ZenQuery

ZenQuery Documentation

Usage Guide

Click the 📁+ icon to create a new session and give it a descriptive name (e.g., "Sales Analysis Q4 2024").
Select your newly created session from the sessions dropdown menu and click 'Load Selected Session'.
Click on "Add Files" to upload files for analysis. ZenQuery supports following file types: csv, json, excel/xlsx, parquet, jsonl and ndjson.
Ensure your LLM configuration is set correctly in settings before proceeding to next step (see Getting Your LLM API Key and Configuring Your Key in ZenQuery sections below).
Start asking questions in natural language in the query input box. Examples:
- "What are the top 10 products by sales volume?"
- "Show me email campaigns with the highest open rates"
- "Who are our top 20 customers by revenue in 2024?"
Create multiple sessions with different sets of files and switch between them quickly whenever needed.
Pro Tip: Use the query context box (top right) for additional query generation context like formatting or ordering preferences. This context is saved per session and applies to all queries. Example: "Format all decimal numbers to a max of 2 decimal places and sort results by date ascending"
Important: While LLMs are powerful, they can occasionally make mistakes. Always double-check the generated output before using it for critical decisions.

Getting Your LLM API Key

ZenQuery requires an API key from a compatible LLM provider. We recommend OpenRouter for its flexibility and cost-effectiveness, but OpenAI is also fully supported. Any provider with OpenAI compatibility (>99%) will work.

Using OpenRouter (Recommended)

OpenRouter provides access to multiple AI models at competitive prices, making it ideal for most users.

Visit openrouter.ai and create a new account.
Add at least $5 in credits to your account. This amount supports tens of thousands of queries.
Navigate to your API Keys page.
Click "Create Key", enter a descriptive name, and click "Create".
Copy the generated key (it starts with sk-or-v1-...). Store this key securely.

Using OpenAI

If you prefer to use OpenAI directly or already have an account, you can use their API.

Visit platform.openai.com and log in.
Go to your billing settings and set up a payment method.
Visit your API keys page.
Click "Create new secret key", give it a name, and copy it immediately.

Configuring Your Key in ZenQuery

Once you have your API key, follow these steps to set it up inside ZenQuery.

Open ZenQuery and click the settings button (gear icon) in the bottom left corner.
In the settings panel, paste your API key into the "API Key" field.
Set the "Endpoint" field based on your provider:
- For OpenRouter: https://openrouter.ai/api/v1
- For OpenAI: https://api.openai.com/v1
In the model field, we recommend starting with openai/gpt-4o for the best results, then switching to openai/gpt-4.1-mini for incredible cost savings with almost identical quality for daily usage.
Click "Save" to store your configuration.

            🔒 Security Note

            Your API key is stored securely and encrypted on your local device. It is never sent to ZenQuery servers and is only used to communicate directly with your chosen LLM provider.

ZenQuery Video Guides

🚀 Quickstart (Under 2 Minutes)

📘 Detailed Usage Guide

Understanding Running Costs

ZenQuery is designed to be extremely cost-effective. App is one-time payment, and LLM costs associated with usage are negligible. See below.

Recommended Models & Costs

Below are our recommended models with estimated questions per dollar, based on a single CSV file with 10 numeric columns.

Model Name	Quality	Questions Per Dollar	Best For
openai/gpt-4.1-mini ⭐	Close to Best	~4,500	(Recommended model) Daily usage for simple to complex questions
openai/gpt-4o	Best	~300	Very complex and detailed questions
google/gemini-2.0-flash	Very Good	~18,000	Extremely heavy usage up to moderately complex questions
deepseek/deepseek-chat-v3	Very Good	~6,500	Heavy usage up to moderately complex questions
openai/gpt-4o-mini	Good	~12,000	Very heavy usage up to low-moderately complex questions

            💡 Cost Example

            With our recommended openai/gpt-4.1-mini model, a $5 credit from your provider could answer roughly 25,000 questions of yours — enough for a complete year of regular data analysis! And remember, the size of files does NOT matter at all.

Data Privacy & Security

Your privacy is paramount. By default, only the first 3 rows of your files are shared with the LLM to provide context for analysis. You have full control and can adjust this number down to zero in the settings panel. Your files are never uploaded on any server.

⚠️ Mac Users on New macOS Versions (After Dec. 2023)

Due to recent macOS changes, Apple now requires apps to be notarized for running them. Since ZenQuery's notarization is currently in progress, you might see a message like:

            “ZenQuery can’t be opened because Apple cannot check it for malicious software.”
        

No worries — the app is completely safe and digitally signed with an Apple-issued certificate. You can resolve this in less than 10 seconds:

After installation, right-click on the ZenQuery app and choose Open. MacOS will still warn you, but you’ll get an option to proceed. You only need to do this the first time you open the app.

We have also prepared a short video for you showing how easy and fast it is. You can watch it here: Video

Need Help?

If you have questions not covered here or need assistance, we're ready to help.

Email Support: support@zenquery.app
Response Time: We typically respond within 24 hours.