diff --git a/extensions/cerebras/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/cerebras/onboard.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..fd9a4143ae43
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extensions/cerebras/onboard.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { applyCerebrasConfig, CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
+
+describe("Cerebras onboarding", () => {
+  it("applies the manifest catalog, default, and alias", () => {
+    const config = applyCerebrasConfig({});
+
+    expect(config.models?.providers?.cerebras?.models.map((model) => model.id)).toEqual(
+      manifest.modelCatalog.providers.cerebras.models.map((model) => model.id),
+    );
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "Cerebras GLM 4.7" },
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/extensions/cerebras/onboard.ts b/extensions/cerebras/onboard.ts
index 23b855c3f83e..ee0009584f35 100644
--- a/extensions/cerebras/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/cerebras/onboard.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,4 @@
-/**
- * Cerebras onboarding config helpers.
- */
+import { readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import {
   createModelCatalogPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
@@ -10,9 +8,12 @@ import {
   CEREBRAS_BASE_URL,
   CEREBRAS_MODEL_CATALOG,
 } from "./models.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-/** Default Cerebras model reference used after onboarding. */
-export const CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = "cerebras/zai-glm-4.7";
+export const CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest,
+  "cerebras",
+)!;
 
 const cerebrasPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
   primaryModelRef: CEREBRAS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
@@ -25,7 +26,6 @@ const cerebrasPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
   }),
 });
 
-/** Applies Cerebras provider/catalog config and default model aliases. */
 export function applyCerebrasConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
   return cerebrasPresetAppliers.applyConfig(cfg);
 }
diff --git a/extensions/cerebras/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/cerebras/openclaw.plugin.json
index 2d4fbc4fd1a4..7c9766f73949 100644
--- a/extensions/cerebras/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/cerebras/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -23,6 +23,7 @@
       "cerebras": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.cerebras.ai/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "zai-glm-4.7",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "zai-glm-4.7",
diff --git a/extensions/chutes/api.ts b/extensions/chutes/api.ts
index 0e8c172ddf02..ba9b624e0293 100644
--- a/extensions/chutes/api.ts
+++ b/extensions/chutes/api.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,6 @@
-/**
- * Public Chutes provider plugin API exports.
- */
 export {
   buildChutesModelDefinition,
   CHUTES_BASE_URL,
-  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
-  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   CHUTES_MODEL_CATALOG,
   discoverChutesModels,
 } from "./models.js";
@@ -14,4 +9,6 @@ export {
   applyChutesApiKeyConfig,
   applyChutesConfig,
   applyChutesProviderConfig,
+  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
+  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
 } from "./onboard.js";
diff --git a/extensions/chutes/models.test.ts b/extensions/chutes/models.test.ts
index a7c6754d8de9..5baaf0e9282a 100644
--- a/extensions/chutes/models.test.ts
+++ b/extensions/chutes/models.test.ts
@@ -2,14 +2,13 @@
 import { expectDefined } from "@openclaw/normalization-core";
 import { clearLiveCatalogCacheForTests } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-live-runtime";
 import { beforeEach, describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
+import { CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID } from "./api.js";
 import {
   buildChutesModelDefinition,
-  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
-  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   CHUTES_MODEL_CATALOG,
   discoverChutesModels,
 } from "./models.js";
-import { applyChutesConfig } from "./onboard.js";
+import { applyChutesConfig, CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
 import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
 const EXPECTED_STATIC_MODEL_IDS = [
@@ -136,7 +135,8 @@ describe("chutes-models", () => {
     const runtimeIds = CHUTES_MODEL_CATALOG.map((model) => model.id);
     expect(manifestIds).toEqual(EXPECTED_STATIC_MODEL_IDS);
     expect(runtimeIds).toEqual(EXPECTED_STATIC_MODEL_IDS);
-    expect(CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID).toBe("zai-org/GLM-5.2-TEE");
+    expect(CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID).toBe(manifest.modelCatalog.providers.chutes.defaultModel);
+    expect(manifest.modelCatalog.providers.chutes.defaultModel).toBe("zai-org/GLM-5.2-TEE");
     expect(
       manifest.modelCatalog.providers.chutes.models
         .filter((model) => "status" in model && model.status === "deprecated")
@@ -171,6 +171,13 @@ describe("chutes-models", () => {
     expect(cfg.agents?.defaults?.models?.["chutes-vision"]?.alias).toBe(
       "chutes/moonshotai/Kimi-K2.6-TEE",
     );
+    expect(Object.keys(cfg.agents?.defaults?.models ?? {}).toSorted()).toEqual(
+      [
+        ...EXPECTED_STATIC_MODEL_IDS.map((id) => `chutes/${id}`),
+        "chutes-pro",
+        "chutes-vision",
+      ].toSorted(),
+    );
     const catalogBackedTargets = [
       CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
       "chutes/deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2-TEE",
diff --git a/extensions/chutes/models.ts b/extensions/chutes/models.ts
index d6e2382c1cc5..19228acae20e 100644
--- a/extensions/chutes/models.ts
+++ b/extensions/chutes/models.ts
@@ -30,10 +30,6 @@ const CHUTES_MANIFEST_PROVIDER = buildManifestModelProviderConfig({
 
