Overview

This guide walks you through connecting OpenRouter to WhatsApp using OpenClaw. You'll learn how to configure authentication, set up the channel, and deploy your AI assistant.

OpenRouter Features

  • Access to 100+ models
  • Unified billing
  • Model comparison
  • Automatic fallbacks

WhatsApp Capabilities

  • Direct messages
  • Group chats
  • Media support

Step 1: Configure OpenRouter

OpenRouter API key

  1. Create account at openrouter.ai
  2. Generate API key
  3. Set OPENROUTER_API_KEY environment variable

Environment variable: OPENROUTER_API_KEY

Step 2: Configure WhatsApp

  1. Enable WhatsApp in your openclaw.json configuration
  2. Start the OpenClaw gateway with 'openclaw gateway start'
  3. Scan the QR code displayed in terminal with WhatsApp mobile app
  4. Wait for authentication to complete
  5. Configure DM policy and allowlist for access control

Step 3: Combined Configuration

Add both configurations to your openclaw.json:

{
  "agents": {
    "defaults": {
      "model": {
        "primary": "openrouter/anthropic/claude-sonnet-4"
      }
    }
  },
  "models": {
    "providers": {
      "openrouter": {
  "models": {
    "providers": {
      "openrouter": {
        "apiKey": "${OPENROUTER_API_KEY}
    }
  },
  "channels": {
    "whatsapp": {
      "enabled": true,
      "dmPolicy": "pairing",
      "allowFrom": ["111@s.whatsapp.net"],
      "groupPolicy": "allowlist",
      "mediaMaxMb": 5
    }
  }
}
}

Step 4: Start the Gateway

# Start the gateway
openclaw gateway start

# Check status
openclaw status

# View logs
openclaw logs --follow

Access Control

WhatsApp supports the following access control policies:

DM Policies

Policy Description
allowlist Only senders in allowFrom list are processed
pairing Unknown senders receive a pairing code; admin must approve
open All DMs are processed (requires allowFrom: ["*"])

Group Policies

Policy Description
allowlist Only groups in groupAllowFrom are processed
open All groups are processed

Deploy Options

Choose how to deploy your OpenRouter + WhatsApp setup:

Local Deployment

Run on your personal machine with local-only access

View Guide →

VPS Deployment

Always-on deployment on a Linux VPS

View Guide →

Cloud Deployment

Managed container deployment on Fly.io or similar

View Guide →

Docker Deployment

Containerized deployment with Docker

View Guide →

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I set up OpenRouter with WhatsApp?
Configure OpenRouter as your AI provider and enable WhatsApp as a channel in openclaw.json. The gateway routes WhatsApp messages to OpenRouter for processing automatically.
Is OpenRouter a good choice for WhatsApp bots?
OpenRouter works great with WhatsApp. Single API for multiple providers and Easy model switching make it well-suited for Personal AI assistant and Family group automation.