OpenClaw Node.js vs Bun: Which Runtime Should You Use?

# Node.js 20 (typical OpenClaw startup)
Startup time: ~800ms
Skill execution: ~150ms average
Memory usage: ~120MB baseline

# Bun 1.0 (typical OpenClaw startup)
Startup time: ~200ms (4x faster)
Skill execution: ~90ms average (1.7x faster)
Memory usage: ~80MB baseline (33% less)

# Check OpenClaw core compatibility
# Node.js: Fully supported, all features work
# Bun: Core features work, some advanced skills may have issues

# Check your custom skills:
bun run --print "process.versions.bun"
# If your skills use native modules (node-gyp), they may not work with Bun

# Node.js installation:
curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | bash -
apt install -y nodejs
cd openclaw && npm install
npm start

# Bun installation:
curl -fsSL https://bun.sh/install | bash
cd openclaw && bun install
bun run start

# Choose Node.js if:
# - Running in production with strict uptime requirements
# - Using skills with native dependencies
# - Need mature APM/monitoring tools (Datadog, New Relic)
# - Deploying to platforms without Bun support (some PaaS)
# - Team has Node.js expertise

# Choose Bun if:
# - Optimizing for startup speed (serverless, dev environments)
# - Want faster npm install times
# - Only using pure JavaScript skills (no native modules)
# - Running on modern Linux/macOS (Bun support is best here)
# - Willing to trade stability for cutting-edge performance

# From Node.js to Bun:
rm -rf node_modules package-lock.json
bun install
bun run start

# From Bun to Node.js:
rm -rf node_modules bun.lockb
npm install
npm start