OpenClaw VPS Hosting — Bring Your Own API Key

Get a fully managed OpenClaw server without the managed AI billing. Use your own API key from Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google. Same dedicated VPS, same production setup, same dashboard — you just handle the AI spend directly with your provider.

Best for teams with existing API accounts, enterprise agreements, or users who want a specific provider without usage caps.

Need managed billing instead? Compare with OpenClaw Cloud or review OpenClaw pricing.

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What BYOK mode gives you

The server is identical to managed cloud. The only difference is where the API key comes from.

Your own API key

Use a key from Anthropic, OpenAI, or Google directly. No middleman, no credit system, no usage caps from ClawCloud.

Pay your provider directly

Your API usage goes straight to your provider account. Use your existing billing, volume discounts, and enterprise agreements.

All your provider's models

Access every model your provider offers — including previews and fine-tuned models not in the managed catalog.

Same dedicated VPS

Ubuntu 24.04, Node.js 22, 2+ GB RAM with swap, UFW firewall. Identical infrastructure to managed mode.

Same production hardening

Non-root openclaw user, user-level systemd, auto-restart on crash, config hot reload. Nothing is different.

Same dashboard and monitoring

Health checks, status badges, config display. The only difference is no credit usage bar.

Supported providers

Paste your API key during the deploy wizard. ClawCloud configures the provider connection automatically.

Anthropic

Claude Opus 4, Sonnet 4, Haiku

--auth-choice anthropic-api-key

OpenAI

GPT-4.1, GPT-4.1 mini, o3, o4-mini

--auth-choice openai-api-key

Google

Gemini 2.5 Pro, Gemini 2.5 Flash

--auth-choice google-api-key

What ships on every VPS

The same pre-baked snapshot used for managed instances. Nothing is stripped or downgraded.

Dedicated VM

2–4 vCPU, 2–8 GB RAM depending on plan

Pre-installed OpenClaw + ClawHub

Latest versions, ready to connect

Chromium, Python, build tools

Web scraping, data tools, and native npm modules work out of the box

For the full list of bundled software and production config, see the managed cloud page.

When to choose BYOK over managed

You already have an API account with volume pricing. Enterprise agreements, committed-use discounts, or org-level billing — keep using them.

You want a specific provider's full model catalog. Fine-tuned models, preview releases, or models not in the managed catalog.

You don't want usage caps. No credit limits, no free-model fallback. Your provider's rate limits are the only constraint.

Not sure? Start with managed cloud. You can switch to BYOK later without rebuilding your server.

Deploy OpenClaw with your own key

Pick a plan, select BYOK, paste your API key and bot token. Server is ready in under a minute.

Deploy Your OpenClaw Compare Managed vs BYOK