NanoClaw: Pick it and plan

This is the first of eight pages for a reader who chose NanoClaw instead of Agent Zero, the main pick in the first 10 minutes. It helps you decide whether NanoClaw fits you, what it costs, and what to have ready before you install it on the next page.

NanoClaw came last of the six agents this guide scored, with 56.5 points, and most of the lost points were for how hard it is to install. The scoring is in the landscape notes.

This is the hardest install in the set, so plan for 30 to 60 minutes. NanoClaw's own quick start says that, and it adds that Windows preparation can take longer. There is no app to double-click; instead, you type commands into a terminal.

Two things are required before NanoClaw will run:

• Docker is required on every computer, because NanoClaw's agent works inside a container rather than on your real files.
• WSL2 is required on Windows, because NanoClaw does not run on Windows by itself. On Windows you install WSL2 first, then install NanoClaw inside Linux.

Facts on these pages were checked on 14 November 2026, when the newest published release was v2026.10.0. The install command downloads the newest code, which can be a little ahead of that release.

Pick this if

• You want to message your agent from a chat app you already use, such as Telegram, WhatsApp, Slack, or Discord, because that is what NanoClaw is built for.
• You want the agent's commands to run inside Docker from the very start.
• You are willing to type commands and wait through a long setup.
• You are fine paying for a model by use, since NanoClaw is built around Claude.

Pick Agent Zero instead if you want a window you can click through, because NanoClaw is not an agent that drives the apps on your screen.

Before you start

The program is free. NanoClaw is open source under the MIT license, so you do not pay for NanoClaw itself.

The model can cost money. See Pick your model and budget for the full price table.

It is built around Claude. Setup starts with Claude, a model made by Anthropic. If you use a Claude API key, Anthropic bills you pay-as-you-go for each use, with no flat monthly price, so set a monthly spend limit at Anthropic before you paste the key. Anthropic's Spend limits page is platform.claude.com/settings/spend-limits, and the screen names are in the safety checklist.

NanoClaw's own quick start walks through signing in with a Claude Pro or Max chat plan instead of a key, but this guide does not teach that path. Anthropic's rules on using a chat plan inside other programs have changed more than once in 2026, and you may still be billed. The details are in the unofficial-route notes, and this guide uses an API key instead.

Other models work too. Setup offers OpenCode, an add-on that takes keys from Google, DeepSeek, OpenRouter, OpenAI, or Anthropic. Read Connect a model before you begin, because setup asks about the model in the middle.

Have these ready:

• A Mac, or a Windows 11 PC, with at least 4 GB of memory. The installer warns if it finds less.
• An internet connection, and permission to install software.
• Your API key, with a spend limit already set.
• 30 to 60 minutes, or more on Windows.
• A computer you can leave on, because NanoClaw only answers while that computer is on and online.

The catches

• The hardest install here. It is all typed commands, and it takes 30 to 60 minutes, longer on Windows.
• Built around Claude. Other models are add-ons, and later add-ons and fixes run through Claude Code.
• Commands inside the container do not ask. The container is the wall, but a tricked agent can still read or delete its own workspace, message anyone it is connected to, and spend through its keys.
• Egress lockdown starts off. You turn it on yourself, and it can break some tools.
• The official pages disagree. They disagree on whether the prebuilt image or the local build is the default, and the README lists an Ollama local model that the providers page says is not supported on current code.
• Changing how it behaves means changing its code. NanoClaw has no settings screen, and its own advice is to have Claude Code edit the code.
• The computer has to stay on. On Windows, this guide could not confirm what happens when you close the Ubuntu window.
• Not a desktop agent. It does not click around the apps on your screen.

If you change your mind later, Fixes shows how to remove NanoClaw cleanly.

Sources

Opened 14 November 2026.

NanoClaw:

• README, for accounts, requirements, Claude Code, providers, and the channel list.
• Quick start, for the 30 to 60 minutes, the Windows note, and the chat plan walkthrough.
• Installation, for requirements and the 4 GB memory warning.
• Security model, for what a tricked agent can still do.
• Hardening, for egress lockdown starting off.
• Agent providers, for OpenCode and the Ollama limitation.
• Echo hardened runtime, for the image default.

This guide's own notes:

• NanoClaw raw notes.
• The landscape and scores.
• First-hour safety checklist.
• Unofficial routes, including Claude plan sign-in.
• Pick your model and budget.

Next

Continue to Install and first job.