Best AI Models for OpenClaw in 2026: Complete Ranking & Guide

Choosing the Right Model for OpenClaw

OpenClaw’s killer feature is model flexibility — you’re not locked into one provider. But which model should you pick? Here’s our ranking based on real-world testing.

🏆 Top Models Ranked

1. Claude Opus 4.6 (Anthropic)

• Best for: Complex reasoning, coding, long conversations
• Context: 200K tokens
• Speed: Medium
• Cost: ~$15/M input, $75/M output
• Verdict: The overall best. Excellent at multi-step tasks and tool use.

2. GPT-5.3 Codex (OpenAI)

• Best for: Coding, agent-style development
• Context: 128K tokens
• Speed: Fast
• Cost: ~$12/M input, $60/M output
• Verdict: Top choice for development workflows. Self-improving architecture.

3. Claude Sonnet 4.5 (Anthropic)

• Best for: Daily tasks, balanced cost/quality
• Context: 200K tokens
• Speed: Fast
• Cost: ~$3/M input, $15/M output
• Verdict: Best value. 80% of Opus quality at 20% of the cost.

4. Gemini 3 Pro (Google)

• Best for: Multimodal tasks, research
• Context: 1M tokens
• Speed: Fast
• Cost: Pay-per-use via API
• Verdict: Unbeatable context window. Great for processing large documents.

5. MiniMax M2.1

• Best for: Budget-friendly daily use
• Context: 200K tokens
• Speed: Fast
• Cost: Very low
• Verdict: Great Chinese language support. Solid for routine tasks.

6. Gemini 3 Flash (Google)

• Best for: Quick responses, high-volume tasks
• Context: 1M tokens
• Speed: Very fast
• Cost: Low
• Verdict: Speed champion. Perfect for cron jobs and batch processing.

7. GLM 4.7 (Zhipu AI)

• Best for: Chinese language tasks
• Context: 128K tokens
• Speed: Fast
• Cost: Low
• Verdict: Strong Chinese NLP. Good fallback option.

💡 Recommended Fallback Chain

{
  "primary": "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6",
  "fallbacks": [
    "openai-codex/gpt-5.3-codex",
    "minimax-portal/MiniMax-M2.1",
    "google/gemini-3-pro-high",
    "google/gemini-3-flash",
    "zai/glm-4.7"
  ]
}

Why this order?

1. Opus 4.6 for best quality
2. GPT Codex as first fallback (different provider, avoids rate limit issues)
3. MiniMax for cost-effective fallback
4. Gemini variants for reliability
5. GLM as final safety net

💰 Cost Optimization Tips

1. Use Sonnet for simple tasks — set model overrides per session
2. Flash for cron jobs — automated tasks don’t need the best model
3. Cache-TTL pruning — reduce token waste on long conversations
4. Smart fallbacks — alternate providers to avoid rate limits

Configuration in OpenClaw

Add to openclaw.json:

{
  "agents": {
    "defaults": {
      "model": {
        "primary": "anthropic/claude-opus-4-6",
        "fallbacks": ["openai-codex/gpt-5.3-codex", "minimax-portal/MiniMax-M2.1"]
      }
    }
  }
}

Models and pricing change frequently. Last updated: February 2026.