head to head · open source
OpenClaw vs rome
OpenClaw has 393,747 GitHub stars, 82,755 forks, 6,671 open issues and last shipped yesterday. rome has 883 stars, 65 forks, 47 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenClaw leads on adoption by 44,492% (393,747 vs 883 stars). OpenClaw is written in TypeScript under MIT; rome is written in TypeScript under MIT. OpenClaw has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, rome 7%. OpenClaw was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
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 | rome | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 394K | ★ 883 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | TypeScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 83K | ⑂ 65 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick OpenClaw if
- You weight community size — 394K stars and counting
- You want the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick rome if
- You want the rome feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You evaluated both and rome fits your workflow better
About OpenClaw
OpenClaw 🦞 — Your assistant, on your devices, in your chats OpenClaw is an open source AI assistant that runs on your own computer and meets you in the channels you already use: Discord, iMessage, Slack, Teams, Telegram, WhatsApp, and 20+ more, plus native apps for macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, and Linux. One Gateway runs it as a personal assistant on a laptop or as a shared team deployment; configuration is the only difference. Yours, with no catch. State, memory, and credentials live on your hardware. Models and agent harnesses (Claude, Codex, local models) are plugins you can swap without changing anything…
read the full OpenClaw overview →
About rome
Rome The agentic OS for humans and agents. Website · Try Rome Cloud · Documentation · App Store What is Rome? Most progress in AI comes from scaling models. Rome scales the other axis, the environment: the tools, workflows, memory, and interfaces an agent works within (why this matters). Rome is a guardrailed environment where human and agent collaborate, and the collaboration compounds. Agents build their own harnesses, design their own SOPs, and orchestrate workflows under your guidance. Proven capabilities stick. Every interaction raises the ceiling for the next. Rome also works as an open source alternative…
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenClaw or rome more popular?
OpenClaw has 393,747 GitHub stars and rome has 883. OpenClaw has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenClaw and rome free?
Both are open source. OpenClaw is licensed under MIT and rome under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenClaw and rome?
OpenClaw is written in TypeScript and rome in TypeScript. 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 rome?
Choose OpenClaw if you want the larger community (393,747 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose rome if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.