openclaw/docs/install/node.md

title, summary, read_when

title	summary	read_when
Node.js	Install and configure Node.js for OpenClaw — version requirements, install options, and PATH troubleshooting	You need to install Node.js before installing OpenClaw You installed OpenClaw but `openclaw` is command not found npm install -g fails with permissions or PATH issues

Node.js

OpenClaw requires Node 22.12 or newer. Node 24 is the default and recommended runtime for installs, CI, and release workflows. The installer script will detect and install Node automatically — this page is for when you want to set up Node yourself and make sure everything is wired up correctly (versions, PATH, global installs).

Check your version

node -v

If this prints v24.x.x or higher, you're on the recommended default. If it prints v22.12.x or higher, OpenClaw is still supported, but we recommend upgrading to Node 24 when convenient. If Node isn't installed or the version is too old, pick an install method below.

Install Node

**Homebrew** (recommended):

```bash
brew install node
```

Or download the macOS installer from [nodejs.org](https://nodejs.org/).

**Ubuntu / Debian:**

```bash
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_24.x | sudo -E bash -
sudo apt-get install -y nodejs
```

**Fedora / RHEL:**

```bash
sudo dnf install nodejs
```

Or use a version manager (see below).

**winget** (recommended):

```powershell
winget install OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS
```

**Chocolatey:**

```powershell
choco install nodejs-lts
```

Or download the Windows installer from [nodejs.org](https://nodejs.org/).

Version managers let you switch between Node versions easily. Popular options:

• fnm — fast, cross-platform
• nvm — widely used on macOS/Linux
• mise — polyglot (Node, Python, Ruby, etc.)

Example with fnm:

fnm install 24
fnm use 24

Make sure your version manager is initialized in your shell startup file (`~/.zshrc` or `~/.bashrc`). If it isn't, `openclaw` may not be found in new terminal sessions because the PATH won't include Node's bin directory.

Troubleshooting

openclaw: command not found

This almost always means npm's global bin directory isn't on your PATH.

```bash npm prefix -g ``` ```bash echo "$PATH" ```

Look for `<npm-prefix>/bin` (macOS/Linux) or `<npm-prefix>` (Windows) in the output.

Add to `~/.zshrc` or `~/.bashrc`:

    ```bash
    export PATH="$(npm prefix -g)/bin:$PATH"
    ```

    Then open a new terminal (or run `rehash` in zsh / `hash -r` in bash).
  </Tab>
  <Tab title="Windows">
    Add the output of `npm prefix -g` to your system PATH via Settings → System → Environment Variables.
  </Tab>
</Tabs>

Permission errors on npm install -g (Linux)

If you see EACCES errors, switch npm's global prefix to a user-writable directory:

mkdir -p "$HOME/.npm-global"
npm config set prefix "$HOME/.npm-global"
export PATH="$HOME/.npm-global/bin:$PATH"

Add the export PATH=... line to your ~/.bashrc or ~/.zshrc to make it permanent.