Best VPS for OpenClaw: requirements and which KVM plan to pick

OpenClaw is an AI assistant you run on your own server or computer. The model that answers can stay at a provider, reached through your API key or Hostinger's AI credits, or run on the server itself, as a local model. An API key is the password OpenClaw uses to ask a provider such as Anthropic or OpenAI for answers; the provider charges per use. With the model at the provider, the server only runs the program.

The official installation and local-model pages, read on October 21, 2026, say the following:

• Node version. OpenClaw needs Node 24.16 or newer, or Node 26.1 or newer. Node is the program that runs OpenClaw, and the npm installation requires one of those versions. The page recommends Node 26. If Node is not installed, the official installer brings it (Node 26 on macOS and Node 24 LTS on Linux).
• Local model. For the smallest recipe the documentation itself offers, the floor is 8 GiB of host memory, with a 64K context. The page says those floors do not guarantee that the model fits or runs at a useful speed.
• Hostinger VPS. Hostinger installs OpenClaw on the VPS with Docker, a program that runs each application isolated in its own container. The VPS is a rented virtual server; with root access, you have full control of it.

The documentation gives no RAM, processor (vCPU) or disk figure for OpenClaw without a local model, and no server minimum for the API key or credits scenario.

One detail on units: 8 GiB is about 8.6 GB. KVM 2 is advertised with 8 GB, which is about 7.5 GiB, a little below the floor, before counting the memory the operating system and Docker use. The documentation does not say whether this difference counts toward the floor.

RAM is the server's working memory: the program and, with a local model, the model itself stay there while running. The documentation gives a number only for the local model.

Two details about the local model. The context is the amount of text (tokens, pieces of words) the model reads at once. When less than 20% of the context window is left, OpenClaw warns, with a floor of 8,000 tokens; below 10%, it blocks the reply, with a floor of 4,000 tokens.

None of the KVM plan pages we read lists a graphics card (GPU), and the documentation does not say what speed a local model would reach without one.

KVM is the name of Hostinger's virtual server plans. The table has the four, with 24-month prices from Hostinger's global page, in US dollars, read on October 21, 2026. The page did not show the price with the referral link; the 20% appears in the cart. Our reading of each plan against the documentation follows; we did not measure performance.

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• KVM 1 (4 GB). Starting point for the API key or credits scenario. For a local model, it is below the official floor.
• KVM 2 (8 GB). With an API key, there is room to spare. With a local model, it sits at the floor, with no margin for the operating system.
• KVM 4 (16 GB). The first plan with room above the official 8 GiB floor. The documentation does not say how well a local model performs on it.
• KVM 8 (32 GB). Only makes sense with a larger local model. The documentation does not say how much memory each large recipe needs.

In your country, Hostinger may show another currency and taxes, so check the cart before paying. The referral link gives 20% off the first period only, on plans of 12 months or more, and does not stack with other coupons; renewal is charged at the normal price. See how Hostinger's referral link works. Hostinger is running a Black Friday campaign and prices change: see the campaign.

The three paths run the same program, OpenClaw, with different costs and chores. The choice depends on three things: whether you want to deal with a server, whether a computer can stay on 24 hours a day, and whether the AI model runs at a provider or on your own hardware.

On the VPS, Hostinger installs OpenClaw with Docker, and from then on maintenance is yours. If you do not want to look after a server, see the managed plan, where Hostinger installs and updates the assistant.

Oracle has a free tier, Always Free. It is not from Hostinger and does not replace the paid VPS, but it is a way to test OpenClaw without paying. According to Oracle's documentation, read on October 21, 2026:

• Up to two Micro instances (AMD processor), with 1/8 OCPU and 1 GB of memory each.
• Arm Ampere A1 instances: 2 OCPUs and 12 GB of memory in total, which you split as you like. The monthly limit is 1,500 OCPU-hours and 9,000 GB-hours.
• 200 GB of block storage in total, for the system disks and extras, with up to five backups.
• Free instances must be created in the account's home region. Creating them elsewhere generates charges.

The rule that matters: Oracle says it can reclaim an idle instance. An instance is idle when, over a 7-day period, CPU usage at the 95th percentile stays below 20%, network usage stays below 20% and, on the A1 instances, memory usage also stays below 20%. An assistant that sits waiting most of the time can fall under this rule. The documentation does not describe a notice before reclamation.

The choice follows where the AI model runs and how much server work you want.

• Model at a provider, through your API key or Hostinger's AI credits: KVM 1, with 4 GB, as the starting point, at US$6.49/month on a 24-month plan before the referral discount.
• Local model: KVM 4, with 16 GB, the first plan with room above the official 8 GiB floor, at US$12.99/month before the discount. KVM 8, with 32 GB, only makes sense for a larger local model.
• No server to look after: the managed plan, where Hostinger installs and updates the assistant, at US$3.99/month with the link.
• Testing for free: Oracle Always Free, knowing Oracle may reclaim an idle instance.

The referral link already applies the discount: there is no code to type. The 20% applies only to the first period, on plans of 12 months or more, and does not stack with other coupons; renewal is charged at the normal price. For 24-month plans read on October 21, 2026, the managed plan is US$3.99/month with the link, and KVM 1 and KVM 2 are US$6.49 and US$8.79/month before the discount, which appears in the cart. On renewal, managed and KVM 1 go to US$11.99/month and KVM 2 to US$14.99/month. Check the amount in the cart before paying, because Black Friday changes prices. See how Hostinger's referral link works and Hostinger's page on the site.

Em Casa com Cecília runs on Hostinger, as a Node.js Web App, and Bruno has been a customer since 2024, with hosting and a KVM 2 VPS. No one on the team uses OpenClaw: this text gathers what Hostinger, Oracle and OpenClaw's official documentation say, read on October 21, 2026. Buying through the referral link may give Bruno credit with Hostinger, at no extra cost to you.