OpenClaw Cost Guard

This skill should be used when the user asks to reduce OpenClaw token spend, audit model and cron cost risk, prevent denial-of-wallet incidents, add budget guardrails, review expensive agent defaults, or tighten AI-agent cost governance before wider rollout.

Use this skill to identify obvious cost leaks before they turn into a denial-of-wallet problem.

Goal

Move from “the agents work” to “the agents work within an intentional budget.”

Workflow

1. Identify the target OpenClaw config or workspace.
2. Run the bundled cost-guard script.
3. Review expensive defaults, missing budgets, and high-risk patterns.
4. If the result is FAIL, stop scaling usage until cost controls are tightened.
5. Apply the narrowest guardrails that reduce spend without breaking the workflow.

Command

bash

node {baseDir}/scripts/cost-guard.mjs --config ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json

The --config flag is optional. If omitted, the script checks the default OpenClaw config path.

What the script checks

• whether explicit budget signals exist
• whether default models look expensive for always-on usage
• whether browser/interactive tooling appears enabled without cost discipline
• whether token limits appear excessively large
• whether the config contains multiple high-cost patterns at once
• whether the setup needs a governance recommendation before scaling

Output format

The script returns JSON with:

• score
• verdict
• summary
• findings
• recommendations
• guardrails
• evidence

Verdicts

• PASS — no major lightweight cost-governance gap found
• WARN — spend risk exists and should be reviewed
• FAIL — denial-of-wallet risk is materially elevated

Important limits

• This is a lightweight static review, not a bill-reconciliation system.
• A low-risk config can still become expensive through user behavior or external automations.
• Always verify against real provider invoices and usage telemetry.

References

• {baseDir}/references/cost-playbook.md