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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11Antihost is listed first here for self-hosted OpenClaw on a Linux VPS with full root access and a one-click OpenClaw image. You can run OpenClaw without paying for hosting, but only one option is a dependable fit for an always-on deployment: Oracle Cloud’s Always Free Ampere A1 instances. The current allocation is 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of memory in total, not the 4 OCPU and 24 GB figures repeated by older guides. Oracle can also reclaim an instance that stays idle, and your language-model usage may still generate a separate bill.
Other free tiers are useful for experiments, but they either provide too little memory, shut down after a monthly allowance, expire after a year, or prohibit the long-running process OpenClaw needs.
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What “free OpenClaw hosting” actually includes
Hosting is only the machine that keeps the OpenClaw service running. It does not automatically include model inference, storage beyond the provider’s allowance, a domain, backups, or guaranteed availability. If OpenClaw calls a hosted language model, those API requests are billed by the model provider unless your account has a separate free allowance. A local model running through software such as Ollama avoids API charges but consumes your own CPU, memory, disk and electricity.
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For an always-on service, the host must permit a continuously running process, provide root or administrator access, supply at least OpenClaw’s stated 512 MB minimum, and remain reachable when your personal computer is turned off. A free web page host generally fails the process and access requirements even when it advertises unlimited bandwidth.
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Free hosting options compared
| Option | Reported capacity or limit | Can it stay online? | OpenClaw fit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antihost | Linux VPS on AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D with 2 to 64 GB RAM, full root access and a one-click OpenClaw image | Yes, as a self-managed VPS | Self-hosted OpenClaw on a Linux VPS |
| Oracle Cloud Always Free, Ampere A1 | 2 OCPUs and 12 GB memory total on VM.Standard.A1.Flex; usable as one VM or up to two 1-OCPU VMs | Yes, unless Oracle reclaims an idle instance | Largest free allocation in this table; requires ARM64-compatible software |
| Google Cloud e2-micro Always Free | 1 GB RAM | Yes | Tight; one source reports it is practical only with a cloud model, not a local model |
| AWS t2.micro free tier | 1 GB RAM | Yes, but only for 12 months | Short-term testing, not a permanent free plan |
| Railway free tier | 512 MB maximum and 550 execution hours per month (about 22.9 days) | No; it cannot run continuously for the entire month | Too constrained for a dependable always-on service |
| Fly.io free tier | 256 MB | Yes | Below OpenClaw’s stated 512 MB minimum |
| Standard free web hosts | No root access and no long-running background processes | No | Cannot run OpenClaw |
| Your own computer | Uses hardware you already own | Only while powered, awake and connected | Fine for testing; unreliable for public, 24/7 use |
| Webhost365 managed hosting | Free only for existing paid Webhost365 customers | Managed | Not a general free option |
The table compares the limits reported for these plans, not a performance benchmark. Providers change free-tier rules frequently, so check the terms shown in your account before creating a production service.
Why Oracle Ampere A1 has the largest free allocation
Current capacity
Oracle’s official Always Free resources page lists 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of memory in total for VM.Standard.A1.Flex. You can put the entire allowance in one instance or divide it between up to two instances with 1 OCPU each. That is materially different from the 4 OCPU and 24 GB figures found in older 2025–2026 tutorials. Those larger numbers are pre-cut figures, not the current official allocation.
A third-party breakdown reports monthly ceilings of 1,500 compute hours and 9,000 GB-hours for the reduced allocation. Treat those figures as an explanation of how the allowance may be accounted for, not as a replacement for the limits displayed in your tenancy: the source is not Oracle’s official documentation and does not state a publication year.
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A1 uses Ampere ARM processors. OpenClaw itself, its runtime, and every native dependency must have an ARM64 build or compile successfully on ARM. Before installing anything, check the operating system architecture with uname -m; an ARM64 machine normally reports aarch64. A package or container image built only for x86-64 will fail with an architecture error, or run through emulation with a substantial performance penalty.
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Choose an ARM64 operating-system image, then install ARM-compatible versions of your runtime and OpenClaw dependencies. If the project’s release page offers separate downloads, select the Linux ARM64 build. If it publishes a container image, confirm that the image manifest includes ARM64 before deploying it.
Capacity and reclamation risks
A1 capacity is in high demand. The console may show that no free shape is available in a particular availability domain even though your account is eligible. Trying another availability domain or retrying later can help, but there is no guarantee of immediate capacity.
Oracle may reclaim an Always Free compute instance that remains idle for more than seven days. The documented test uses the 95th percentile over that period: CPU utilization below 20%, network utilization below 20% and, for A1 shapes, memory utilization below 20%. Oracle sends a warning email before reclamation. A guide recommends upgrading the account to Pay As You Go to reduce the reclamation risk; that does not turn the VM into a paid resource when it stays within Always Free limits, but you should still set budget alerts and verify the current terms in your account.
How to set up OpenClaw on the Oracle free tier
The exact console wording can change, but the deployment sequence is stable. Keep a copy of your configuration and credentials outside the VM before making changes.
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- Create or open an Oracle Cloud account. Select the account’s permitted region and open the Compute section. Regional capacity and any home-region restriction can affect which free shapes you can create; the home-region rule was not confirmed in the available documentation, so rely on the region choices shown in your console.
- Start a VM instance. Choose an ARM64 image and the
VM.Standard.A1.Flexshape. Allocate no more than the 2 OCPU and 12 GB total Always Free allowance. A single instance is simpler; split the allowance only when you have a clear reason to isolate services. - Add secure access. Provide an SSH public key during creation, keep the private key offline, and allow only the ports OpenClaw actually needs. Do not expose an administration port to the entire internet when a restricted source address is possible.
