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Install overview

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

bash
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):

bash
brew install node

Or download the macOS installer from nodejs.org.

Linux

Ubuntu / Debian:

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

Fedora / RHEL:

bash
sudo dnf install nodejs

Or use a version manager (see below).

Windows

winget (recommended):

powershell
winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS

Chocolatey:

powershell
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:

bash
fnm install 24fnm use 24

Troubleshooting

openclaw: command not found

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

  • Find your global npm prefix

    bash
    npm prefix -g

  • Check if it's on your PATH

    bash
    echo "$PATH"

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

  • Add it to your shell startup file

    macOS / Linux

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

    bash
    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:

    bash
    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.

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