Framework Comparison
Hatcher supports two agent frameworks. Each excels at different use cases. This guide helps you choose the right one.
Both frameworks are free on every plan. All integrations are included. BYOK is always free regardless of framework.
Quick Comparison
| OpenClaw | Hermes | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Automation & workflows | Self-improving assistants |
| Config format | JSON5 (openclaw.json) | YAML (config.yaml) |
| Language | Node.js | Python |
| Skills/Plugins | 13,700+ via ClawHub | 40+ built-in tools |
| Platforms | 20+ | 13+ |
| Memory | Markdown files + vector | MEMORY.md + session DB |
| Identity | SOUL.md | SOUL.md |
| Multi-agent | Bindings/routing | Subagent delegation |
| Autonomous actions | Heartbeat daemon | Cron scheduler |
| Learning | No | Yes |
| Port | 18789 | 8642 |
Use Case Guide
Choose OpenClaw if you want…
- Maximum skill variety — 13,700+ skills via ClawHub, from web search to file management to calculator
- Config-first setup — write JSON, no code required
- Hot reload — change config without restarting the container
- Heartbeat automation — agent acts autonomously on a schedule without user prompts
- Multi-platform routing — route different channels to different agents in one gateway
Ideal for: Customer support bots, automation workflows, multi-platform assistants, community managers.
Choose Hermes if you want…
- A self-improving agent — Hermes learns from interactions, creates skills autonomously, and improves over time
- Developer tooling — terminal backends for code execution and project work
- Session recall — full-text search across past sessions with summarization
- User modeling — maintains user profiles via the Honcho dialectic framework
- Cron scheduling — built-in scheduled tasks delivered to any platform
Ideal for: Developer assistants, research agents, personal AI that gets smarter over time, project-based workflows.
Next Steps
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