 /** Base URL for Chutes OpenAI-compatible inference. */
 export const CHUTES_BASE_URL = CHUTES_MANIFEST_PROVIDER.baseUrl;
-/** Default Chutes model id used for onboarding. */
-export const CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "zai-org/GLM-5.2-TEE";
-/** Default Chutes model ref used for onboarding. */
-export const CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `chutes/${CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID}`;
 
 const CHUTES_DEFAULT_CONTEXT_WINDOW = 128000;
 const CHUTES_DEFAULT_MAX_TOKENS = 4096;
diff --git a/extensions/chutes/onboard.ts b/extensions/chutes/onboard.ts
index d163e7d3a13d..11bca10d1a72 100644
--- a/extensions/chutes/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/chutes/onboard.ts
@@ -1,26 +1,18 @@
-/**
- * Chutes onboarding config helpers for OAuth and API-key setup.
- */
+import { readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import {
   applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary,
-  applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalogPreset,
+  createModelCatalogPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
-import {
-  CHUTES_BASE_URL,
-  CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-  CHUTES_MODEL_CATALOG,
-  buildChutesModelDefinition,
-} from "./models.js";
+import { CHUTES_BASE_URL, CHUTES_MODEL_CATALOG, buildChutesModelDefinition } from "./models.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-export { CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF };
+export const CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = manifest.modelCatalog.providers.chutes.defaultModel;
+export const CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(manifest, "chutes")!;
 
-/**
- * Apply Chutes provider configuration without changing the default model.
- * Registers all catalog models and convenience aliases.
- */
-export function applyChutesProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  return applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalogPreset(cfg, {
+const chutesPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
+  primaryModelRef: CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+  resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
     providerId: "chutes",
     api: "openai-completions",
     baseUrl: CHUTES_BASE_URL,
@@ -33,12 +25,13 @@ export function applyChutesProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
       },
       { modelRef: "chutes-pro", alias: "chutes/deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2-TEE" },
     ],
-  });
+  }),
+});
+
+export function applyChutesProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
+  return chutesPresetAppliers.applyProviderConfig(cfg);
 }
 
-/**
- * Apply Chutes provider configuration AND set Chutes as the default model.
- */
 export function applyChutesConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
   const next = applyChutesProviderConfig(cfg);
   return {
@@ -60,7 +53,6 @@ export function applyChutesConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
   };
 }
 
-/** Applies Chutes provider config and sets the default model for API-key auth. */
 export function applyChutesApiKeyConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
   return applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary(applyChutesProviderConfig(cfg), CHUTES_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF);
 }
diff --git a/extensions/chutes/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/chutes/openclaw.plugin.json
index d0b029d930b5..58066a3e8ef9 100644
--- a/extensions/chutes/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/chutes/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -64,6 +64,7 @@
       "chutes": {
         "baseUrl": "https://llm.chutes.ai/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "zai-org/GLM-5.2-TEE",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "deepseek-ai/DeepSeek-V3.2-TEE",
diff --git a/extensions/cohere/index.test.ts b/extensions/cohere/index.test.ts
index 335f35dcfeb6..8c79e54fc84a 100644
--- a/extensions/cohere/index.test.ts
+++ b/extensions/cohere/index.test.ts
@@ -5,10 +5,10 @@ import { registerSingleProviderPlugin } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/plugin-test-ru
 import { buildOpenAICompletionsParams } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-transport-runtime";
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 import plugin from "./index.js";
-import { COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID } from "./models.js";
 import { buildCohereProvider, COHERE_LIVE_MODEL_DISCOVERY } from "./provider-catalog.js";
 import { createCohereCompletionsWrapper } from "./stream.js";
 
