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You need a Telegram account and a running OpenClaw install with a usable model provider. Telegram bot access and OpenClaw’s sender policy are separate settings.

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Create a bot

  1. Open the official @BotFather in Telegram.
  2. Send /newbot, then follow the prompts for its display name and a unique username ending in bot.
  3. Copy the complete bot token. Keep it private; it authorizes access to the bot API. If exposed, revoke it through BotFather and replace it in your install.
See Telegram’s bot management documentation for the current BotFather commands.

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Connect it to OpenClaw

During installation, paste the token into Telegram bot token. You can leave it blank and configure the channel later. For an existing install, open Variables, set TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN as a sensitive value, then click Apply changes. Suji redeploys the app; expect a connection interruption. There is no Channels multiselect. If Telegram was configured within OpenClaw already, check that configuration too: a saved token can override the environment value.

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Verify and approve access

  1. Open your bot in Telegram, press Start, and send a message.
  2. With the default pairing policy, approve the request from your own Telegram account using the OpenClaw Terminal:
Replace PAIRING_CODE with the code for a sender you recognize. This authorizes the Telegram sender; browser-device pairing for the Control UI is a separate step. Follow OpenClaw’s Telegram setup for your installed version.

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Group chats

Configure OpenClaw’s group and sender allowlists and mention rules before testing a group. Telegram privacy mode also controls which group messages reach the bot. If your use case needs broader visibility, review /setprivacy in BotFather; after changing it, remove and re-add the bot to existing groups. Disabling privacy mode does not override OpenClaw’s access policy. See Telegram access controls.

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Troubleshooting

  • No reply: check pairing/allowlists, model access and credit, both running states, and the OpenClaw logs.
  • Authentication error: replace a revoked or incorrect token, apply the change, and check for a saved token overriding it.
  • Works in DMs only: check group IDs, permitted senders, mention rules, Telegram permissions and privacy mode.
  • Slow replies: inspect model latency, rate-limit errors and local CPU/memory usage. A larger VPS does not automatically raise the app’s container limit.