# OpenClaw vs Tab > OpenClaw scores 67.1 (B) to Tab's 10.7 (F) for assistants reached by message. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side. - Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot - Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.md (~3,300 tokens) - Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.min.md (~580 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts) - JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.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 Tab's 10.7 (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 - Tab: grade F, 10.7/100, rank #1003 of 1010. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/tab-bot.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tab-bot.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 0 - Agent ergonomics, 77 against 0 - Security & auth, 74 against 4 - Payments & pricing, 60 against 0 - Maintenance & community, 86 against 58 - Transparency & trust, 68 against 45 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 ### Tab (F) Good for: A person who wants a texting assistant that browses, calls and buys with tight checkout controls. Also in its favour: - No incidents deducted, where OpenClaw loses 8 points for them Watch for: Private beta behind a waitlist. ## Score by category | Category | Weight | OpenClaw | Tab | 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 | 0 | OpenClaw +84 | | Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 77 | 0 | OpenClaw +77 | | Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 74 | 4 | OpenClaw +70 | | Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 0 | OpenClaw +60 | | Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run | | Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 86 | 58 | OpenClaw +28 | | Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 68 | 45 | OpenClaw +23 | | Negative events | ≤15 | -8 | 0 | | | **Total** | | **67.1 · B** | **10.7 · F** | | ## Facts side by side | Fact | OpenClaw | Tab | | --- | --- | --- | | Kind | Agent harness | Platform | | Vendor | OpenClaw Foundation | Terrasoft, Inc. | | Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) | | Transports | | | | Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key | | Pricing | Free | Paid | | x402 | no | no | | Licence | MIT | Closed service under Tab's Terms of Use (Terrasoft, Inc., effective 2 September 2026). | | Read-only variant documented | yes | no | | llms.txt | yes | no | | Last release | 2026-10-12 | none | | Terms last updated | 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. **Tab.** Tab is a private-beta texting assistant with a detailed security page on credential isolation and checkout binding, and a public updates page. No outside agent can call it, no price is published, and its privacy policy says nothing on training with user content. ## 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 ### Tab 1. Don't plan to call Tab from another agent. It answers only the owner's Messages or WhatsApp thread. 2. Tell the owner that access needs a waitlist place and no price is published. ## Questions ### Which is better for AI agents, OpenClaw or Tab? OpenClaw scores 67.1 (B) on agent readiness against Tab's 10.7 (F), and leads in every scored category. ### Are OpenClaw and Tab open source? OpenClaw is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for Tab. ## For agents - This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-tab-bot.min.md - Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "openclaw", "b": "tab-bot"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare openclaw tab-bot` - Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/openclaw.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/tab-bot.json ## Other comparisons with OpenClaw or Tab - [asaply vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-openclaw.md) - [asaply vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asaply-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Asmi vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-openclaw.md) - [Asmi vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/asmi-vs-tab-bot.md) - [AstrBot vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/astrbot-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Boba vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-openclaw.md) - [Boba vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boba-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Boski vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/boski-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Brea vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-openclaw.md) - [Brea vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/brea-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Caddy vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/caddy-app-vs-tab-bot.md) - [CowAgent vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cowagent-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Del vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-openclaw.md) - [Del vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/del-vs-tab-bot.md) - [folk vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/folk-nozomio-vs-tab-bot.md) - [GAIA vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gaia-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Grok Bot vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/grok-bot-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Haven vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/haven-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Hermes Agent vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hermes-agent-vs-tab-bot.md) - [HireAlpha vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-openclaw.md) - [HireAlpha vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/hirealpha-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Instinct vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/instinct-vs-tab-bot.md) - [IronClaw vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ironclaw-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Lindy vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/lindy-vs-tab-bot.md) - [nanobot vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanobot-vs-tab-bot.md) - [NanoClaw vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/nanoclaw-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Natura tinyNature vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/natura-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Dots vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-dots-vs-tab-bot.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 szn](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-szn.md) - [OpenClaw vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-zapia.md) - [OpenInstinct vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openinstinct-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Orbits vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orbits-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Orchid vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/orchid-ai-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Pally vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/pally-vs-tab-bot.md) - [PicoClaw vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/picoclaw-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Poke vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/poke-vs-tab-bot.md) - [QwenPaw vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/qwenpaw-vs-tab-bot.md) - [szn vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/szn-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Tab vs Tomo](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-tomo.md) - [Tab vs Town](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-town.md) - [Tab vs Zapia](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-zapia.md) - [Tab vs ZeroClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-zeroclaw.md) - [Tab vs Zo Computer](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-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) - [Natura tinyNature vs OpenClaw](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/natura-vs-openclaw.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) - [Gemini Spark vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gemini-spark-vs-tab-bot.md) - [Leon vs Tab](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/leon-vs-tab-bot.md) - [OpenClaw vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openclaw-vs-talorys.md) - [Tab vs Talorys](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-talorys.md) - [Tab vs Wajo (Fo)](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/tab-bot-vs-wajo.md) ## Disclosure - Tab 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.