+const COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID = "command-a-plus-05-2026";
 const COHERE_COMMAND_A_REASONING_MODEL_ID = "command-a-reasoning-08-2025";
 const COHERE_COMMAND_A_VISION_MODEL_ID = "command-a-vision-07-2025";
 const COHERE_NORTH_MINI_CODE_MODEL_ID = "north-mini-code-1-0";
diff --git a/extensions/cohere/models.ts b/extensions/cohere/models.ts
index 5a7aaf73ce30..dbfd420a4ebe 100644
--- a/extensions/cohere/models.ts
+++ b/extensions/cohere/models.ts
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ const COHERE_MANIFEST_CATALOG = manifest.modelCatalog.providers.cohere;
 
 export const COHERE_BASE_URL = COHERE_MANIFEST_CATALOG.baseUrl;
 export const COHERE_MODEL_CATALOG = COHERE_MANIFEST_CATALOG.models;
-export const COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID = "command-a-plus-05-2026";
+const COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID = "command-a-plus-05-2026";
 const COHERE_COMMAND_A_REASONING_MODEL_ID = "command-a-reasoning-08-2025";
 const COHERE_NORTH_MINI_CODE_MODEL_ID = "north-mini-code-1-0";
 
diff --git a/extensions/cohere/onboard.ts b/extensions/cohere/onboard.ts
index 0ca04e0bc109..5f2a7263c6f1 100644
--- a/extensions/cohere/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/cohere/onboard.ts
@@ -1,16 +1,12 @@
+import { readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import {
   createModelCatalogPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
-import {
-  buildCohereModelDefinition,
-  COHERE_BASE_URL,
-  COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID,
-  COHERE_MODEL_CATALOG,
-} from "./models.js";
+import { buildCohereModelDefinition, COHERE_BASE_URL, COHERE_MODEL_CATALOG } from "./models.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-const COHERE_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = COHERE_COMMAND_A_PLUS_MODEL_ID;
-export const COHERE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `cohere/${COHERE_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID}`;
+export const COHERE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(manifest, "cohere")!;
 
 const coherePresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
   primaryModelRef: COHERE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
diff --git a/extensions/cohere/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/cohere/openclaw.plugin.json
index 795ed023edce..815386c370fc 100644
--- a/extensions/cohere/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/cohere/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
       "cohere": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.cohere.ai/compatibility/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "command-a-plus-05-2026",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "command-a-plus-05-2026",
diff --git a/extensions/deepseek/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/deepseek/onboard.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..0f82acb6b3c4
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extensions/deepseek/onboard.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+import { resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { applyDeepSeekConfig, DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
+
+describe("DeepSeek onboarding", () => {
+  it("applies the manifest catalog, default, and alias", () => {
+    const config = applyDeepSeekConfig({});
+
+    expect(config.models?.providers?.deepseek?.models.map((model) => model.id)).toEqual(
+      manifest.modelCatalog.providers.deepseek.models.map((model) => model.id),
+    );
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "DeepSeek" },
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/extensions/deepseek/onboard.ts b/extensions/deepseek/onboard.ts
index 12f0bf3a09a7..3e3e363588c6 100644
--- a/extensions/deepseek/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/deepseek/onboard.ts
@@ -1,32 +1,31 @@
-// Deepseek setup module handles plugin onboarding behavior.
+import { readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import {
-  applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary,
-  applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalog,
+  createModelCatalogPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
-import { buildDeepSeekModelDefinition, DEEPSEEK_BASE_URL, DEEPSEEK_MODEL_CATALOG } from "./api.js";
+import {
+  buildDeepSeekModelDefinition,
+  DEEPSEEK_BASE_URL,
+  DEEPSEEK_MODEL_CATALOG,
+} from "./models.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-export const DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = "deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash";
+export const DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest,
+  "deepseek",
+)!;
 
