Short answer: Go to the Hermes Agent website, download the desktop installer for your system (Windows, macOS, or Linux), run it, then open Hermes and run hermes setup --portal to connect a model through OAuth login. That's the whole install.
Step by step
Download the installer
Visit hermes-agent.nousresearch.com and download the desktop installer for Windows, macOS, or Linux. (The desktop installer also installs the command-line tool, so you get both.)
Run it
Open the downloaded file and follow the prompts. The installer automatically sets up everything Hermes needs — Python, Node.js, and supporting tools. You do not install those yourself. On Windows this may ask for permission; that's normal.
Open Hermes
Launch the Hermes desktop app. You'll get a window where you can type. (If you prefer the command line, the hermes command is now also available — but you don't need it for this lesson.)
Connect a model — one command
Run the fastest setup path, which logs you in through Nous Portal (OAuth; no manual API key, but a Nous subscription is required):
hermes setup --portal
Follow the login in your browser. This connects a model and turns on the Tool Gateway (web search, image generation, text-to-speech, browser) in one step.
Send your first message
In the Hermes window, type something simple:
Summarize what an AI agent is in three sentences.
If it replies, you're done. You have a working agent.
You'll know it worked when…
If something feels off
- Window won't open after install: restart your computer once, then launch again. Installers sometimes need a clean shell.
- "Command not found" when you type
hermes: close and reopen the app/terminal. On the command line, runsource ~/.bashrc(orsource ~/.zshrcon macOS). - API key error: re-run
hermes setup --portaland complete the browser login fully.
Next: make it actually useful
Installing is the easy part. Lesson 4 shows you memory, skills, and cron — the three things that let Hermes remember context, reuse procedures, and run scheduled work while its host or gateway is online.