=1.0

Setup

Install the OpenAI Python SDK and set your DeepSeek API key as an environment variable. Use the base_url parameter to point the client to DeepSeek's API endpoint.

bash

pip install openai>=1.0

Step by step

This example shows how to create a DeepSeek client using the OpenAI SDK and send a chat completion request to the deepseek-chat model.

python

import os
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key=os.environ["DEEPSEEK_API_KEY"],
    base_url="https://api.deepseek.com"
)

response = client.chat.completions.create(
    model="deepseek-chat",
    messages=[{"role": "user", "content": "Hello, DeepSeek!"}]
)

print(response.choices[0].message.content)

output

Hello! How can I assist you today?

Common variations

Use different DeepSeek models like deepseek-reasoner by changing the model parameter.
Implement streaming completions by using the SDK's streaming options.
Use async calls with Python asyncio and the OpenAI SDK's async client if needed.

Troubleshooting

If you get authentication errors, verify your DEEPSEEK_API_KEY environment variable is set correctly.
Check network connectivity to https://api.deepseek.com.
Ensure you are using the latest OpenAI SDK version to avoid compatibility issues.

✅

Key Takeaways

Use the OpenAI SDK with base_url="https://api.deepseek.com" to access DeepSeek models.
Set your DeepSeek API key in os.environ["DEEPSEEK_API_KEY"] for authentication.
Call client.chat.completions.create() with model="deepseek-chat" for chat completions.
You can switch models or enable streaming by adjusting parameters in the SDK call.
Verify environment variables and network access if you encounter errors.

Verified 2026-04 · deepseek-chat, deepseek-reasoner

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