-function applyDeepSeekProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  const models = { ...cfg.agents?.defaults?.models };
-  models[DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF] = {
-    ...models[DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF],
-    alias: models[DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]?.alias ?? "DeepSeek",
-  };
-
-  return applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalog(cfg, {
-    agentModels: models,
+const deepSeekPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
+  primaryModelRef: DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+  resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
     providerId: "deepseek",
     api: "openai-completions",
     baseUrl: DEEPSEEK_BASE_URL,
     catalogModels: DEEPSEEK_MODEL_CATALOG.map(buildDeepSeekModelDefinition),
-  });
-}
+    aliases: [{ modelRef: DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF, alias: "DeepSeek" }],
+  }),
+});
 
 export function applyDeepSeekConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  return applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary(
-    applyDeepSeekProviderConfig(cfg),
-    DEEPSEEK_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-  );
+  return deepSeekPresetAppliers.applyConfig(cfg);
 }
diff --git a/extensions/deepseek/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/deepseek/openclaw.plugin.json
index dad4ab0885e4..9144815e3510 100644
--- a/extensions/deepseek/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/deepseek/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -28,6 +28,7 @@
       "deepseek": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.deepseek.com",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "deepseek-v4-flash",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "deepseek-v4-flash",
diff --git a/extensions/fireworks/index.ts b/extensions/fireworks/index.ts
index 29be3f0abcd5..da0c248690ba 100644
--- a/extensions/fireworks/index.ts
+++ b/extensions/fireworks/index.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-// Fireworks plugin entrypoint registers its OpenClaw integration.
 import type { ProviderResolveDynamicModelContext } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/plugin-entry";
 import { defineSingleProviderPluginEntry } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-entry";
 import {
@@ -8,13 +7,14 @@ import {
   normalizeModelCompat,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-model-shared";
 import { isFireworksKimiModelId } from "./model-id.js";
-import { applyFireworksConfig, FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
+import { applyFireworksConfig } from "./onboard.js";
 import {
   buildFireworksProvider,
   FIREWORKS_BASE_URL,
   FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_CONTEXT_WINDOW,
   FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MAX_TOKENS,
   FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
+  FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   isFireworksCatalogModelId,
 } from "./provider-catalog.js";
 import { wrapFireworksProviderStream } from "./stream.js";
diff --git a/extensions/fireworks/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/fireworks/onboard.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..9b8eb9b06957
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extensions/fireworks/onboard.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,18 @@
+import { resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { applyFireworksConfig } from "./onboard.js";
+import { FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF, buildFireworksCatalogModels } from "./provider-catalog.js";
+
+describe("Fireworks onboarding", () => {
+  it("applies the manifest catalog, default, and alias", () => {
+    const config = applyFireworksConfig({});
+
+    expect(config.models?.providers?.fireworks?.models).toEqual(buildFireworksCatalogModels());
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "Kimi K2.6 Turbo" },
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/extensions/fireworks/onboard.ts b/extensions/fireworks/onboard.ts
index 8759b6583064..4da9e96bd665 100644
--- a/extensions/fireworks/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/fireworks/onboard.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-// Fireworks setup module handles plugin onboarding behavior.
 import {
   createDefaultModelsPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
@@ -7,10 +6,9 @@ import {
   buildFireworksCatalogModels,
   buildFireworksProvider,
   FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
+  FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
 } from "./provider-catalog.js";
 
-export const FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `fireworks/${FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID}`;
-
 const fireworksPresetAppliers = createDefaultModelsPresetAppliers({
   primaryModelRef: FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => {
diff --git a/extensions/fireworks/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/fireworks/openclaw.plugin.json
index 7aa8f614b71b..7ff7f04620f8 100644
--- a/extensions/fireworks/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/fireworks/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@
       "fireworks": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.fireworks.ai/inference/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "accounts/fireworks/routers/kimi-k2p6-turbo",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "accounts/fireworks/models/kimi-k2p6",
diff --git a/extensions/fireworks/provider-catalog.ts b/extensions/fireworks/provider-catalog.ts
index 8ab58c54ee14..8eccc63348ad 100644
--- a/extensions/fireworks/provider-catalog.ts
+++ b/extensions/fireworks/provider-catalog.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
-// Fireworks provider module implements model/runtime integration.
-import { buildManifestModelProviderConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
+import {
+  buildManifestModelProviderConfig,
+  readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef,
+} from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import type {
   ModelDefinitionConfig,
   ModelProviderConfig,
@@ -10,9 +12,13 @@ const FIREWORKS_MANIFEST_PROVIDER = buildManifestModelProviderConfig({
   providerId: "fireworks",
   catalog: manifest.modelCatalog.providers.fireworks,
 });
+export const FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest,
+  "fireworks",
+)!;
 
