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Install AutoGPT v0.6.53: Complete Setup Guide (2026)

Step-by-step guide to install the latest AutoGPT Platform (v0.6.53) on your machine. Covers system requirements, Docker setup, API configuration, and common errors.

6 min readIntermediate

Most AutoGPT tutorials cover the old version. The repo now has two products, and you’re probably chasing the wrong one.

This guide installs AutoGPT Platform v0.6.53 (March 25, 2026 release) – the new visual agent builder, not the 2023 command-line tool. Running locally in 20 minutes.

What You’re Actually Installing

The AutoGPT repository contains two products:

  • AutoGPT Platform (new): Visual workflow builder. Drag blocks, connect them, create AI agents. Runs on Docker with a web UI at localhost:3000. This is it.
  • AutoGPT Classic (original): Command-line autonomous agent from 2023. Still there, but not the focus.

Think of Classic as a self-driving car prototype that sometimes crashes into trees. Platform is the production model with lane assist and a steering wheel you can grab.

System Requirements That Actually Matter

The official GitHub README lists minimums. They’re real:

Component Minimum Recommended
CPU 2 cores 4+ cores
RAM 8GB 16GB
Storage 10GB free 20GB+ free
OS Ubuntu 20.04+ / macOS 10.15+ / Windows 10/11 with WSL 2 Same

8GB RAM? Docker containers struggle during startup if you’re running anything else. 16GB is where it stops complaining.

Windows: use WSL 2, not Hyper-V. Official docs are explicit – Hyper-V causes the Supabase database container to fail health checks. You’ll spend an hour troubleshooting before finding that buried in the setup guide.

Step 1: Install Prerequisites

Four things before cloning:

  1. Docker Desktop (20.10.0+): Download here. Make sure it’s running.
  2. Docker Compose (2.0.0+): Comes with Docker Desktop on Windows/Mac. Linux users install separately.
  3. Git (2.30+): git --version to check. Missing? Get it from git-scm.com.
  4. Node.js (16.x+) and npm (8.x+): node --version && npm --version to verify. Install from nodejs.org.

Optional: VSCode. Repo includes dev container configs, official tutorial assumes you’re using it.

Watch out: On Windows, after installing Docker Desktop, open Settings → General and confirm “Use the WSL 2 based engine” is checked. If you already had Docker with Hyper-V, switching to WSL 2 erases existing containers – back them up first.

Step 2: Clone and Navigate

Terminal:

git clone https://github.com/Significant-Gravitas/AutoGPT.git
cd AutoGPT

Pulls the entire repo (Platform + Classic). You’ll work in autogpt_platform.

Step 3: Run the Setup Script (Or Don’t)

Official docs suggest ./run setup to auto-install. Works if Docker’s already running and your system meets requirements. Fails silently if Docker isn’t up.

First install? Skip the auto script. Do it manually – you’ll know what broke.

Manual Setup

Go to the platform directory:

cd autogpt_platform

Copy the default environment config:

cp .env.default .env

.env contains database credentials, API keys, service ports. Defaults work for local development. Open it once to see what’s there. You’ll add LLM API keys later.

Step 4: Launch Docker Services

From autogpt_platform:

docker compose up -d --build

This builds frontend/backend Docker images, starts PostgreSQL/Redis/RabbitMQ/Supabase containers, runs database migrations. Takes 5-10 minutes on decent connection.

Watch for errors. supabase-db marked “unhealthy”? Stop everything (docker compose down), confirm Docker uses WSL 2 (Windows) or is properly configured (Linux/Mac), try again.

Step 5: Verify It’s Running

Browser → http://localhost:3000. You should see the AutoGPT Platform login screen.

Page doesn’t load?

  • Run docker ps – check all containers are up. Look for autogpt_platform-frontend-1, autogpt_platform-backend-1.
  • Logs: docker compose logs frontend or docker compose logs backend
  • Port 3000 in use? lsof -i :3000 (Mac/Linux) or netstat -ano | findstr :3000 (Windows)

Backend API health: curl http://localhost:8006/health should return 200 OK.

