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Getting started

docs/start/getting-started.md

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Install OpenClaw, run onboarding, and chat with your AI assistant — all in about 5 minutes. By the end you will have a running Gateway, configured auth, and a working chat session.

What you need

  • Node.js — Node 24 recommended (Node 22.14+ also supported)
  • An API key from a model provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, Google, etc.) — onboarding will prompt you
<Tip> Check your Node version with `node --version`. **Windows users:** both native Windows and WSL2 are supported. WSL2 is more stable and recommended for the full experience. See [Windows](/platforms/windows). Need to install Node? See [Node setup](/install/node). </Tip>

Quick setup

<Steps> <Step title="Install OpenClaw"> <Tabs> <Tab title="macOS / Linux"> ```bash curl -fsSL https://openclaw.ai/install.sh | bash ``` 
  </Tab>
  <Tab title="Windows (PowerShell)">
    ```powershell
    iwr -useb https://openclaw.ai/install.ps1 | iex
    ```
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

<Note>
Other install methods (Docker, Nix, npm): [Install](/install).
</Note>
</Step> <Step title="Run onboarding"> ```bash openclaw onboard --install-daemon ``` 
The wizard walks you through choosing a model provider, setting an API key,
and configuring the Gateway. It takes about 2 minutes.

See [Onboarding (CLI)](/start/wizard) for the full reference.
</Step> <Step title="Verify the Gateway is running"> ```bash openclaw gateway status ``` 
You should see the Gateway listening on port 18789.
</Step> <Step title="Open the dashboard"> ```bash openclaw dashboard ``` 
This opens the Control UI in your browser. If it loads, everything is working.
</Step> <Step title="Send your first message"> Type a message in the Control UI chat and you should get an AI reply. 
Want to chat from your phone instead? The fastest channel to set up is
[Telegram](/channels/telegram) (just a bot token). See [Channels](/channels)
for all options.
</Step> </Steps> <Accordion title="Advanced: mount a custom Control UI build"> If you maintain a localized or customized dashboard build, point `gateway.controlUi.root` to a directory that contains your built static assets and `index.html`.
bash
mkdir -p "$HOME/.openclaw/control-ui-custom"
# Copy your built static files into that directory.

Then set:

json
{
  "gateway": {
    "controlUi": {
      "enabled": true,
      "root": "$HOME/.openclaw/control-ui-custom"
    }
  }
}

Restart the gateway and reopen the dashboard:

bash
openclaw gateway restart
openclaw dashboard
</Accordion>

What to do next

<Columns> <Card title="Connect a channel" href="/channels" icon="message-square"> Discord, Feishu, iMessage, Matrix, Microsoft Teams, Signal, Slack, Telegram, WhatsApp, Zalo, and more. </Card> <Card title="Pairing and safety" href="/channels/pairing" icon="shield"> Control who can message your agent. </Card> <Card title="Configure the Gateway" href="/gateway/configuration" icon="settings"> Models, tools, sandbox, and advanced settings. </Card> <Card title="Browse tools" href="/tools" icon="wrench"> Browser, exec, web search, skills, and plugins. </Card> </Columns> <Accordion title="Advanced: environment variables"> If you run OpenClaw as a service account or want custom paths:
  • OPENCLAW_HOME — home directory for internal path resolution
  • OPENCLAW_STATE_DIR — override the state directory
  • OPENCLAW_CONFIG_PATH — override the config file path

Full reference: Environment variables. </Accordion>