 export const FIREWORKS_BASE_URL = FIREWORKS_MANIFEST_PROVIDER.baseUrl;
-export const FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "accounts/fireworks/routers/kimi-k2p6-turbo";
+export const FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = FIREWORKS_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF.slice("fireworks/".length);
 
 function requireFireworksManifestModel(id: string): ModelDefinitionConfig {
   const model = FIREWORKS_MANIFEST_PROVIDER.models.find((entry) => entry.id === id);
diff --git a/extensions/groq/index.test.ts b/extensions/groq/index.test.ts
index 986ea389b576..f4dfecf485d6 100644
--- a/extensions/groq/index.test.ts
+++ b/extensions/groq/index.test.ts
@@ -8,6 +8,7 @@ import { capturePluginRegistration } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/plugin-test-runti
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 import { resolveGroqReasoningCompatPatch } from "./api.js";
 import plugin from "./index.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
 describe("groq provider compat", () => {
   it("recovers only matching implicit-budget rejections without changing normal tools", async () => {
@@ -343,10 +344,10 @@ describe("groq provider compat", () => {
     });
     expect(provider.auth).toHaveLength(1);
     expect(provider.auth[0]).toMatchObject({
-      defaultModel: "groq/openai/gpt-oss-120b",
       id: "api-key",
       kind: "api_key",
       label: "Groq API key",
+      starterModel: `groq/${manifest.modelCatalog.providers.groq.defaultModel}`,
       wizard: {
         choiceId: "groq-api-key",
         groupId: "groq",
diff --git a/extensions/groq/index.ts b/extensions/groq/index.ts
index d846b02daa5c..961c9cddbf0c 100644
--- a/extensions/groq/index.ts
+++ b/extensions/groq/index.ts
@@ -4,15 +4,17 @@ import {
   streamSimple,
   type AssistantMessageEvent,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/llm";
-// Groq plugin entrypoint registers its OpenClaw integration.
 import { definePluginEntry } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/plugin-entry";
 import { createProviderApiKeyAuthMethod } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-auth-api-key";
 import { buildOpenAICompatibleProviderCatalog } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-live-runtime";
-import { buildManifestModelProviderConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
+import {
+  buildManifestModelProviderConfig,
+  readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef,
+} from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import { groqMediaUnderstandingProvider } from "./media-understanding-provider.js";
 import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-const GROQ_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = "groq/openai/gpt-oss-120b";
+const GROQ_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(manifest, "groq")!;
 const GROQ_OVERSIZED_RECOVERY_MODEL_ID = "llama-3.3-70b-versatile";
 const GROQ_FALLBACK_MAX_TOKENS = 1_024;
 
diff --git a/extensions/groq/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/groq/openclaw.plugin.json
index 31ca0f237376..b804b40bf075 100644
--- a/extensions/groq/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/groq/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -48,6 +48,7 @@
       "groq": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.groq.com/openai/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "openai/gpt-oss-120b",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "groq/compound",
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/api.ts b/extensions/mistral/api.ts
index 8b1ac60a2650..7cd8a96d7838 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/api.ts
+++ b/extensions/mistral/api.ts
@@ -4,12 +4,9 @@ export {
   buildMistralModelDefinition,
   MISTRAL_BASE_URL,
   MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
-} from "./model-definitions.js";
-export {
-  applyMistralConfig,
-  applyMistralProviderConfig,
   MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-} from "./onboard.js";
+} from "./model-definitions.js";
+export { applyMistralConfig, applyMistralProviderConfig } from "./onboard.js";
 
 const MISTRAL_MAX_TOKENS_FIELD = "max_tokens";
 
