# OpenClaw vs szn > OpenClaw scores 67.1 (B) to szn's 7.3 (F) for assistants reached by message. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side. - Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn - Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.md (~3,300 tokens) - Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.min.md (~530 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts) - JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json) - Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt) - API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json - Updated: 2026-10-13 OpenClaw scores 67.1 (B) on agent readiness against szn's 7.3 (F), and leads in every scored category. Both do assistants reached by message. - OpenClaw: grade B, 67.1/100, rank #270 of 1010. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/openclaw.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openclaw.json - szn: grade F, 7.3/100, rank #1010 of 1010. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/szn.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/szn.json - Best AI personal assistants that act for one person: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/personal-assistants/index.md - All 834 assistants comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/personal-assistants/index.md ## Which one, for what ### OpenClaw (B) Good for: A technical owner who wants an assistant on their own machine across many chat apps, with their choice of model and files they can read and delete. Ahead on: - Reliability, 75 against 5 - Schema & documentation, 84 against 10 - Agent ergonomics, 77 against 0 - Security & auth, 74 against 0 - Payments & pricing, 60 against 20 - Maintenance & community, 86 against 2 - Transparency & trust, 68 against 23 Also in its favour: - Open source Watch for: Without configuration the default is full access. Host exec runs with no approval and sandboxing is off ### szn (F) Good for: A person who wants calls, emails and bookings done for them and has an access code. Also in its favour: - No incidents deducted, where OpenClaw loses 8 points for them Watch for: Early access by access code only. ## Score by category | Category | Weight | OpenClaw | szn | Edge | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 75 | 5 | OpenClaw +70 | | Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 84 | 10 | OpenClaw +74 | | Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 77 | 0 | OpenClaw +77 | | Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 74 | 0 | OpenClaw +74 | | Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 20 | OpenClaw +40 | | Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 86 | 2 | OpenClaw +84 | | Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 68 | 23 | OpenClaw +45 | | Negative events | ≤15 | -8 | 0 | | | **Total** | | **67.1 · B** | **7.3 · F** | | ## Facts side by side | Fact | OpenClaw | szn | | --- | --- | --- | | Kind | Agent harness | Platform | | Vendor | OpenClaw Foundation | Nomadic Futures | | Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) | | Transports | | | | Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key | | Pricing | Free | Free | | x402 | no | no | | Licence | MIT | Closed service. No terms of service were found on theszn.ai. A privacy policy and an acceptable use policy (both last updated March 2026) apply. | | Read-only variant documented | yes | yes | | llms.txt | yes | yes | | Last release | 2026-10-12 | none | | Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked | | Privacy policy last updated | no document linked | | | Customer content may train models | | | | Terms restrict automated access | | | | Terms restrict benchmarking | | | | Terms or service can change without notice | | | | Arbitration or class-action waiver | | | | Popularity | 392k stars | none | ## Verdicts **OpenClaw.** Self-hosted under the MIT licence, with state, memory and credentials kept on the owner's machine and no paid tier. A fresh install runs tools on the host with full access, no approval prompt and no sandbox, and the project has published 722 security advisories since January 2026, 14 of them critical. **szn.** szn is an errand assistant in early access that makes calls, sends emails and books for its owner, free during the preview for people with an access code. No outside agent can call it, no terms of service or legal entity appear in its policies, and its privacy policy says nothing on training. ## Before you call either ### OpenClaw 1. Set a session permission mode of `guarded` or `workspace`, or `tools.exec.mode`, before connecting mail. The default runs host commands without approval 2. Turn on `agents.defaults.sandbox` for any agent that reads mail, web pages or attachments. Sandboxing is off by default 3. Set `tools.message.crossContext.allowAcrossProviders` and `allowWithinProvider` to `false` to confine sends to the current conversation 4. Route incoming mail to a restricted reader agent, as the IMAP and Gmail guides show, and deny `gateway`, `cron`, `sessions_spawn` and `sessions_send` for it 5. Run `openclaw security audit` after setup, and treat the Gateway token as an owner credential. `POST /tools/invoke` accepts it with full operator access ### szn 1. Don't plan to call szn from another agent. It answers only its web app, iMessage, SMS and email for the owner. 2. Tell the owner they need an access code to start, and that the acceptable use policy makes them responsible for confirming actions. ## Questions ### Which is better for AI agents, OpenClaw or szn? OpenClaw scores 67.1 (B) on agent readiness against szn's 7.3 (F), and leads in every scored category. ### Are OpenClaw and szn open source? OpenClaw is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for szn. ## For agents - This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.min.md - Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "openclaw", "b": "szn"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare openclaw szn` - Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openclaw.