How do I install the Freeride skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add modbender/freeride in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Freeride safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Independent scanners report: SkillSpector: PASS, Skill Scanner: PASS. Capability flags: executes scripts. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Freeride?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Freeride free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Freeride?

modbender (@modbender) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Freeride by modbender — Agent Skill

Name: Freeride
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: modbender

Freeride

Manages free AI models from OpenRouter for OpenClaw. Automatically ranks models by quality, configures fallbacks for rate-limit handling, and updates openclaw.json. Use when the user mentions free AI, OpenRouter, model switching, rate limits, or wants to reduce AI costs.

modbender Updated Sep 9, 2026 12 repo stars

File contents

FreeRide - Free AI for OpenClaw

Configures OpenClaw to use free AI models from OpenRouter with automatic fallback switching.

Installation

If FreeRide is not installed, install it automatically:

npx clawhub@latest install freeride

Quick Start

# Set API key (free at openrouter.ai/keys)
export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="sk-or-v1-..."

# Auto-configure best model + fallbacks
freeride auto

Commands

`list` - View available models

freeride list              # Top 15 models
freeride list -n 30        # More models
freeride list --refresh    # Force API refresh

`auto` - Auto-configure

freeride auto              # Best model + 5 fallbacks
freeride auto -f           # Fallbacks only (keep current primary)
freeride auto -c 10        # 10 fallbacks
freeride auto --setup-auth # Also configure auth profile

`switch` - Set specific model

freeride switch qwen3-coder         # Set as primary
freeride switch deepseek -f         # Add to fallbacks only
freeride switch nvidia/nemotron --no-fallbacks

`status` - Check configuration

freeride status

`fallbacks` - Update fallbacks only

freeride fallbacks         # 5 fallbacks
freeride fallbacks -c 10   # 10 fallbacks

`refresh` - Update model cache

freeride refresh

Behavior

Primary model: Best specific model (not router) for consistent responses.

First fallback: Always openrouter/free - OpenRouter's smart router that auto-selects based on request features (vision, tools, etc.).

Additional fallbacks: Ranked by quality score.

Config preservation: Only updates model-related sections; preserves gateway, channels, plugins, etc.

Model Ranking

Score (0-1) based on:

Context length (40%)
Capabilities (30%)
Recency (20%)
Provider trust (10%)

Flags

Flag	Commands	Description
`-f`	switch, auto	Fallback only, keep primary
`-c N`	auto, fallbacks	Number of fallbacks
`--no-fallbacks`	switch	Skip fallback configuration
`--setup-auth`	switch, auto	Add OpenRouter auth profile
`-n N`	list	Models to display
`-r`	list	Force refresh

Config Output

Updates ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json:

{
  "agents": {
    "defaults": {
      "model": {
        "primary": "openrouter/qwen/qwen3-coder:free",
        "fallbacks": [
          "openrouter/free:free",
          "nvidia/nemotron-3-nano-30b-a3b:free"
        ]
      }
    }
  }
}

Troubleshooting

"OPENROUTER_API_KEY not set": Export the key or add to shell profile.

Config not updating: Check file permissions on ~/.openclaw/openclaw.json.

Changes not taking effect: Restart OpenClaw.

---name: freeridedescription: Manages free AI models from OpenRouter for OpenClaw. Automatically ranks models by quality, configures fallbacks for rate-limit handling, and updates openclaw.json. Use when the user mentions free AI, OpenRouter, model switching, rate limits, or wants to reduce AI costs.--- # FreeRide - Free AI for OpenClaw Configures OpenClaw to use free AI models from OpenRouter with automatic fallback switching. ## Installation If FreeRide is not installed, install it automatically: ```bash npx clawhub@latest install freeride ``` ## Quick Start ```bash # Set API key (free at openrouter.ai/keys) export OPENROUTER_API_KEY="sk-or-v1-..." # Auto-configure best model + fallbacks freeride auto ``` ## Commands ### `list` - View available models ```bash freeride list # Top 15 models freeride list -n 30 # More models freeride list --refresh # Force API refresh ``` ### `auto` - Auto-configure ```bash freeride auto # Best model + 5 fallbacks freeride auto -f # Fallbacks only (keep current primary) freeride auto -c 10 # 10 fallbacks freeride auto --setup-auth # Also configure auth profile ``` ### `switch` - Set specific model ```bash freeride switch qwen3-coder # Set as primary freeride switch deepseek -f # Add to fallbacks only freeride switch nvidia/nemotron --no-fallbacks ``` ### `status` - Check configuration ```bash freeride status ``` ### `fallbacks` - Update fallbacks only ```bash freeride fallbacks # 5 fallbacks freeride fallbacks -c 10 # 10 fallbacks ``` ### `refresh` - Update model cache ```bash freeride refresh ``` ## Behavior **Primary model**: Best specific model (not router) for consistent responses. **First fallback**: Always `openrouter/free` - OpenRouter's smart router that auto-selects based on request features (vision, tools, etc.). **Additional fallbacks**: Ranked by quality score. **Config preservation**: Only updates model-related sections; preserves gateway, channels, plugins, etc. ## Model Ranking Score (0-1) based on: - Context length (40%) - Capabilities (30%) - Recency (20%) - Provider trust (10%) ## Flags | Flag | Commands | Description | |------|----------|-------------| | `-f` | switch, auto | Fallback only, keep primary | | `-c N` | auto, fallbacks | Number of fallbacks | | `--no-fallbacks` | switch | Skip fallback configuration | | `--setup-auth` | switch, auto | Add OpenRouter auth profile | | `-n N` | list | Models to display | | `-r` | list | Force refresh | ## Config Output Updates `~/.openclaw/openclaw.json`: ```json { "agents": { "defaults": { "model": { "primary": "openrouter/qwen/qwen3-coder:free", "fallbacks": [ "openrouter/free:free", "nvidia/nemotron-3-nano-30b-a3b:free" ] } } } } ``` ## Troubleshooting **"OPENROUTER_API_KEY not set"**: Export the key or add to shell profile. **Config not updating**: Check file permissions on `~/.openclaw/openclaw.json`. **Changes not taking effect**: Restart OpenClaw.

Frequently asked questions