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/index.ts b/extensions/mistral/index.ts
index fc0ed1885b41..0771268017c4 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/index.ts
+++ b/extensions/mistral/index.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-// Mistral plugin entrypoint registers its OpenClaw integration.
 import { defineSingleProviderPluginEntry } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-entry";
 import {
   applyMistralModelCompat,
@@ -8,7 +7,8 @@ import {
 } from "./api.js";
 import { mistralMediaUnderstandingProvider } from "./media-understanding-provider.js";
 import { mistralMemoryEmbeddingProviderAdapter } from "./memory-embedding-adapter.js";
-import { applyMistralConfig, MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
+import { MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./model-definitions.js";
+import { applyMistralConfig } from "./onboard.js";
 import { buildMistralProvider } from "./provider-catalog.js";
 import { buildMistralRealtimeTranscriptionProvider } from "./realtime-transcription-provider.js";
 
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/model-definitions.ts b/extensions/mistral/model-definitions.ts
index 42f6d0eda21c..a972da82317e 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/model-definitions.ts
+++ b/extensions/mistral/model-definitions.ts
@@ -1,12 +1,15 @@
-// Mistral plugin module implements model definitions behavior.
-import { buildManifestModelProviderConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
+import {
+  buildManifestModelProviderConfig,
+  readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef,
+} from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import type { ModelDefinitionConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-model-shared";
 import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
 const MISTRAL_MANIFEST_CATALOG = manifest.modelCatalog.providers.mistral;
 
 export const MISTRAL_BASE_URL = MISTRAL_MANIFEST_CATALOG.baseUrl;
-export const MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "mistral-large-latest";
+export const MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(manifest, "mistral")!;
+export const MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF.slice("mistral/".length);
 
 export function buildMistralModelDefinition(): ModelDefinitionConfig {
   const model = buildMistralCatalogModels().find((entry) => entry.id === MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID);
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/mistral/onboard.test.ts
index 71cdf2fc3ecb..03410f42041d 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/onboard.test.ts
+++ b/extensions/mistral/onboard.test.ts
@@ -5,11 +5,8 @@ import {
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-test-contracts";
 import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
 import { buildMistralModelDefinition as buildBundledMistralModelDefinition } from "./model-definitions.js";
-import {
-  applyMistralConfig,
-  applyMistralProviderConfig,
-  MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-} from "./onboard.js";
+import { MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./model-definitions.js";
+import { applyMistralConfig, applyMistralProviderConfig } from "./onboard.js";
 
 describe("mistral onboard", () => {
   it("adds Mistral provider with correct settings", () => {
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/onboard.ts b/extensions/mistral/onboard.ts
index b45e4831470a..72359c9f9d2e 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/mistral/onboard.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-// Mistral setup module handles plugin onboarding behavior.
 import {
   createDefaultModelPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
@@ -7,10 +6,9 @@ import {
   buildMistralModelDefinition,
   MISTRAL_BASE_URL,
   MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID,
+  MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
 } from "./model-definitions.js";
 
