Best VPS for OpenClaw: official requirements vs plan specs
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OpenClaw's Gateway is light. The bigger decisions are headroom for browser automation and keeping the Gateway off the public internet.
Official requirements
| App | RAM (min) | CPU cores (min) | Disk (min) | Containers / services | GitHub stars | License | Spec source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OpenClaw Gateway | 1 GB (rec. 2 GB) | 1 (rec. 2) | 0.5 GB | Runs as a Node.js service (systemd unit) rather than a compose stack by default | 392,683[1] | MIT | [2][3] |
- Absolute minimum: 1 vCPU, 1 GB RAM, ~500 MB disk[2].
- Recommended: 1–2 vCPU, 2 GB RAM or more for headroom (logs, media, multiple channels); browser automation can be resource hungry[2].
- OS: Ubuntu LTS or another modern Debian/Ubuntu[2].
Which plans meet it
| Plan | vCPU | RAM | Disk | Price (checked October 2026) | Meets OpenClaw Gateway minimum | Meets recommended | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hostinger — KVM 1 | 1 | 4 GB | 50 GB NVMe | $6.49/mo promo, paid upfront; renews at $11.99/mo[4] | Yes | No | View plan |
| Hostinger — KVM 2 | 2 | 8 GB | 100 GB NVMe | $8.79/mo promo, paid upfront; renews at $14.99/mo[4] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Hostinger — KVM 4 | 4 | 16 GB | 200 GB NVMe | $12.99/mo promo, paid upfront; renews at $28.99/mo[4] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Hostinger — KVM 8 | 8 | 32 GB | 400 GB NVMe | $25.99/mo promo, paid upfront; renews at $49.99/mo[4] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Hetzner — CX23 (Cost-Optimized) | 2 | 4 GB | 40 GB NVMe | from €5.99/mo excl. VAT; hourly billing with monthly cap; listed as not available in some locations at check time[5] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Vultr — Cloud Compute Regular 1 vCPU / 1 GB | 1 | 1 GB | 25 GB SSD | $5.00/mo[6] | Yes | No | View plan |
| Vultr — Cloud Compute High Performance 1 vCPU / 2 GB | 1 | 2 GB | 50 GB NVMe | $12.00/mo[6] | Yes | No | View plan |
| Vultr — Cloud Compute Regular 2 vCPU / 4 GB | 2 | 4 GB | 80 GB SSD | $20.00/mo[6] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Vultr — Cloud Compute High Performance 2 vCPU / 4 GB | 2 | 4 GB | 100 GB NVMe | $24.00/mo[6] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| Vultr — Cloud Compute High Performance 4 vCPU / 8 GB | 4 | 8 GB | 180 GB NVMe | $48.00/mo[6] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| DigitalOcean — Basic 1 GiB | 1 | 1 GB | 25 GB SSD | $6.00/mo GiB as listed[7] | Yes | No | View plan |
| DigitalOcean — Basic 2 GiB / 1 vCPU | 1 | 2 GB | 50 GB SSD | $12.00/mo GiB as listed[7] | Yes | No | View plan |
| DigitalOcean — Basic 4 GiB / 2 vCPU | 2 | 4 GB | 80 GB SSD | $24.00/mo GiB as listed[7] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| DigitalOcean — Basic 8 GiB / 4 vCPU | 4 | 8 GB | 160 GB SSD | $48.00/mo GiB as listed[7] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
| DigitalOcean — Basic 16 GiB / 8 vCPU | 8 | 16 GB | 320 GB SSD | $96.00/mo GiB as listed[7] | Yes | Yes | View plan |
“Meets” is a mechanical comparison of the plan's listed vCPU/RAM/disk against the published figures cited on this page — not a performance test. Your apps, users and data add load on top. GiB (DigitalOcean) and GB are treated as equal here.
Providers OpenClaw's own docs mention
The OpenClaw VPS page lists guides for providers including Azure, DigitalOcean, exe.dev, Fly.io, GCP, Hetzner, Hostinger (one-click), Northflank, Oracle Cloud (Always Free ARM), Railway, Render and Raspberry Pi[3]. A listing there is not an endorsement of price or performance.
Security: don't expose the Gateway
OpenClaw's VPS guidance is to keep the Gateway bound to loopback and reach it through an SSH tunnel or Tailscale Serve (the docs call this the secure default), and to harden admin/SSH access before installing[3]. That applies whichever provider you pick.
Running OpenClaw next to automation tools? Compare with best VPS for n8n and add the requirements together.
FAQ
What is the minimum VPS for OpenClaw?
Can I run OpenClaw on a free tier?
Should I open the OpenClaw Gateway port to the internet?
Sources (checked October 2026)
- GitHub: openclaw/openclaw — https://github.com/openclaw/openclaw
- OpenClaw docs: FAQ – providers, hardware, and hosting — https://docs.openclaw.ai/help/faq-first-run/providers-and-hosting
- OpenClaw docs: Linux server / VPS — https://docs.openclaw.ai/vps
- Hostinger VPS hosting pricing — https://www.hostinger.com/vps-hosting
- Hetzner Cloud Cost-Optimized plans — https://www.hetzner.com/cloud/cost-optimized
- Vultr pricing — https://www.vultr.com/pricing/
- DigitalOcean Droplet pricing — https://www.digitalocean.com/pricing/droplets