head to head · open source
OpenClaw vs Onyx
OpenClaw has 390,029 GitHub stars, 81,995 forks, 6,671 open issues and last shipped yesterday. Onyx has 32,149 stars, 4,478 forks, 451 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenClaw leads on adoption by 1,113% (390,029 vs 32,149 stars). OpenClaw is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; Onyx is written in Python under a custom or non-standard licence. OpenClaw has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, Onyx 14%. OpenClaw was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (ai), so they are genuine substitutes rather than adjacent tools.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| OpenClaw | Onyx | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 390K | ★ 32K |
| License | Custom / other | Custom / other |
| Written in | TypeScript | Python |
| Last push | 2026-09-18 | 2026-09-18 |
| Forks | ⑂ 82K | ⑂ 4.5K |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenClaw if
- You weight community size — 390K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick Onyx if
- You want the Onyx feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches Python
- You evaluated both and Onyx fits your workflow better
About OpenClaw
OpenClaw is an open source, self hosted AI assistant in the AI & Machine Learning / AI Interaction & Interfaces category that runs on hardware the user controls and meets them inside the messaging channels they already use, for individuals who want a personal assistant on a laptop and teams that want a shared deployment.
read the full OpenClaw overview →
About Onyx
Onyx is an open source AI application layer that gives teams a self hostable chat interface with retrieval augmented generation over their own company data and more than 50 indexing connectors.
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenClaw or Onyx more popular?
OpenClaw has 390,029 GitHub stars and Onyx has 32,149. OpenClaw has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenClaw and Onyx free?
Neither OpenClaw nor Onyx declares a licence in this registry, so check each project's own repository before relying on either for a commercial use. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between OpenClaw and Onyx?
OpenClaw is written in TypeScript and Onyx in Python. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, OpenClaw or Onyx?
Choose OpenClaw if you want the larger community (390,029 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose Onyx if its feature set, stack or Custom / other licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.