# OpenClaw

> Open-source personal AI agent you run yourself and message in chat

OpenClaw is an open-source personal AI agent that runs on your own computer or server and is reached through chat apps such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack and iMessage. A single self-hosted Gateway connects those channels to the model provider you choose, keeps memory between conversations, and can browse the web, work with files and run shell commands. It is MIT licensed and stewarded by the non-profit OpenClaw Foundation, with no paid version and no hosted service.

- **Category:** AI Agents
- **Made by:** OpenClaw Foundation
- **Website:** https://openclaw.ai
- **Runs on:** Web, macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS, Android
- **Facts last checked:** Oct 5, 2026

## Pricing

OpenClaw is free to use.

- **Pricing model:** Free
- **Free plan:** The whole product is free and MIT licensed, with no paid version or hosted tier. You supply the machine it runs on and your own model access, which the model provider bills separately.
- **Free trial:** None listed.

| Plan | Price | What you get |
| --- | --- | --- |
| OpenClaw (MIT licensed) | Free | The complete product: Gateway, desktop and mobile apps, chat channels and plugins. Model usage is billed separately by the provider you connect. |

Read from https://openclaw.ai on Oct 5, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with OpenClaw before buying.

## Key features

- **Self-hosted Gateway:** One Gateway process on your own machine or server handles sessions, routing and channel connections. Desktop apps for macOS, Windows and Linux install it for you.
- **Chat channels:** Message the agent from WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, Signal, iMessage and other channels, 29 in all, in direct messages and group chats.
- **Bring your own model:** Works with hosted providers such as Anthropic, OpenAI and Google, with gateways such as OpenRouter, and with local models through Ollama or LM Studio.
- **Persistent memory:** Remembers preferences, projects and people from one conversation to the next, with state stored on your machine rather than in a vendor cloud.
- **System access and sandboxing:** Can browse the web, fill in forms, read and write files and run shell commands, with a choice between full access and a sandbox.
- **Skills, plugins and automation:** Skills and plugins extend the agent, and it can write its own skills. Cron jobs, hooks and webhooks run work on a schedule or in response to events.

## Good for

- Developers and power users who want an assistant on their own hardware
- Reaching one agent from WhatsApp, Telegram, Slack or iMessage
- Teams sharing a single gateway with sessions everyone can open

## Worth knowing

- There is no hosted service: you install, run and update the Gateway yourself on a computer or server.
- The software is free, but model usage is billed by whichever provider you connect, through an API key or an existing subscription.
- The iOS and Android apps are companion nodes and need a Gateway running on another machine.
- The macOS desktop app requires macOS 15 or later, and the Linux desktop app is x64 only.

## Works with

WhatsApp, Telegram, Discord, Slack, Signal, iMessage, Gmail, GitHub

**Tags:** AI agents, Open source, Self-hostable, Local-first, Chat assistant, Workflow automation

## Alternatives

- [Hermes Agent](https://toolgpa.com/tools/hermes-agent): Open-source AI agent with persistent memory and a messaging gateway. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-openclaw)
- [NanoClaw](https://toolgpa.com/tools/nanoclaw): Open-source personal AI agent that runs in containers you host. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-openclaw)
- [Agent Zero](https://toolgpa.com/tools/agent-zero): Open-source agent framework that works in its own Linux computer. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/agent-zero-vs-openclaw)
- [goose](https://toolgpa.com/tools/goose): Open-source AI agent with a desktop app, CLI and API. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/goose-vs-openclaw)
- [Poke](https://toolgpa.com/tools/poke): AI assistant you text in Messages, WhatsApp or Telegram. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/openclaw-vs-poke)

## Sources

The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Oct 5, 2026:

- https://openclaw.ai
- https://openclaw.ai/install
- https://openclaw.ai/integrations
- https://docs.openclaw.ai
- https://docs.openclaw.ai/platforms
- https://docs.openclaw.ai/platforms/ios
- https://docs.openclaw.ai/platforms/android
- https://docs.openclaw.ai/reference/api-usage-costs

Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/openclaw
Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).