The only guide you need to master OpenClaw.
OpenClaw has been live for ~3 months, and there have been some significant changes since then.
My goal with this guide is simple: lay out absolutely everything you need to start using OpenClaw right now - from a completely unbiased, updated POV.
Table of Contents
l: VPS versus Local Hardware
ll: Optimal Setup (+ exact steps)
lll: Should You Even Use OpenClaw? (+ alternative options)
IV: Practical Workflows
Closing Thoughts
Section l: VPS versus Local Hardware
Do I need a Mac Mini? Private server? What's most secure/cost-effective?
Since OpenClaw's release, a lot of useful information has emerged to answer these questions.
The first step to mastering OpenClaw is to give the agent the proper infrastructure to run efficiently.
Before blindly installing OpenClaw, here's everything you need to know to pick the right setup environment:
Local Hardware = Running OpenClaw directly on your own computer (laptop, desktop, or workstation)
VPS (Virtual Private Server) = Running OpenClaw on a rented remote server in a data center
TLDR: There’s no clear winner - local is ideal for personal, low-volume, or sensitive workflows where uptime and scale aren’t critical (most people), but it's worth considering a VPS for 24/7 availability, multi-device access, and anything that may need to scale.
I personally choose to run my OpenClaw agents locally.
Section ll: Optimal Setup (+ exact steps)
So, you picked your setup environment - now, how do you actually set up OpenClaw?
Local Setup
Prerequisites
Mac, Linux, or Windows with WSL2
8GB+ RAM (16GB recommended)
Node.js 22+ (installer handles this automatically)
Steps
Open your computer terminal
2. Visit: OpenClaw . AI
3. Run the download command in your terminal
" curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash "
4. Accept Permissions
Once installed, you'll be prompted with a safety guardrails screen.
Click 'yes' and continue.
5. AI Model Selection Process
Before continuing with the steps below, make sure you have downloaded and logged in to the Claude Code CLI in your Terminal if you plan to use your Anthropic account.
After you have successfully logged in to Claude Code in your Terminal, you'll want to pick Anthropic as your AI provider.
Continue forward, and you'll be prompted to choose one of the available Anthropic login options.
Select "paste token setup" to use your existing Anthropic account.
In a new terminal window, paste: " claude setup-token "
The Terminal will then connect to Claude Code and output a private key.
Copy that private key and paste it back into your OpenClaw setup terminal.
Keep this private key safe.
You're now connected to your Claude account.
Lastly, select the Claude model you want to use.
I personally opted for Opus 4.5.
Note: If you want to use a different AI provider (e.g., OpenAI), select it instead of Anthropic and follow the similar on-screen steps.
6. Channel Selection
Next, you'll choose where you want to interact with OpenClaw.
You can set up Telegram, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack, iMessage, and more.
I personally use Telegram.
7. Final Setup
You'll then continue with a few final setup steps in your Terminal.
Custom skills, hooks, and a few other optional miscellaneous options.
Once you complete those steps (or skip them), your new AI assistant will be ready, and Terminal will launch you into a gateway website.
VPS (Cloudflare - Moltworker)
Uses Cloudflare Sandbox containers & runs OpenClaw serverless on Cloudflare workers (still in experimentation).
Prerequisites
Cloudflare account
Workers Paid Plan ($5/month - required for Sandboxes)
Anthropic API key (or OpenAI/other provider)
Optional: R2 storage enabled (free tier available)
Optional: Cloudflare Access configured (for security)
This GitHub has everything you need:
https://github. com/cloudflare/moltworker
Click: "Deploy to Cloudflare" to get started (and read all the instructions below)
TLDR: "Deploy Cloudflare" → Login/verify → Enable services → Connect Github → Config deployment → Setup Cloudflare access
Should You Even Use OpenClaw? (+ alternatives)
Look, OpenClaw is a very powerful tool, but there are a few questions you need to answer before investing in a proper OpenClaw setup.
a) What are your daily workflows? Will OpenClaw even be helpful for you?
A blue-collar worker will likely get significantly less from OpenClaw than someone who works in tech.
