# How to connect Donately to OpenClaw (paste one key, 10 tools)

> Connect Donately to OpenClaw with ClawLink: paste your Donately key once and 10 tools work from chat. No MCP server to run, nothing stored on your machine.

Web version: https://claw-link.dev/openclaw/donately

The usual route to Donately access for OpenClaw is an MCP server you configure and keep running, plus your own OAuth app or API keys. ClawLink gives OpenClaw a more practical Donately setup: install one ClawHub skill, connect Donately in the browser, and OpenClaw can call real Donately actions from any chat surface with no auth, token refresh, or tool wiring to build yourself.

## Setup

It takes three steps to connect OpenClaw to Donately.

1. **Install ClawLink** — add the plugin to OpenClaw once.
2. **Connect Donately** — one-click OAuth in the ClawLink dashboard.
3. **Use it from chat** — ask OpenClaw in plain English.

**Paste this into OpenClaw to set up ClawLink:**

> I want to connect my apps to OpenClaw through ClawLink.
> Please install the ClawLink plugin from ClawHub and enable it: `openclaw plugins install clawhub:clawlink-plugin`
> When it is installed, tell me and stop. After I reply, give me the ClawLink pairing link. Setup notes, if you need them: https://claw-link.dev/skill.md

**Alternative for any agent (no plugin needed):** if the OpenClaw plugin route isn't available or doesn't work, any AI agent with shell access can use the ClawLink CLI instead:

```bash
npx -y @useclawlink/cli login          # sign in via browser — no API key to paste
npx -y @useclawlink/cli connect donately  # connect Donately (browser OAuth)
npx -y @useclawlink/cli actions donately  # list available actions
npx -y @useclawlink/cli run donately <action> --input '<json>'  # execute (add --confirm for writes)
```

### Install by command

The setup prompt above does all of this in one paste. By hand, it is one install command plus a browser approval:

```bash
openclaw plugins install clawhub:clawlink-plugin
```

Then ask OpenClaw to set up ClawLink. It starts browser pairing and prints an approval link — open it, approve the device, return to the chat, and say `done`. Finally, connect Donately in the [ClawLink dashboard](https://claw-link.dev/dashboard) — paste your Donately API key once.

Verify the connection by asking OpenClaw:

> Pull the relevant data from Donately, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.

### Using a different agent?

The OpenClaw plugin is one client of ClawLink's MCP server. Claude Code, Cursor, Codex, or any agent that can run a shell command pairs with the same ClawLink account through the CLI:

```bash
npx -y @useclawlink/cli login
```

`login` opens the same browser approval and stores a credential locally. Once Donately is connected in the dashboard, that agent calls the same 10 Donately tools over MCP. Full setup for MCP clients and shell agents: [connect apps to any AI agent](https://claw-link.dev/learn/connect-apps-to-any-ai-agent).

## Donately MCP for OpenClaw

Looking for a Donately MCP server for OpenClaw? ClawLink connects Donately to OpenClaw and exposes 10 Donately tools your agent can call over [MCP](https://claw-link.dev/learn/what-is-an-mcp-server), with [hosted auth](https://claw-link.dev/learn/oauth-for-ai-agents) and nothing to run or maintain yourself. Using Hermes instead? The [Hermes Donately integration](https://claw-link.dev/hermes/donately) works the same way.

## What the OpenClaw Donately integration can do

10 Donately tools are ready for OpenClaw once the account is connected.

### All 10 Donately tools for OpenClaw

| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| **Get current account** `donately_get_current_account` | Return the Donately account associated with the connected API token, including its identity |
| **Get form** `donately_get_form` | Return a specific Donately donation form and its embedded configuration by form ID |
| **Get person** `donately_get_person` | Return a specific Donately donor or contact by person ID |
| **List campaigns** `donately_list_campaigns` | List campaigns in the connected Donately account, optionally filtering by publication state |
| **List donations** `donately_list_donations` | List donation records in the connected account and filter them by status, related donor or |
| **List forms** `donately_list_forms` | List donation forms in the connected Donately account, including default-form and form |
| **List fundraisers** `donately_list_fundraisers` | List peer-to-peer fundraisers in the connected Donately account, optionally limited to one |
| **List people** `donately_list_people` | List donors and contacts in the connected Donately account, optionally searching by keyword |
| **List subscriptions** `donately_list_subscriptions` | List recurring donation subscriptions in the connected Donately account |
| **List webhooks** `donately_list_webhooks` | List webhook registrations configured for the connected Donately account |

## Example prompts

**Get Current Account**

> Pull the relevant data from Donately, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.

**Get Form**

> Pull the relevant data from Donately, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.