-export const MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `mistral/${MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID}`;
-
 const mistralPresetAppliers = createDefaultModelPresetAppliers({
   primaryModelRef: MISTRAL_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
diff --git a/extensions/mistral/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/mistral/openclaw.plugin.json
index 30a6262fd5eb..af45d5fb25fb 100644
--- a/extensions/mistral/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/mistral/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@
       "mistral": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.mistral.ai/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "mistral-large-latest",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "codestral-latest",
diff --git a/extensions/tencent/index.ts b/extensions/tencent/index.ts
index 23451b366ffe..0d1d42b7f42f 100644
--- a/extensions/tencent/index.ts
+++ b/extensions/tencent/index.ts
@@ -10,8 +10,8 @@ import {
 } from "./models.js";
 import {
   applyTokenHubConfig,
-  TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   applyTokenPlanConfig,
+  TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
 } from "./onboard.js";
 import { buildTokenHubProvider, buildTokenPlanProvider } from "./provider-catalog.js";
diff --git a/extensions/tencent/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/tencent/onboard.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..a9b14fa15900
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extensions/tencent/onboard.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+import { resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import {
+  applyTokenHubConfig,
+  applyTokenPlanConfig,
+  TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+  TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+} from "./onboard.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
+
+describe("Tencent onboarding", () => {
+  it("applies the TokenHub manifest catalog, default, and aliases", () => {
+    const config = applyTokenHubConfig({});
+
+    expect(config.models?.providers?.["tencent-tokenhub"]?.models.map((model) => model.id)).toEqual(
+      manifest.modelCatalog.providers["tencent-tokenhub"].models.map((model) => model.id),
+    );
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "Hy3 (TokenHub)" },
+      "tencent-tokenhub/hy3-preview": { alias: "Hy3 preview (TokenHub)" },
+    });
+  });
+
+  it("applies the TokenPlan manifest catalog, default, and alias", () => {
+    const config = applyTokenPlanConfig({});
+
+    expect(
+      config.models?.providers?.["tencent-tokenplan"]?.models.map((model) => model.id),
+    ).toEqual(manifest.modelCatalog.providers["tencent-tokenplan"].models.map((model) => model.id));
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "Hy3 (TokenPlan)" },
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/extensions/tencent/onboard.ts b/extensions/tencent/onboard.ts
index d241896f6a76..f9f3e5881d87 100644
--- a/extensions/tencent/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/tencent/onboard.ts
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
-// Tencent setup module handles plugin onboarding behavior.
+import { readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import {
-  applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary,
-  applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalog,
+  createModelCatalogPresetAppliers,
   type OpenClawConfig,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
 import {
@@ -13,63 +12,49 @@ import {
   TOKENPLAN_BASE_URL,
   TOKENPLAN_MODEL_CATALOG,
   TOKENPLAN_PROVIDER_ID,
-} from "./api.js";
+} from "./models.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
 
-// ---------- TokenHub ----------
-
-export const TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `${TOKENHUB_PROVIDER_ID}/hy3`;
 const TOKENHUB_PREVIEW_MODEL_REF = `${TOKENHUB_PROVIDER_ID}/hy3-preview`;
+export const TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest,
+  TOKENHUB_PROVIDER_ID,
+)!;
 
-function applyTokenHubProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  const models = { ...cfg.agents?.defaults?.models };
-  models[TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF] = {
-    ...models[TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF],
-    alias: models[TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]?.alias ?? "Hy3 (TokenHub)",
-  };
-  models[TOKENHUB_PREVIEW_MODEL_REF] = {
-    ...models[TOKENHUB_PREVIEW_MODEL_REF],
-    alias: models[TOKENHUB_PREVIEW_MODEL_REF]?.alias ?? "Hy3 preview (TokenHub)",
-  };
-
-  return applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalog(cfg, {
-    agentModels: models,
+const tokenHubPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
+  primaryModelRef: TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+  resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
     providerId: TOKENHUB_PROVIDER_ID,
     api: "openai-completions",
     baseUrl: TOKENHUB_BASE_URL,
     catalogModels: TOKENHUB_MODEL_CATALOG.map(buildTokenHubModelDefinition),
-  });
-}
+    aliases: [
+      { modelRef: TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF, alias: "Hy3 (TokenHub)" },
+      { modelRef: TOKENHUB_PREVIEW_MODEL_REF, alias: "Hy3 preview (TokenHub)" },
+    ],
+  }),
+});
 
 export function applyTokenHubConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  return applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary(
-    applyTokenHubProviderConfig(cfg),
-    TOKENHUB_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-  );
+  return tokenHubPresetAppliers.applyConfig(cfg);
 }
 
-// ---------- TokenPlan ----------
+export const TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest,
+  TOKENPLAN_PROVIDER_ID,
+)!;
 
