Hermes VS OpenClaw: The Honest Truth After 100+ Hours

Hermes VS OpenClaw is the single most common question I get from the AI agent community right now.

Which one wins?

Which one should you use?

Is Hermes better than OpenClaw, or is OpenClaw better than Hermes?

I've personally tested both for hundreds of hours at this point.

And the honest answer isn't what most people expect.

My personal favourite is Hermes.

But the real answer is more nuanced than just "pick one" — and I'll explain exactly why.

Video notes + links to the tools 👉

Why This Question Is Harder Than It Looks

Most AI YouTubers will give you a clean answer.

"Use Hermes."

Or "Use OpenClaw."

They're wrong to oversimplify.

Here's the reality from running both in production:

I use them both every single day.

And sometimes I use a third option (Manas) as a backup.

Why?

Because open-source AI agents break.

Both Hermes and OpenClaw ship rapid updates.

Version 0.9 of Hermes just dropped with a new dashboard feature.

Every time there's a new release, things can break.

Sometimes Hermes breaks on you. Sometimes OpenClaw breaks.

If you're relying on only one, you're leaving your workflow exposed.

That's why I run both.

I also covered my Ollama + Hermes setup in detail — that's worth reading because it gives you the fastest path to getting Hermes running cleanly before you even start comparing.

Hermes VS OpenClaw: The Foundation Difference

This is the biggest thing most reviews miss.

OpenClaw's Origin

OpenClaw started as a weekend project by Peter Steinberger.

He built it, shared it, and it grew into an amazing community.

That community-driven growth is genuinely impressive.

But it wasn't built from the ground up by a professional AI lab.

It's a DIY project that snowballed.

Hermes's Origin

Hermes comes from Nous Research, a leading AI lab.

Nous engineered the whole project properly.

They don't just build agent harnesses — they build their own AI models too.

Hermes is itself an AI model you can use from the portal.

That means the people building the harness actually understand the models going into it.

That foundation difference matters.

Hermes feels fundamentally smoother.

Fewer bugs.

Less friction.

Easier to use.

It's the difference between a weekend hack that got lucky and a professional product engineered from day one.

My Day-to-Day Workflow With Both

Let me walk you through how I actually use these tools.

I have:

OpenClaw running with certain models and skills
Hermes running with different models and skills
Manas as my bulletproof backup when both break

All accessible via Telegram group chats where I can tag different agents.

Or via the terminal directly.

Or via their respective dashboards.

When Hermes Wins for Me

Cleaner dashboard (especially with the new 0.9 release)
Smoother sessions with fewer unexpected errors
Easier skill management through the new UI
Better foundations from Nous Research

When OpenClaw Wins for Me

Chat directly in the dashboard (Hermes doesn't have this yet)
Larger community library of shared workflows
More mature project directory with more integrations
Longer track record (launched November, Hermes only February)

Neither is a clear winner across every category.

That's why I switch between them.

🔥 Want my full 100+ hour breakdown of when to use each AI agent?

Inside the AI Profit Boardroom, I've got a 2-hour Hermes course AND a 6-hour OpenClaw course covering every setup, skill, and workflow. Plus daily updates as new versions drop (like Hermes 0.9 with the new dashboard). 2,800+ members running both agents in production — jump on weekly coaching calls where I'll help you pick the right one for YOUR specific use case.

→ Get both the Hermes and OpenClaw courses here

The Dashboard Comparison (Real Side-by-Side)

Hermes 0.9's new dashboard is genuinely impressive.

Here's what you get:

Status overview — see everything running at a glance
Sessions panel — manage active conversations
Analytics — understand your usage
Logs — debug when things go wrong
Scheduled tasks — see, trigger, and delete cron jobs
Skills section — manage your custom automations

The UI is clean.

Easy to navigate.

Makes sense at a glance.

OpenClaw's dashboard feels messy by comparison.

The cron schedule section is particularly rough — hard to understand what's going on.

The skill section is functional but not pretty.

But OpenClaw has one thing Hermes doesn't: an in-dashboard chat.

With OpenClaw you can chat directly in the dashboard.

With Hermes you need terminal, Telegram, or another messaging platform.

I reckon Hermes will add a dashboard chat soon — it's too obvious a gap not to fix.

The Manas Backup Strategy

This is a tactic nobody else is talking about.

When Hermes AND OpenClaw both break on me at the same time, I have a backup.

Manas.

Manas is managed (not DIY) so it rarely breaks.

When both open-source projects are having a bad day, Manas keeps my workflows running.

