Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.openclaw.ai/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
Anthropic builds the Claude model family. OpenClaw supports two auth routes:
- API key — direct Anthropic API access with usage-based billing (
anthropic/*models) - Claude CLI — reuse an existing Claude CLI login on the same host
Getting started
API key
Claude CLI
Best for: standard API access and usage-based billing.
Config example
{
env: { ANTHROPIC_API_KEY: "sk-ant-..." },
agents: { defaults: { model: { primary: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6" } } },
}
Best for: reusing an existing Claude CLI login without a separate API key.
Config example
Prefer the canonical Anthropic model ref plus a CLI runtime override:
{
agents: {
defaults: {
model: { primary: "anthropic/claude-opus-4-7" },
models: {
"anthropic/claude-opus-4-7": {
agentRuntime: { id: "claude-cli" },
},
},
},
},
}
Legacy claude-cli/claude-opus-4-7 model refs still work for
compatibility, but new config should keep provider/model selection as
anthropic/* and put the execution backend in provider/model runtime policy.
Thinking defaults (Claude 4.6)
Claude 4.6 models default to adaptive thinking in OpenClaw when no explicit thinking level is set.
Override per-message with /think:<level> or in model params:
{
agents: {
defaults: {
models: {
"anthropic/claude-opus-4-6": {
params: { thinking: "adaptive" },
},
},
},
},
}
Prompt caching
OpenClaw supports Anthropic’s prompt caching feature for API-key auth.
| Value | Cache duration | Description |
|---|---|---|
"short" (default) | 5 minutes | Applied automatically for API-key auth |
"long" | 1 hour | Extended cache |
"none" | No caching | Disable prompt caching |
{
agents: {
defaults: {
models: {
"anthropic/claude-opus-4-6": {
params: { cacheRetention: "long" },
},
},
},
},
}