How to Install OpenClaw on macOS, Windows & Linux

Prerequisites

You need Node.js 22+ (18+ minimum), an AI provider API key (Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google), and optionally a Telegram account for your bot channel. macOS is the best-supported platform. Windows requires WSL2. Linux works on Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, and Arch.

Install on macOS

Open Terminal and run npm install -g openclaw@latest followed by openclaw onboard --install-daemon. The onboarding wizard walks you through provider selection, API key entry, model choice, and gateway daemon installation. The daemon runs as a macOS LaunchAgent that auto-starts on boot.

Install on Windows (WSL2)

OpenClaw doesn't run natively on Windows. Install WSL2 first with wsl --install from PowerShell. After restart, open Ubuntu, install Node.js, then run the same npm install and onboard commands. Important: set idleTimeout=0 in your .wslconfig file to prevent WSL from shutting down during idle and killing your gateway.

Install on Linux / VPS

Install Node.js, then run the npm install and onboard commands. On headless servers, the gateway runs as a systemd user service. Enable linger with sudo loginctl enable-linger $USER so it runs even when you're logged out.

Set Up Your Telegram Bot

During onboarding, OpenClaw asks you to connect a channel. Message @BotFather on Telegram, send /newbot, name your bot, and copy the token. Paste it when OpenClaw asks. After onboarding, open your bot in Telegram, hit Start, and send 'hello'. If it responds, you're live.

Post-Install Configuration

After installation, run openclaw doctor --fix to auto-repair common config issues. Then set up fallback models to prevent rate limits — this is the single most important post-install step.