You could also use:

Claude Code (for fixing broken setups)
Minimax-hosted agents (managed alternative)
Any managed AI agent service as a safety net

The pattern is:

Hermes and OpenClaw for daily work
A managed backup for business continuity
Never rely on one agent for business-critical workflows

If you're running your business on AI agents, this redundancy is essential.

Why the Skills You Build Compound

Here's the thing nobody talks about.

The skills you learn building AI agents are a skill set that compounds.

OpenClaw launched November 2025.

Hermes launched February 2026.

Both are less than 6 months old.

There's going to be a new AI agent in a few months.

We all know it.

When that happens, you're not starting from zero.

You understand:

How to set up AI agents
What use cases actually automate
Which skills to build
How to connect different models
How to debug when things break

All of that transfers.

So pick one.

Start learning.

Build skills.

The specific tool matters less than the compounding expertise.

My Ollama + Hermes setup guide is the fastest path to getting hands-on experience if you're just starting.

Get a FREE AI Course + Community + 1,000 AI Agents 👉

Which Should YOU Pick?

Based on everything I've tested, here's my recommendation framework:

Pick Hermes If:

You want the smoothest out-of-the-box experience
You value clean UI and clear dashboards
You want professional foundations from a real AI lab
You're newer to AI agents and want fewer frustrations
You'd like the underlying model made by the same team

Pick OpenClaw If:

You want the largest community and library of workflows
You need in-dashboard chat right now
You're comfortable with more DIY configuration
You want access to every possible integration
You're a developer or technical user

Run Both If:

You're running AI agents for business-critical workflows
You want redundancy when one breaks
You want to pick the best tool for each specific task
You've got the time to learn both setups

My honest take: If you can only pick one, go Hermes.

But if you're serious about AI agents, run both + have a managed backup.

Hermes 0.9 — The Latest Update

Hermes 0.9 literally just dropped.

Key features:

New dashboard (already covered above)
Cleaner scheduled task management
Better skill editing UI
Improved session handling
More stable connections to external models

This update closes several gaps OpenClaw had.

Hermes is catching up fast on the features OpenClaw pioneered.

Meanwhile OpenClaw is also shipping updates rapidly.

The competition is pushing both projects forward.

For users, that's fantastic.

For my Claude Opus 4.7 AI SEO work, I use Claude Code directly rather than either Hermes or OpenClaw — but Hermes is my go-to for other automation tasks.

The Group Chat Technique

One underrated tactic I want to share.

You can run Hermes AND OpenClaw in the same Telegram group chat.

Tag each agent separately.

Have them work on different parts of the same task.

Even have them talk to each other.

This is genuinely powerful.

Say you're researching a topic:

Tag Hermes to pull initial research
Tag OpenClaw to expand on specific points
Have them cross-reference each other

Different models, different strengths, working together in one thread.

You can also run multiple Hermes agents or multiple OpenClaw agents in the same chat for parallelised work.

This kind of multi-agent setup is where AI agents genuinely start feeling like a team.

🔥 Want the exact Telegram multi-agent setup I'm running?

Inside the AI Profit Boardroom, I share my multi-agent group chat configurations — which agents to combine, how to prompt them to work together, what tasks benefit most from parallelisation. Plus daily updates when new features drop (like the Elephant Alpha + OpenClaw + Claude Code free setup that launched today). 2,800+ members running advanced multi-agent workflows.

→ Get the multi-agent playbooks here

Hermes VS OpenClaw: Frequently Asked Questions

Is Hermes better than OpenClaw overall?

For most users, yes — Hermes feels smoother with fewer bugs and a cleaner dashboard. But OpenClaw has more community momentum and an in-dashboard chat. The best answer is to use both and switch based on what works for each task.

How do I choose between Hermes and OpenClaw as a beginner?

Start with Hermes. The onboarding is cleaner and the dashboard is less intimidating. Once you're comfortable with Hermes, add OpenClaw to your toolkit for the features Hermes doesn't have yet.

Can I run Hermes and OpenClaw at the same time?

Absolutely. I run both every day. You can even run them in the same Telegram group chat, tagging each separately. Multi-agent workflows where they work together are genuinely powerful.

Which has better scheduled tasks — Hermes or OpenClaw?

Hermes 0.9's new dashboard makes scheduled tasks significantly easier to manage. OpenClaw's cron section is functional but messy. For scheduled automation specifically, Hermes wins.

Are Hermes and OpenClaw free to use?

Both are open-source and free to install. You pay for the underlying AI models (API costs), but the agent harnesses themselves are free. Check out my Ollama + Hermes free setup guide for the cheapest path.

What happens when Hermes or OpenClaw breaks?

It happens regularly because both ship rapid updates. Have a backup like Manas or a managed service. Never rely on a single open-source project for business-critical workflows.