**Get Person**

> Pull the relevant data from Donately, summarize it in plain English, and point out anything that needs attention.

**List Campaigns**

> List the relevant items in Donately, group them by priority, and recommend what OpenClaw should do next.

## ClawLink vs. building it yourself

The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual API key setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for OpenClaw. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want Donately working from chat.

| | Manual | ClawLink |
|---|---|---|
| **Credential handling** | Collect, validate, store, and rotate the Donately API key yourself, then make sure every tool call uses the right account. | Users complete the hosted ClawLink setup once and the connected Donately account becomes available to the agent without you building credential management. |
| **Ongoing maintenance** | You own refresh logic, permission debugging, environment config, and every provider-specific edge case for Donately. | ClawLink handles the repetitive integration plumbing so your team can focus on the workflow instead of the infrastructure. |
| **Agent usability** | You still need to expose the right Donately actions to the runtime in a format your agent can reliably use. | 10 tools for Donately are already exposed through ClawLink, so the agent can read and act from chat immediately. |

## ClawLink vs. Composio

Composio also exposes Donately to AI agents. It is developer infrastructure: Python and TypeScript SDKs, an MCP server, and a catalog past 1,000 apps, aimed at teams shipping agent products. ClawLink is built for OpenClaw users instead. You install the plugin once, connect Donately in the browser, and the 10 tools above work from chat. There is no SDK and no config file, and the Donately key you paste at setup is stored server-side rather than kept in your environment. Choosing between them? Read the full [Composio alternatives](https://claw-link.dev/hub/composio-alternatives) comparison.

### OpenClaw installed the Donately skill but can't call the tools
The ClawHub skill teaches OpenClaw about Donately, but the calls run through the ClawLink plugin and your connected account. Make sure Donately is connected in the dashboard, then start a fresh chat so OpenClaw reloads the tool catalog. If OpenClaw runs as a persistent gateway, restart it so the new tools register.

### Connection succeeds but no tools appear
Reconnect Donately from the dashboard, then start a fresh chat if the runtime still has the old tool catalog loaded.

### "Tool schema not loaded yet" error when calling Donately tools
Donately tool schemas load on demand the first time a tool runs and are cached after that, so this error usually clears on its own: wait a few seconds and retry the same request. If every Donately call keeps failing with it in a fresh chat, reconnect from the dashboard, and contact support if it still persists — that pattern points to a configuration problem on our side, not something you can fix by reconnecting again.

### Donately returns 403 or "permission denied" on one action while others work
Two usual causes. The connected account may not have access to the specific workspace, inbox, store, or project in the request — check that first. If access looks right, the agent may have sent a placeholder value (like "YOUR_ID" or an example id from documentation) instead of a real one: ask it to run a list or search tool first, then retry the action with a real id from those results. Most failures at this stage are one of these two, not ClawLink bugs.

### API key setup works but results look incomplete
Double-check that the API key for Donately has the right scopes or account access. A valid key can still be too limited for some reads or writes.

### Is there a OpenClaw Donately integration?
Yes. ClawLink is the fastest way to connect OpenClaw to Donately: link your Donately account once in the browser and OpenClaw can call the Donately API through 10 ready-made tools — no custom code or token handling.

### How do I add Donately to OpenClaw with ClawLink?
Paste the setup prompt from this page into OpenClaw. It installs the ClawLink Donately skill from ClawHub, then you click Connect in the dashboard to authorize Donately. OpenClaw calls the tools from the next message — no config files, and the Donately key you paste is stored server-side instead of in your environment.

### How long does it take to connect Donately to OpenClaw?
About two minutes. Sign in, click Connect next to Donately in the dashboard, authenticate, and OpenClaw can use it from the next chat message.

### Why use ClawLink instead of wiring Donately up myself?
The alternative to ClawLink is usually manual API key setup plus your own token handling, permission troubleshooting, and tool plumbing for OpenClaw. That is fine if you want to build and maintain the integration yourself. Most teams just want Donately working from chat.

### OpenClaw installed the Donately skill but can't call the tools
The ClawHub skill teaches OpenClaw about Donately, but the calls run through the ClawLink plugin and your connected account. Make sure Donately is connected in the dashboard, then start a fresh chat so OpenClaw reloads the tool catalog. If OpenClaw runs as a persistent gateway, restart it so the new tools register.

## Related

- [OpenClaw Stripe integration](https://claw-link.dev/openclaw/stripe) — Manage payments, customers, and invoices
- [Zoho Books](https://claw-link.dev/openclaw/zoho-books) — Organize finances, invoices, bills, and accounting
- [OpenClaw Ramp integration](https://claw-link.dev/openclaw/ramp) — Read cards, transactions, bills, and reimbursements, and file receipts
