OpenClaw Telegram Setup: BotFather, Token, and allowFrom Config (2026)

Key takeaways

Create a Telegram bot with @BotFather. Copy the token. Tell your OpenClaw agent (previously known as Clawdbot and Moltbot) to use it. DM your bot, approve the pairing code, and you're chatting with your AI from your phone.

Introduction

You have OpenClaw running. Now you want to talk to it from your phone.

Telegram is the fastest way. No webhooks to configure. No servers to expose. Long-polling works out of the box.

This guide gets you from zero to first message in about five minutes.

What You Will Need

Before starting:

1. OpenClaw installed and gateway running - If you need a server, see How I Finally Got OpenClaw Running 24/7: $6/Month on DigitalOcean. Use this referral link for $200 in free credit.
2. A Telegram account - Requires a phone number
3. About 5 minutes

If your gateway is not running yet, start it first. The Telegram connection needs a running gateway to work.

OpenClaw Starter Kit: If you are just getting started, the OpenClaw Starter Kit bundles config templates, workspace file examples, and skills we actively use. It covers the setup steps in this guide.

Step 1: Create a Telegram Bot

Telegram bots are created through @BotFather, Telegram's official bot management tool.

1. Open Telegram on your phone or desktop
2. Search for @BotFather and start a chat
3. Send /newbot
4. BotFather asks for a display name - pick anything (e.g., "My Assistant")
5. BotFather asks for a username - must end in bot (e.g., "myassistant_bot")
6. BotFather replies with your bot token

The token looks like this: 123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz

Keep this token secret. Anyone with the token can control your bot. If it leaks, regenerate it in BotFather with /revoke.

Step 2: Give the Token to Your Agent

The simplest approach: tell your agent. Message your agent through whatever channel is already working (terminal, another chat):

"Set up Telegram with this bot token: 123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz"

Your agent will:

1. Add the token to your OpenClaw config
2. Restart the gateway
3. Confirm when Telegram is ready

export TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN="123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz"

openclaw gateway restart

{
  "channels": {
    "telegram": {
      "enabled": true,
      "botToken": "123456789:ABCdefGHIjklMNOpqrsTUVwxyz"
    }
  }
}

openclaw gateway restart

Step 3: Pair Your Telegram Account

OpenClaw uses pairing to control who can message your bot. This prevents random people from using your AI if they find your bot username.

1. Open Telegram
2. Search for your bot by username (the one ending in bot)
3. Send any message - "hello" works

The bot replies with a pairing code like:

Your pairing code is: ABC123 Approve this code to continue.

Now approve it. Tell your agent:

"Approve Telegram pairing code ABC123"

Or use the CLI directly:

openclaw pairing approve telegram ABC123

Once approved, you're connected. The bot responds to your messages.

Step 4: Send Your First Message

With pairing approved, send a message to your bot:

"What can you help me with?"

Your agent responds through Telegram. You're now chatting with your AI from your phone.

That's the setup done.

Troubleshooting

Bot does not respond at all

• Check if the gateway is running: openclaw gateway status
• Check logs for errors: openclaw logs --follow
• Verify the token is correct in config or environment

401 Unauthorized error in logs

This is the most common setup error. The 401 Unauthorized error means Telegram rejected your bot token.

Common causes:

1. Token typo - Extra space, missing character, pasted with line break
2. Token revoked - You regenerated it in BotFather but forgot to update your config
3. Wrong token - Copied from a different bot by mistake

Fix it:

Stop the gateway:

openclaw gateway stop

Go to @BotFather in Telegram and send /mybots. Select your bot, then "API Token." Copy the token shown (the entire string).

Update your config with the correct token:

export TELEGRAM_BOT_TOKEN="your_correct_token_here"

Restart the gateway:

openclaw gateway restart

Check logs for success:

openclaw logs --follow

Look for "Telegram channel started" in the logs. Still seeing 401? The token is still wrong - copy it again character by character.

For more Telegram troubleshooting, see Fix OpenClaw Telegram Errors.

telegram allowFrom issues

If your bot works for you but not for other users, check your allowFrom configuration.

Symptoms:

• Bot responds to you but ignores other people
• Logs show incoming messages but no responses sent

How allowFrom works:

OpenClaw restricts bot access using channels.telegram.allowFrom in your config. This can be:

• A Telegram username (e.g., "@username")
• A numeric user ID (e.g., 123456789)
• An array of multiple users
• Set to "*" to allow anyone (not recommended for security)

To add a new user:

1. Get their Telegram user ID. Ask them to message @userinfobot and send you the ID shown.
2. Tell your agent: "Add Telegram user ID 123456789 to allowFrom"
3. Or edit config manually:

{
  "channels": {
    "telegram": {
      "allowFrom": [123456789, 987654321]
    }
  }
}

1. Restart the gateway: openclaw gateway restart

Username vs user ID:

User IDs are more reliable. Usernames can change. If someone changes their Telegram username, allowFrom: "@oldusername" stops working. Use numeric IDs when possible.

For more details on allowFrom issues, see the Telegram troubleshooting guide.

Pairing code never appears

• Gateway might not have started the Telegram channel. Check openclaw logs for "Telegram channel started" or errors.
• Token might be invalid. Regenerate in BotFather with /mybots > your bot > API Token.
• Bot might not have pairing enabled. Check if channels.telegram.pairing.enabled is set to false in your config.

Bot responds but very slowly

• Check your server's network connection
• Large model responses take time. Consider using a faster model for Telegram.
• If running on a low-resource VPS, check if the server is CPU or memory constrained with htop

Optional: Prepare for Groups

If you plan to add your bot to Telegram groups later, configure these now in BotFather:

Allow groups: Send /setjoingroups to BotFather. Select your bot. Choose "Enable".

See all group messages: By default, bots only see messages that @mention them. To see everything:

• Send /setprivacy to BotFather
• Select your bot
• Choose "Disable"

Or make your bot a group admin. Admin bots see all messages regardless of privacy setting.

Note: After changing privacy settings, you need to remove and re-add the bot to existing groups for the change to take effect.

For full group setup instructions, see 6 Telegram Groups That Finally Organized My OpenClaw Agent: Here's How. You can also automate your workflow with OpenClaw cron jobs to schedule daily briefings and backups.

FAQ

Q: Can I use the same bot for multiple OpenClaw instances?

No. Each bot token should connect to one OpenClaw gateway. If you need multiple agents, create multiple bots.

Q: Do I need a public IP or domain for this to work?

No. Long-polling works without exposing any ports. Your server connects outbound to Telegram.

Q: How do I add more users to my bot?

Each new user goes through pairing. They DM the bot, get a code, you approve it. Or add their Telegram user ID to channels.telegram.allowFrom in config.

Q: Can I change the bot username later?

No. Telegram bot usernames are permanent. You would need to create a new bot.

Conclusion

You now have Telegram connected to your OpenClaw agent.

1. Created bot with @BotFather
2. Gave token to your agent
3. Approved the pairing code
4. Started chatting

Next step: organize your work with Telegram groups for OpenClaw. Each group becomes a separate project workspace.

Changelog

• 2026-02-07: Initial publication
• 2026-02-24: Updated hero image for improved visual clarity
• 2026-02-25: Added changelog, structural improvements
• 2026-03-22: Added resource link to OpenClaw Starter Kit