head to head · open source
OpenClaw vs u-claw
OpenClaw has 393,747 GitHub stars, 82,755 forks, 6,671 open issues and last shipped yesterday. u-claw has 1,760 stars, 418 forks, 9 open issues and last shipped yesterday. OpenClaw leads on adoption by 22,272% (393,747 vs 1,760 stars). OpenClaw is written in TypeScript under MIT; u-claw is written in JavaScript under MIT. OpenClaw has attracted 21% as many forks as stars, u-claw 24%. OpenClaw was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee. The two share 1 topic tag (openclaw), 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 | u-claw | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 394K | ★ 1.8K |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-11-02 |
| Forks | ⑂ 83K | ⑂ 418 |
| 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 u-claw if
- You want the u-claw feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and u-claw 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 u-claw
U Claw（虾盘） 把 AI 工作空间装进 U 盘：插上任意电脑，配置、记忆和工具都跟着走。 下载便携版 · 完整教程 · 从源码制作 · 企业服务 · English [!IMPORTANT] 这不是 U 盘制作工具。这个仓库就是 U 盘的文件骨架：运行一次 setup.sh 补齐运行时，再把整个 portable/ 拷到盘里即可。 三步开始 📺 图文教程：docs/快速上手.md（含真实界面截图，5 步从插 U 盘到开始对话） 1. 从 Releases 下载 Windows 便携版，解压到 U 盘后双击 Windows Start.bat 。 2. 或克隆仓库，在 portable/ 运行 bash setup.sh ，下载 Node.js 与 OpenClaw。 3. 首次启动在本地配置模型 Key；配置只保存在 U 盘的 data/.openclaw/openclaw.json 。 平台支持：Windows ✅（免部署完整包）· macOS ✅ · 可启动 Linux U盘 ✅ —— 详见下方平台支持表。 [!TIP] 👑 同作者新品：U King · AI 装机管家 一键装好 Claude Code / Codex / OpenClaw / Hermes 四大 AI 神器，驱动自动配好——一个 Key 直用 Claude、GPT、DeepSeek、Kimi 等 24+ 全球模型，免翻墙。绿色版仅几…
read the full u-claw overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is OpenClaw or u-claw more popular?
OpenClaw has 393,747 GitHub stars and u-claw has 1,760. OpenClaw has the larger community by that measure.
Are OpenClaw and u-claw free?
Both are open source. OpenClaw is licensed under MIT and u-claw under MIT. Neither carries a licence fee.
What is the difference between OpenClaw and u-claw?
OpenClaw is written in TypeScript and u-claw in JavaScript. 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 u-claw?
Choose OpenClaw if you want the larger community (393,747 stars) or its MIT licence terms. Choose u-claw if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.