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/szn.json ## Other comparisons with OpenClaw or szn - [asaply vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-openclaw.md) - [asaply vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-szn.md) - [Asmi vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-openclaw.md) - [Asmi vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-szn.md) - [AstrBot vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-szn.md) - [Boba vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-openclaw.md) - [Boba vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-szn.md) - [Boski vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boski-vs-szn.md) - [Brea vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-openclaw.md) - [Brea vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-szn.md) - [Caddy vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/caddy-app-vs-szn.md) - [CowAgent vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-szn.md) - [Del vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-openclaw.md) - [Del vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-szn.md) - [folk vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/folk-nozomio-vs-szn.md) - [GAIA vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-szn.md) - [Grok Bot vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-szn.md) - [Haven vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-szn.md) - [Hermes Agent vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-szn.md) - [HireAlpha vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-openclaw.md) - [HireAlpha vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-szn.md) - [Instinct vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-szn.md) - [IronClaw vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-szn.md) - [Lindy vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-szn.md) - [nanobot vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-szn.md) - [NanoClaw vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-szn.md) - [Dots vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-dots-vs-szn.md) - [OpenClaw vs OpenInstinct](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-openinstinct.md) - [OpenClaw vs Orbits](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-orbits.md) - [OpenClaw vs Orchid](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-orchid-ai.md) - [OpenClaw vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.md) - [OpenClaw vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-zapia.md) - [OpenInstinct vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openinstinct-vs-szn.md) - [Orbits vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-szn.md) - [Orchid vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orchid-ai-vs-szn.md) - [PicoClaw vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/picoclaw-vs-szn.md) - [Poke vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/poke-vs-szn.md) - [QwenPaw vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qwenpaw-vs-szn.md) - [szn vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-tab-bot.md) - [szn vs Tomo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-tomo.md) - [szn vs Town](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-town.md) - [szn vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-zapia.md) - [szn vs ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-zeroclaw.md) - [szn vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-zo-computer.md) - [AstrBot vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-openclaw.md) - [Boski vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boski-vs-openclaw.md) - [Caddy vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/caddy-app-vs-openclaw.md) - [CowAgent vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-openclaw.md) - [folk vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/folk-nozomio-vs-openclaw.md) - [GAIA vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-openclaw.md) - [Gemini Spark vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-openclaw.md) - [Grok Bot vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-openclaw.md) - [Haven vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-openclaw.md) - [Hermes Agent vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-openclaw.md) - [Instinct vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-openclaw.md) - [IronClaw vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-openclaw.md) - [Leon vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-openclaw.md) - [Lindy vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-openclaw.md) - [nanobot vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-openclaw.md) - [NanoClaw vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-openclaw.md) - [Dots vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-dots-vs-openclaw.md) - [OpenClaw vs PicoClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-picoclaw.md) - [OpenClaw vs Poke](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-poke.md) - [OpenClaw vs QwenPaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-qwenpaw.md) - [OpenClaw vs Town](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-town.md) - [OpenClaw vs ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-zeroclaw.md) - [OpenClaw vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-zo-computer.md) - [Gemini Spark vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-szn.md) - [Leon vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-szn.md) - [Natura tinyNature vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/natura-vs-openclaw.md) - [Natura tinyNature vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/natura-vs-szn.md) - [OpenClaw vs Pally](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-pally.md) - [OpenClaw vs Tomo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tomo.md) - [OpenClaw vs Wajo (Fo)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-wajo.md) - [Pally vs szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/pally-vs-szn.md) - [szn vs Wajo (Fo)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-wajo.md) - [OpenClaw vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-talorys.md) - [szn vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-talorys.md) ## Disclosure - szn competes with LocalGhost, which Anchor Terminal's founder builds. It's graded by the same published checklist as every listing, neither stricter nor looser. Two research agents graded it independently, and a third reconciled them item by item, checking the evidence itself wherever they disagreed instead of keeping either award by default.