My recommendation: conduct a full audit of your life (daily tasks, manual processes - everything), then feed this data to Claude and ask it if/how OpenClaw can help you.
OpenClaw is most valuable if you:
Spend hours each day on computer tasks
Manage multiple communication channels (Slack, Gmail, etc.)
Need to automate file management, web scraping, or data processing
Integrate multiple services (Google Calendar, GitHub, email, etc.)
You want to execute tasks while away from your computer
b) Are you willing to maintain it?
OpenClaw isn't "set it and forget it." It requires:
Initial setup time: 1-3 hours, depending on your configuration
Ongoing maintenance: Updates, skill management, debugging
Security vigilance: Regular audits (openclaw doctor), permission management, monitoring logs
Learning curve: Understanding the gateway architecture, device pairing, and skill system
c) Do you trust it & what's your budget?
Are you willing to let an AI execute tasks on your desktop?
What's your comfortable budget for the estimated ROI you'll get from OpenClaw (based on your life audit completed above)?
Spending hundreds per month for simple web scraping is likely -EV.
Should I use OpenClaw (decision tree matrix):
OpenClaw Alternatives
If you followed the decision tree matrix above and concluded that OpenClaw probably isn't worth it for you, don't worry, you can 100% still take advantage of other AI tools.
There are two camps of people:
Those with nothing to automate
Those with tasks to automate but are unwilling to commit to OpenClaw (maybe due to security concerns or cost)
If you're the first group, I recommend getting creative with how you use AI.
AI is much more than just automation. Even if you have nothing to automate, you should get fluent in using basic AI tools like Claude/CoWork, Perplexity, etc., to level up other areas of your life.
I.e, Perplexity is great for financial research and can help you formulate investment plans.
Claude is great for writing, brainstorming, scanning PDFs, and other basic tasks.
If you're in the second group, who are unwilling to commit to OpenClaw but have tasks to automate, you should try experimenting with these agentic tools instead:
ManusAI - An excellent daily-driver AI agent
RunableAI - Agentic research
LindyAI - Deploy simple AI agents
Zapier - Basic automations
n8n - Automate repetitive tasks
I think everyone can get value from OpenClaw, even if it's a simple workflow like sending daily research reports. The question is really whether it's +EV for you.
IV: Practical Workflows
X personal assistant
I recently came across an awesome AI skill by @frankdegods which allows OpenClaw to connect to the new X API and transforms the agent into a personal research assistant.
Instead of manually scrolling X, just connect your agent to this new skill to conduct X research for you (source hot topics, summarize articles, source skills, and more)
You can download and use the skill for yourself here:
https:// github. com/rohunvora/x-research-skill
2. Vibe coding
By connecting OpenClaw to Opus 4.5+, you have access to the most powerful coding agent 24/7.
I recently had my agent code a market trading journal that automatically tracks my daily market data & I can update the app directly through Telegram.
I recommend everyone set up a similar "daily app" for anything you do daily - reading, meditating, gym, etc.
3. Competitor & daily/weekly research
I think everyone should be using OpenClaw for this.
Daily/weekly research, news, and web scraping.
For example, I have a dedicated app that keeps me up to date with all things AI.
What my competitors posted, any new model releases, hot topics, and more.
It filters all the news from levels "Low → Critical."
Whatever field you're in, you should build something similar.
Combine this with the X research skill in workflow #1, and you'll literally never miss anything in your niche.
Last week's AI report was massive. Here's the executive summary so you can still visualize the idea:
Closing Thoughts
Overall, there's no doubt that OpenClaw is one of the most powerful AI tools out right now.
If you haven't tested it yet, I highly recommend doing so. If not, at the very least, you should get your hands dirty with some of the other agentic tools I mentioned here.
I just got an absolutely insane OpenClaw setup (10+ Mac Minis professionally installed) - I'm excited to show you guys what my new agents build. Be sure to follow me here @aiedge_ & @milesdeutscher, so you don't miss all the upcoming content!
Lastly, if you found this post helpful, please Like/Repost this article so others get the chance to see it 💙