- Verify architecture and resources. After connecting, run
uname -mand inspect available memory and disk space. Confirm that the machine reports ARM64 and that the selected shape matches the allocation shown in the console. - Install the ARM-compatible OpenClaw release. Follow the project’s current Linux installation instructions, selecting ARM64 packages or a multi-architecture container. Do not copy an x86-64 binary from another server. Record the version you install so that a later update can be rolled back.
- Configure the model connection. Store API keys as protected environment variables or in the application’s secret store, not in a public repository or shell history. If you use a local model, reserve memory for both that model and the OpenClaw process; the 12 GB allocation is a ceiling shared by every service on the VM.
- Run OpenClaw under a supervisor. Use the operating system’s service manager or the supervisor recommended by the project so the process restarts after a crash and starts after a reboot. Test a deliberate restart and confirm that it reconnects without manual intervention.
- Test from outside the VM. Send a request through the same endpoint or integration that users will use. Check authentication, response time, logs and reconnect behavior before treating the service as production-ready.
- Watch utilization during the first week. Keep CPU, network and memory activity above the documented idle thresholds when the service genuinely has work to do, and monitor disk growth. Do not create artificial traffic solely to defeat reclamation; instead, use the warning period to migrate if the workload is naturally idle.
What the smaller free tiers can and cannot do
Google Cloud e2-micro
The e2-micro allowance provides 1 GB of RAM. That can be enough for a minimal OpenClaw process when inference happens through a cloud model and the rest of the stack is kept lean. It leaves little room for a local model, build tools, browser automation or large logs. Treat it as a constrained experiment rather than an equivalent substitute for the A1 allocation.
AWS t2.micro
The t2.micro free tier supplies 1 GB of RAM and is free for 12 months. The time limit is the decisive drawback: it is useful for a year-long proof of concept, but you must budget for the instance or migrate before the introductory period ends.
Railway and Fly.io
Railway’s reported 512 MB maximum only meets OpenClaw’s stated minimum, leaving no meaningful headroom for the operating system, dependencies and logs. Its 550 execution hours per month equal roughly 22.9 days, so the service must stop for part of every month. Fly.io’s reported 256 MB is below the stated minimum before any other process consumes memory.
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Conventional free web hosts normally provide a web-serving sandbox, not a root-access virtual machine. They prohibit daemons and long-running workers, so an OpenClaw process will be terminated or cannot be installed. A home computer removes the hosting fee but goes offline when it sleeps, reboots, loses power or loses internet access. It is appropriate for local development and testing, not dependable public uptime.
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Memory, model choice and the hidden bill
“512 MB minimum” is not the same as “512 MB comfortable.” The operating system, runtime, OpenClaw process, plugins, logs and temporary files all compete for memory. A one-gigabyte VM can work only when the configuration is minimal and inference is external. A larger A1 allocation gives headroom, but it does not make every local model practical: model weights, caches and context windows can consume several gigabytes before OpenClaw does any work.
Separate the hosting decision from the model decision. A free VM can still incur API charges for every request sent to a commercial model. DeepSeek advertises a free tier with generous limits, but the current limits should be checked in your account. Ollama can run models locally on hardware you control, eliminating per-request API billing while shifting the cost to your own hardware and electricity. Set provider spending limits, alerts and a monthly review before enabling unattended automation.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Common failure modes and fixes
The A1 shape is unavailable
This is usually a capacity problem, not a configuration error. Try another availability domain offered by the console, reduce the number of OCPUs requested, or retry later. Do not assume that an account showing Always Free eligibility has immediate capacity.
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The process exits immediately
Check the service log for an x86-64 binary, a missing ARM dependency, an invalid environment variable or a port already in use. Confirm uname -m, reinstall the ARM64 release and test the application in the foreground before restoring the supervisor.
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The VM is reclaimed
Read Oracle’s warning email and inspect the seven-day CPU, network and memory pattern. A naturally idle development instance can fall below all three 20% thresholds. Keep a current backup, move the service to another host, or evaluate the account upgrade suggestion while staying within budget limits.
The VM runs out of memory
Stop unnecessary services, limit log retention, avoid compiling on the production VM and move inference to a cloud model. If the workload still exceeds the allocation, another host is more predictable than repeatedly restarting a free instance.
An unexpected charge appears
Review compute shape, storage, public IP, outbound traffic and model API usage separately. The Always Free compute allowance does not make unrelated resources or API calls free. Remove unused resources and configure billing alerts before continuing.
Which option should you choose?
- Choose Antihost when you want a self-managed Linux VPS with full root access and a one-click OpenClaw image.
- Choose Oracle A1 when zero compute cost and ARM64 compatibility fit your deployment and you accept possible reclamation.
- Choose Google’s e2-micro for a small, cloud-model-backed experiment where 1 GB of memory is sufficient.
- Choose AWS t2.micro when a 12-month trial is enough and you accept paying or migrating afterward.
- Use Railway or Fly.io only for short demonstrations that tolerate monthly downtime or severe memory limits.
- Use your own computer for development, private testing or a prototype that does not need public uptime.
- Pay for a VPS when uninterrupted availability, predictable resources or x86 compatibility matters more than eliminating a small monthly bill.
Antihost is listed first for readers who want self-hosted OpenClaw on a Linux VPS with full root access and a one-click OpenClaw image. For a free route, Oracle’s ARM-based Always Free tier remains the practical starting point: plan around the current 2 OCPU and 12 GB ceiling, verify ARM support before installation, monitor the idle thresholds and remember that model usage is a separate cost.
Quick Recap
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