Step 6: Add Your LLM API Keys

AutoGPT Platform doesn’t include AI models – calls external APIs. You need at least one:

Open autogpt_platform/backend/.env, add your key:

OPENAI_API_KEY=sk-proj-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Restart backend:

docker compose restart backend

Common Install Errors (And Fixes)

1. “Bad git executable”

ImportError: Bad git executable

Git isn’t installed or not in system PATH. Install Git, restart terminal. Windows: make sure “Git from the command line and also from 3rd-party software” was selected during install.

2. “No module named autogpt”

Wrong directory. AutoGPT Classic runs from AutoGPT/classic/original_autogpt. AutoGPT Platform runs in Docker – this error means you’re trying Classic commands.

Want Platform? Ignore this, use the web UI. Want Classic? cd AutoGPT/classic/original_autogpt first.

3. “supabase-db unhealthy”

Docker Compose shows database container unhealthy, won’t start platform.

Windows: Docker’s using Hyper-V instead of WSL 2. Open Docker Desktop → Settings → General → Enable “Use the WSL 2 based engine” → Restart Docker. Then docker compose down && docker compose up -d --build.

4. Port 3000 already in use

Find what’s using it. Kill that process or edit autogpt_platform/.env to change frontend port.

5. Out of memory during build

You’re on the 8GB minimum. Docker doesn’t have enough RAM allocated. Docker Desktop → Settings → Resources → increase Memory to 6GB minimum (8GB better). Restart Docker.

Next: Create Your First Agent

AutoGPT’s running. Now:

  1. Log in at localhost:3000
  2. Click “Create Agent” in Agent Builder
  3. Drag blocks from left panel – Trigger → LLM Prompt → Output
  4. Configure each block (select LLM provider, write prompts)
  5. Click “Run” to test

Official docs have examples: Reddit-to-video agents, YouTube summarizers. Start simple – trigger on schedule, call API, save result to file.

Upgrading and Cleanup

Update to newer version:

cd AutoGPT
git pull origin main
cd autogpt_platform
docker compose down
docker compose up -d --build

Full uninstall:

docker compose down -v # -v removes volumes (database data)
cd ..
rm -rf AutoGPT

API keys live in .env – back that up if reinstalling later.

FAQ

Do I need GPT-4 access or can I use GPT-3.5?

GPT-3.5 works and costs less. But GPT-4 is better for agents – Classic got stuck in loops with GPT-3.5 because the model made mistakes, then the agent tried to fix them by making more mistakes. Platform handles this better but still benefits from GPT-4’s reasoning.

Is AutoGPT Platform free?

Software’s open-source, free to self-host. You pay for LLM API calls (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.). One agent run: few cents to several dollars depending on steps taken and model used. My first agent? $0.40 for a simple task. Then I misconfigured a loop and burned $12 before I noticed. Watch API usage at first.

What’s the difference between AutoGPT Platform and Classic?

Classic (2023): command-line tool. You give it a text goal, it autonomously breaks into sub-tasks, executes them, tries to achieve the goal without human input. Famous for being ambitious but unreliable – stuck in loops, hallucinated URLs, racked up API bills. Platform: complete rebuild. Visual workflow builder where you design agent logic as a graph of blocks (triggers, LLM calls, integrations, logic). More control, avoids some of Classic’s chaos. But less “autonomous” in the original sense – you’re building the logic, not just stating a goal. Want the viral 2023 experience? Classic. Want something that works? Platform. For what it’s worth, the repo now has both under different licenses – Platform’s under Polyform Shield (non-commercial restrictions), Classic’s still MIT as of April 2026.

Install the latest AutoGPT Platform version – docker compose up in the autogpt_platform directory, add API keys, open localhost:3000. Done.