How to Set Up and Test OpenClaw Free Without a Credit Card?

This guide shows how to try OpenClaw for free without a credit card. I walk through installation, onboarding with OpenRouter as the API provider, and a Telegram channel test.

I already installed OpenClaw on an AWS instance, and the same steps work on macOS or Linux.

Set Up and Test OpenClaw Free Without a Credit Card?

Install

Go to openclaw.ai and grab the install command for macOS or Linux.

Run the installer, then confirm the binary is available.

Launch the onboarding wizard.

openclaw onboard

If you need a broader walkthrough without paid keys, see no paid key.

Quick start

Select Yes to start onboarding.

Choose Quick Start.

Pick API provider OpenRouter.

For more free provider and model options, check free APIs.

OpenRouter API key

Open openrouter.ai, go to Settings, then Keys.

Create a new API key.

Paste the OpenRouter API key into the OpenClaw prompt.

You can also review free model choices in this setup here: free models.

Choose a free model

Select a free model. I selected Google Gemini 2.5 Flash Preview.

Confirm the model selection.

Add a channel

Choose Telegram as the channel.

Open the Telegram app and start a chat with BotFather.

Type the command:

/newbot

Set the bot name when prompted, then set the bot username.

Copy the bot token from BotFather.

Paste the Telegram bot token into the OpenClaw prompt.

Configure and launch

Proceed to Configure skills.

Enable hooks if you need them, or skip for now.

Wait while OpenClaw sets up the gateway service.

When prompted to chat with your bot, choose Chat in terminal UI or open the web UI.

If you prefer managing things in a browser later, see the AI dashboard.

Test in terminal UI

Run a quick prompt to confirm provider and model are working.

list all the files in my root directory

I see a response, which confirms OpenRouter and the selected free model are active.

Pair Telegram

Open your Telegram bot and click Start.

Complete the pairing by copying the pairing command shown in OpenClaw, exit the terminal UI, and run it in your terminal.

Copy the pairing code from Telegram and paste it back into OpenClaw.

Approve the Telegram sender when prompted.

If you want to explore local or hybrid options later, see Claude with Ollama.

Test in Telegram

Send a prompt to your bot.

What is the storage of this server?

Send another prompt to verify access.

List all the files in my root directory

Both prompts work as expected in Telegram.

Final thoughts

This setup lets you try OpenClaw free using OpenRouter and a Telegram bot. Installation, onboarding, API key setup, and pairing are straightforward, and terminal or web UI both work for testing. For more model and provider options, also see free APIs and free models.