How to deploy OpenClaw on a $5 VPS in 15 minutes

You want OpenClaw running on a server. You do not want to spend $50/month on it, and you do not want it to take all afternoon. Fair enough.

This guide covers the exact steps to get OpenClaw deployed on a $5-6/month VPS from DigitalOcean or Hetzner. The whole thing takes about 15 minutes if your internet connection cooperates.

Why a VPS?

Running OpenClaw locally on your laptop works fine for testing. But if you want it running 24/7, responding to webhooks, or handling scheduled tasks while you sleep, you need a server.

A VPS is the sweet spot. Cheaper than managed platforms, simpler than Kubernetes, and you own the box.

What you need before starting

• An account on DigitalOcean or Hetzner
• An API key from your LLM provider (Anthropic, OpenAI, etc.)
• Basic comfort with a terminal

That is it. No Docker experience required, no CI/CD pipeline, no Terraform configs.

Option A: DigitalOcean ($6/month)

1. Create a droplet

Log into DigitalOcean, click "Create Droplet," and pick these settings:

• Image: Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
• Plan: Basic, $6/month (1 GB RAM, 1 vCPU)
• Region: Whatever is closest to you
• Authentication: SSH key (do not use a password)

Click "Create Droplet" and wait about 60 seconds.

2. SSH in and install

ssh root@YOUR_DROPLET_IP

Run the install script:

curl -fsSL https://get.openclaw.ai | bash

This installs OpenClaw and its dependencies. Takes about two minutes on a fresh droplet.

3. Configure your API key

openclaw config set api-key YOUR_API_KEY_HERE

4. Start the daemon

openclaw daemon start

OpenClaw is now running. It will restart automatically if the server reboots.

5. Verify it works

openclaw status

You should see something like:

OpenClaw v0.5.2
Status: Running
Uptime: 2m 14s
Skills: 0 installed

Done. The whole thing took less time than reading this article.

Option B: Hetzner ($4.50/month)

Hetzner is cheaper and the servers are fast. The tradeoff is fewer data center locations (mostly Europe and US East).

1. Create a server

In the Hetzner Cloud console, create a new server:

• Image: Ubuntu 24.04
• Type: CX22 (2 vCPU, 4 GB RAM, $4.50/month)
• Location: Your choice
• SSH key: Add yours

2. Same install process

ssh root@YOUR_SERVER_IP
curl -fsSL https://get.openclaw.ai | bash
openclaw config set api-key YOUR_API_KEY_HERE
openclaw daemon start

Identical steps. OpenClaw does not care what cloud provider you are on.

Security: the basics

Your server is on the public internet. Do these three things:

Set up a firewall

ufw allow OpenSSH
ufw allow 443/tcp
ufw enable

Create a non-root user

adduser openclaw
usermod -aG sudo openclaw

Then log out and SSH back in as that user. Running everything as root is asking for trouble.

Keep the system updated

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

Do this every week or two. Or set up unattended upgrades if you do not want to think about it.

Installing your first skill

A bare OpenClaw instance does not do much. Install a skill to make it useful:

openclaw install web-scraper
openclaw install slack-digest

Browse the skills directory for the full list. Most skills install in under a second.

What about Docker?

If you already use Docker, we have a Docker Compose guide that covers a containerized setup. It is more complex but gives you cleaner isolation and easier updates.

For most people starting out, the bare-metal install above is simpler and works just as well.

Cost comparison

Any of these work. Hetzner gives you the most resources per dollar. DigitalOcean has the best documentation and community. Pick whichever you already have an account with.

What comes next

Once OpenClaw is running, you will probably want to:

• Set up a SOUL.md template to define your agent's personality
• Browse skills to add capabilities
• Check out workflow recipes for multi-skill automations

The server is the easy part. The fun part is figuring out what to automate.