Your OpenClaw agent checked in 1,440 times today. Each check sent tokens to a cloud AI model, got back "nothing to report," and burned a few cents. That's $5–$15/month—on literally nothing.
The Problem: The Invisible Heartbeat Tax
OpenClaw's heartbeat system (heartbeat.every) pings your agent at regular intervals to check for pending messages, scheduled tasks, or background events. By default, it fires every 60 seconds.
Each heartbeat:
- Sends the system prompt + context to the LLM.
- The LLM responds (usually with "no action needed").
- You pay for both the input and output tokens.
At 60-second intervals, that's 1,440 heartbeats per day. Even if each one costs only $0.005, you're paying $7.20/month for an agent to repeatedly say "nothing happening."
How ClawBridge Detects This (Diagnostic A02)
The Cost Control Center calculates your heartbeat cost based on:
- Your current
heartbeat.everyinterval - Your model's per-token pricing
- The average token count per heartbeat request
It then presents tiered alternatives:
| Interval | Heartbeats/Day | Est. Monthly Cost | Responsiveness |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60s (default) | 1,440 | ~$7.20 | Fastest |
| 120s | 720 | ~$3.60 | Good |
| 300s (5 min) | 288 | ~$1.44 | Moderate |
| 900s (15 min) | 96 | ~$0.48 | Batch-style |
| Disabled | 0 | $0.00 | Manual only |
One-Tap Fix
Choose your preferred interval and tap Apply. ClawBridge updates heartbeat.every in your OpenClaw configuration with automatic backup.
For most users, 300 seconds (5 minutes) is the sweet spot—responsive enough to catch messages within a few minutes, but 80% cheaper than the default.
Trade-offs
- Slower response to incoming messages: At 300s, your agent may take up to 5 minutes to notice a new Telegram or Discord message. If real-time responsiveness matters, keep it at 60–120s.
- Cron job compatibility: Heartbeats also trigger pending cron jobs. If you have time-sensitive cron tasks (e.g., stock price checks), a longer interval might miss the exact timing window.
- Disabling heartbeats entirely: Only recommended if you exclusively interact with your agent through direct chat (not background messaging channels).
Real Numbers
Switching from 60s to 300s on Claude Sonnet:
- Before: 1,440 heartbeats × ~400 tokens × $3/1M tokens × 30 days = $5.18/mo
- After: 288 heartbeats × ~400 tokens × $3/1M tokens × 30 days = $1.04/mo
- Savings: $4.14/month — not huge on its own, but combined with other diagnostics, it adds up.
FAQ
Q: Will my agent miss messages if I increase the interval? A: It won't miss them—it'll just notice them later. A 5-minute delay is acceptable for most use cases.
Q: Can I set different intervals for different times of day? A: Not natively in OpenClaw. But you can use a cron job to adjust the config during off-hours (e.g., 15-minute intervals overnight).
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