# Hermes Agent vs NanoClaw

> Side-by-side comparison of two projects in the OpenClaw ecosystem.

Canonical HTML: https://shelldex.com/compare/hermes-vs-nanoclaw/
JSON: https://shelldex.com/api/compare/hermes-vs-nanoclaw.json

| Field | Hermes Agent | NanoClaw |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Tagline | The agent that grows with you | Security-first, radically minimal |
| Language | python | typescript |
| Status | active | active |
| Stars | 163k | 29k |
| Forks | 26728 | 12858 |
| Open issues | 13267 | 680 |
| License | MIT | MIT |
| Last commit | 2026-05-23T03:15:11Z | 2026-05-22T20:17:35Z |
| 7d growth | 11664 | 402 |
| MCP support | yes | no |
| Requires LLM | yes | yes |
| Platforms | server, messaging | server |
| Categories | memory, self-hosted, multi-platform | security, lightweight |
| Health score | 75/100 | 95/100 |
| Leaderboard rank | #2 | #6 |

## Key differences

- Hermes Agent has 6x more stars (163k vs 29k), indicating significantly broader adoption.
- Hermes Agent is growing faster with +12k stars this week vs +402 for NanoClaw.
- Hermes Agent is written in Python while NanoClaw uses TypeScript, which may influence your choice depending on your stack.
- NanoClaw has a higher fork-to-star ratio (44% vs 16%), suggesting more active contributor participation.
- Hermes Agent has MCP (Model Context Protocol) support while NanoClaw does not.
- Hermes Agent focuses on memory, self-hosted, multi-platform while NanoClaw targets security, lightweight.

## Descriptions

### Hermes Agent

Persistent personal AI agent by Nous Research with multi-level growing memory, self-authored skills, and multi-platform messaging. Learns your projects and builds reusable knowledge over time.

### NanoClaw

Five files, one process, OS-level container isolation. NanoClaw strips the agent down to its secure essentials.