Both claim to cut your Claude bill. They solve different problems. Here's how to pick.
Run the free audit at aiusage.ai →| Dimension | AIUsage | rtk |
|---|---|---|
| Pitch | Stop overpaying for Claude — 70-90% on same prompts | CLI proxy that reduces LLM token consumption by 60-90% on common dev commands |
| Savings claim | 70-90% (6 verified cases: 76-84%) | 60-90% on dev commands |
| Workload coverage | Any Claude API workload — support, agents, code review, content, CRM codegen | CLI dev-command outputs only |
| Setup | One-line code change (swap API endpoint) | Single Rust binary, zero dependencies |
| Free audit | Yes — paste bill, see number, no signup | Typically no |
| Mechanism disclosure | Private — "try it, the number is testable" | Filters and compresses terminal command outputs (ls, grep, git log, test results) before they reach Claude Code's context |
| Scope | Broad (workload-agnostic) | narrow — terminal output compression inside Claude Code |
If your Claude usage is cli dev-command outputs only and you're comfortable with single rust binary, zero dependencies, rtk is purpose-built for that shape. 30.8k GitHub stars if that matters to you.
If your Claude spend spans multiple workload types (support automation, agent loops, code review, content drafting, daily coding) or you want to audit your bill before you commit to any cost-reduction tool, AIUsage gives you the number first. No CLI install, no platform dependency, no code rewrite.
rtk saves tokens on terminal command outputs inside Claude Code. AIUsage saves on your entire Claude API monthly bill across any workload shape.
Across six audited workloads, AIUsage's measured delta was 76-84% on the same prompts, blind A/B tested: