Guide
Nous Portal: Subscription, Models, and How to Use It
Nous Portal is the subscription platform from Nous Research. It bundles access to 300+ models, a managed tool gateway (web search, image generation, TTS, browser automation), and monthly credits — all behind a single auth flow that Hermes Agent can use without juggling API keys per provider.
What is Nous Portal?
Nous Portal launched on April 27, 2026 as Nous Research's subscription product for users who want to run Hermes Agent without managing API keys for every model and tool provider. One subscription replaces logins to OpenRouter, Anthropic, OpenAI, Firecrawl, FAL, ElevenLabs, and Browser Use — Portal routes all of those behind a single authenticated session.
The free tier is $0/mo with $0.10 in monthly credits (enough to evaluate, not for real workloads). Paid tiers add larger credit budgets and access to bundled tools. Pricing details and the current plan list are on the portal manage-subscription page.
Why Nous Portal Exists
Running a capable AI agent on your own infrastructure used to mean signing up for and paying multiple providers: a model provider (Anthropic, OpenAI), a web search provider (Tavily or Exa), an image generation provider (FAL), a TTS provider, and optionally a browser automation provider. Each one has its own dashboard, billing, and quota. For users who just want to run Hermes Agent and use it, that's a lot of plumbing.
Nous Portal collapses that into one subscription. You pay one bill, you authenticate once, and Hermes Agent uses your Portal subscription to call models and tools automatically.
What's Included
Models
Portal provides access to 300+ models from frontier labs — Anthropic Claude, OpenAI GPT, Google Gemini, Meta Llama, Mistral, DeepSeek, Qwen, and Nous Research's own Hermes model series, among others. Some models are free for Portal subscribers; others bill against your monthly credit budget at provider rates with Portal's markup.
Tool Gateway (paid tiers)
Paid Portal subscribers get automatic access to bundled tools, with no extra API keys needed:
- Web search — Firecrawl integration for crawling and search
- Image generation — FAL with FLUX 2 Pro and other models
- Text-to-speech — OpenAI TTS backend
- Browser automation — Browser Use for headless browser tasks
- Code execution — Sandboxed runner for agent-generated code
- Voice — Speech in / speech out endpoints
These tools route through Nous Research's gateway. Hermes Agent picks them up automatically when you authenticate with a Portal subscription, no per-tool config required.
xAI Grok integration (May 2026)
On May 15, 2026, Nous Research and xAI shipped a Grok integration that lets X Premium+ subscribers use their existing Grok subscription inside Hermes Agent — without paying separately for Grok API access. Grok 4.3, Grok TTS, and Grok Imagine all become available through the OAuth flow. See the launch coverage for details, or the upstream xAI Grok OAuth guide.
How to Connect Nous Portal to Hermes Agent
Two paths, depending on whether you're self-hosting Hermes Agent or running it on managed infrastructure.
Self-hosted Hermes
- Subscribe at portal.nousresearch.com
- Generate a Portal API key from the dashboard
- In Hermes Agent, run
hermeswith no arguments to enter interactive setup, or edit yourconfig.yaml - Select Nous Portal as the provider and paste the API key
- Hermes will list available models from your subscription — pick your default
Once configured, the Tool Gateway features (search, image gen, TTS, browser) are picked up automatically — you don't need separate API keys for Firecrawl, FAL, or Browser Use anymore.
Don't want to manage a Hermes server?
OpenClaw Launch's Hermes hosting runs all Nous Hermes models on managed OpenClaw infrastructure today via OpenRouter — no Portal key required. Native Hermes Agent framework hosting (which would accept a Portal API key directly) is in private beta; join the waitlist on the Hermes hosting page if you want early access.
Nous Portal vs OpenRouter vs Per-Provider Keys
| Option | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| Nous Portal | One auth; bundled tools; free models for subscribers; tight Hermes integration | Locked to Nous as the gateway; routing markup on paid model calls |
| OpenRouter | One API key for 300+ models; granular per-model spend control | No bundled tools (web search / image gen / TTS need separate keys) |
| Per-provider keys | Direct billing relationship; no gateway markup; full provider features | 5+ separate sign-ups, dashboards, and bills to manage |
The right answer depends on shape of usage. For a single user running Hermes full-time, Nous Portal's bundled tools usually win on convenience. For teams running production agents at scale, direct provider keys often come out cheaper.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Nous Portal free?
Yes, the free tier exists ($0/mo with $0.10 in monthly credits). It's enough to evaluate but not for steady use. Paid tiers unlock larger credit budgets and the bundled tool gateway (web search, image gen, TTS, browser).
Do I need a Nous Portal subscription to use Hermes Agent?
No. Hermes Agent is open source and free; you can run it with any provider you like — OpenRouter, direct Anthropic / OpenAI / Google keys, local models via Ollama, or Nous Portal. Portal is one option among many, not a requirement.
What models are free on Nous Portal?
Nous Research rotates a list of free-for-subscribers models, typically including their own Hermes model series and select open-weight models from other labs. The current list is in the Portal dashboard — it changes from month to month.
Can I use my X Premium+ Grok subscription with Hermes through Portal?
Yes, since May 15, 2026. The xAI Grok OAuth flow connects your existing X Premium+ subscription to Hermes Agent, giving you Grok 4.3, Grok TTS, and Grok Imagine without separate API billing. See the upstream OAuth guide.
Does OpenClaw Launch support Nous Portal?
OpenClaw Launch's Hermes hosting runs Nous Hermes models on managed OpenClaw infrastructure today via OpenRouter — no Portal key needed. Native Hermes Agent framework hosting (which would let you paste your Portal API key directly and use the bundled Tool Gateway) is in private beta — join the waitlist on the Hermes hosting page.
Related Guides
- What is Hermes Agent? — Overview of the framework Portal subscribers use
- Install Hermes Agent — Step-by-step self-host setup
- Run Hermes Agent on macOS, Linux, Windows, Android — Per-OS install paths
- Nous Research opens Hermes tools to Grok subscribers — The xAI integration that drove Portal sign-ups in May 2026
- Hermes models on OpenClaw Launch — Nous Hermes models live today via OpenRouter; native Hermes framework hosting in private beta