Node.js

OpenClaw requires Node 22.22.3+, Node 24.15+, or Node 25.9+. Node 24 is the default and recommended runtime for installs, CI, and release workflows; Node 22 remains supported via the active LTS line. Node 23 is unsupported. The installer script detects and installs Node automatically — use this page when you want to set up Node yourself (versions, PATH, global installs).

Check your version

node -v

v24.15.0 or newer 24.x is the recommended default. v22.22.3 or newer 22.x is the supported Node 22 LTS path; Node v25.9.0+ is also supported. Node 23 is unsupported. If Node is missing or outside the supported range, pick an install method below.

Install Node

macOS

Homebrew (recommended):

brew install node

Or download the macOS installer from nodejs.org.

Linux

Ubuntu / Debian:

curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs

Fedora / RHEL:

sudo dnf install nodejs

Or use a version manager (see below).

Windows

winget (recommended):

winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS

Chocolatey:

choco install nodejs-lts

Or download the Windows installer from nodejs.org.

Using a version manager (nvm, fnm, mise, asdf)

Version managers let you switch between Node versions easily. Popular options:

• fnm - fast, cross-platform
• nvm - widely used on macOS/Linux
• mise - polyglot (Node, Python, Ruby, etc.)

Example with fnm:

fnm install 24
fnm use 24

Initialize your version manager in your shell startup file (~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc). If you skip this, openclaw may not be found in new terminal sessions because PATH won’t include Node’s bin directory.

Troubleshooting

openclaw: command not found

This almost always means npm’s global bin directory isn’t on your PATH.

1. Find your global npm prefix

   npm prefix -g
   
2. Check if it's on your PATH

   echo "$PATH"
   

   Look for <npm-prefix>/bin (macOS/Linux) or <npm-prefix> (Windows) in the output.

3. Add it to your shell startup file

   macOS / Linux

   Add to ~/.zshrc or ~/.bashrc:

   export PATH="$(npm prefix -g)/bin:$PATH"
   

   Then open a new terminal (or run rehash in zsh / hash -r in bash).

   Windows

   Add the output of npm prefix -g to your system PATH via Settings → System → Environment Variables.

Permission errors on npm install -g (Linux)

If you see EACCES errors, switch npm’s global prefix to a user-writable directory:

mkdir -p "$HOME/.npm-global"
npm config set prefix "$HOME/.npm-global"
export PATH="$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$PATH"

Add the export PATH=... line to your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc to make it permanent.

Related

• Install Overview - all installation methods
• Updating - keeping OpenClaw up to date
• Getting Started - first steps after install