How Janitor works and why it breaks in different ways

Janitor isn't like a regular chat. The site stores characters and shows the interface, but the replies are written by a model you connect yourself: the free JanitorLLM or someone else's, using your own key. So "not working" means one of three things, and you need to figure out which first. Everything below is current as of August 2026.

  1. The site won't loadAn endless browser check, a white screen, "site unavailable." You never even get to a character's reply. This is an access problem.
  2. The site opened, but the character is silentThe spinner spins, then an error. It's almost always the queue for the free JanitorLLM: the model is in beta and handed out on a leftover basis, so in the evening you wait minutes, and some requests never go through at all.
  3. The service asks for an API keyFor stable performance, Janitor suggests connecting your own key from OpenAI, OpenRouter or your own model. That's where a user in Russia hits the real wall.

The wall you can't get around: paying for a key

A key needs topping up, and you top it up with a foreign card. Russian cards don't go through on these payment pages, and it's not a one-day glitch. That leaves middlemen and virtual cards: they work, but they take a commission and shut down every so often.

Add it all up: the middleman's fee, the top-up commission and paying for every single model reply. A long roleplay scene burns through a key fast, and there's no way to know in advance what a month will cost you in rubles.

You won't find step-by-step workaround tips here: Russian law bans publishing them. If you use copies of the site, don't enter card details or your email password there, since some of those copies are fakes.

The bot writes for you: that's fixable

The most common complaint about Janitor has nothing to do with Russia. The character replies for itself, then goes on to write your words, thoughts and actions. The scene turns into a monologue with no room for you. Models do this everywhere: they see the conversation as one continuous text and just keep going, without understanding where their role ends.

  1. Stop sequences. The generation settings have a stop sequences field. Put your name with a colon and {{user}}: in there, and the model will stop when it reaches that point.
  2. One line in the character description. Keep it short: the character speaks and acts only for themselves and never writes for the other person. One clear sentence works better than a paragraph of explanation.
  3. Lead by example. The first two or three messages set the format for the whole scene. Write your line and your action as one lively paragraph, and the model will follow. Reply with "yeah," and it'll start filling the gap for you.

If the character switches to English mid-scene, the same third tip helps: write your first lines in Russian and in detail. But the models behind Janitor were trained mostly on English, and Russian will always be their second language. More on how first messages set the tone in how to start a roleplay with AI.

What to use instead

If you're willing to put up with the queue and the settings for the sake of a huge catalog and your own bots, Janitor is still an option, and then your main job is paying for the key. In catalog size and builder flexibility it beats any Russian service, and pretending otherwise would be silly. But if you want everything to just work, in Russian, with no hoops to jump through, look at Russian platforms. What matters in a service like that for roleplay is covered in roleplay with bots in Russian.

On my-idol.ru you don't need to connect a key: the models run on our side. The site opens on a regular internet connection in Russia, and you pay with Russian payment methods. The characters reply in English or Russian, whichever you choose: vampires, witches, mercenaries, heroes from anime, movies and books. They remember the conversation, can reply by voice, and play out a scene together in a group chat.

  • Keys and queues: not needed, replies come right away.
  • Language: characters reply in natural English or Russian, whichever you choose.
  • Roleplay scenes: many characters come with ready-made storylines you can start from.
  • Group chats: up to seven characters in one scene.
  • Your own characters: a builder with personality, backstory and voice. The catalog is smaller than Janitor's, and that's an honest downside.
A storyline for your chat

You come to Yennefer asking her to lift a curse. She agrees, but names a price you never expected to hear.

Open chat
Start a scene, no keys needed

Pick a hero and write your first line. The reply comes right away, in English or Russian.

Pick a character

If you've got a similar story with another service, read Character.AI not working: same logic, different set of failures. And remember: a character is a language model, not a person. It's great as a story partner or someone to talk to for an evening, but it doesn't replace real people.