-export const TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `${TOKENPLAN_PROVIDER_ID}/hy3`;
-
-function applyTokenPlanProviderConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  const models = { ...cfg.agents?.defaults?.models };
-  models[TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF] = {
-    ...models[TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF],
-    alias: models[TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]?.alias ?? "Hy3 (TokenPlan)",
-  };
-
-  return applyProviderConfigWithModelCatalog(cfg, {
-    agentModels: models,
+const tokenPlanPresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
+  primaryModelRef: TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+  resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
     providerId: TOKENPLAN_PROVIDER_ID,
     api: "openai-completions",
     baseUrl: TOKENPLAN_BASE_URL,
     catalogModels: TOKENPLAN_MODEL_CATALOG.map(buildTokenPlanModelDefinition),
-  });
-}
+    aliases: [{ modelRef: TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF, alias: "Hy3 (TokenPlan)" }],
+  }),
+});
 
 export function applyTokenPlanConfig(cfg: OpenClawConfig): OpenClawConfig {
-  return applyAgentDefaultModelPrimary(
-    applyTokenPlanProviderConfig(cfg),
-    TOKENPLAN_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
-  );
+  return tokenPlanPresetAppliers.applyConfig(cfg);
 }
diff --git a/extensions/tencent/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/tencent/openclaw.plugin.json
index b3249d1a098b..ba4e9b5a0e90 100644
--- a/extensions/tencent/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/tencent/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@
       "tencent-tokenhub": {
         "baseUrl": "https://tokenhub.tencentmaas.com/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "hy3",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "hy3-preview",
@@ -80,6 +81,7 @@
       "tencent-tokenplan": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.lkeap.cloud.tencent.com/plan/v3",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "hy3",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "hy3",
diff --git a/extensions/venice/index.ts b/extensions/venice/index.ts
index b0df635e9b37..6577ada4e216 100644
--- a/extensions/venice/index.ts
+++ b/extensions/venice/index.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@ import {
   type ModelCompatConfig,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-model-shared";
 import { normalizeLowercaseStringOrEmpty } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/string-coerce-runtime";
-import { applyVeniceConfig, VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./onboard.js";
+import { VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./models.js";
+import { applyVeniceConfig } from "./onboard.js";
 import { buildVeniceProvider } from "./provider-catalog.js";
 import { createVeniceDeepSeekV4Wrapper } from "./stream.js";
 import { fetchVeniceUsage } from "./usage.js";
diff --git a/extensions/venice/models.ts b/extensions/venice/models.ts
index d325c61cef13..4ec92bb6932b 100644
--- a/extensions/venice/models.ts
+++ b/extensions/venice/models.ts
@@ -1,9 +1,11 @@
-// Venice plugin module implements models behavior.
 import {
   getCachedLiveProviderModelRows,
   LiveModelCatalogHttpError,
 } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-live-runtime";
-import { buildManifestModelProviderConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
+import {
+  buildManifestModelProviderConfig,
+  readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef,
+} from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import type { ModelDefinitionConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-model-shared";
 import { createSubsystemLogger, retryAsync } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/runtime-env";
 import { normalizeLowercaseStringOrEmpty } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/string-coerce-runtime";
@@ -17,8 +19,7 @@ const VENICE_MANIFEST_PROVIDER = buildManifestModelProviderConfig({
 });
 
 export const VENICE_BASE_URL = VENICE_MANIFEST_PROVIDER.baseUrl;
-const VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "kimi-k2-5";
-export const VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = `venice/${VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID}`;
+export const VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF = readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(manifest, "venice")!;
 const VENICE_ALLOWED_HOSTNAMES = ["api.venice.ai"];
 
 const VENICE_DEFAULT_COST = {
diff --git a/extensions/venice/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/venice/onboard.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000000..8d1df44c287c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/extensions/venice/onboard.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+import { resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-onboard";
+import { describe, expect, it } from "vitest";
+import { VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF } from "./models.js";
+import { applyVeniceConfig } from "./onboard.js";
+import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
+
+describe("Venice onboarding", () => {
+  it("applies the manifest catalog, default, and alias", () => {
+    const config = applyVeniceConfig({});
+
+    expect(config.models?.providers?.venice?.models.map((model) => model.id)).toEqual(
+      manifest.modelCatalog.providers.venice.models.map((model) => model.id),
+    );
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(config.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe(
+      VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
+    );
+    expect(config.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      [VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF]: { alias: "Kimi K2.5" },
+    });
+  });
+});
diff --git a/extensions/venice/onboard.ts b/extensions/venice/onboard.ts
index 98058035689c..4f43647cf625 100644
--- a/extensions/venice/onboard.ts
+++ b/extensions/venice/onboard.ts
@@ -10,8 +10,6 @@ import {
   VENICE_MODEL_CATALOG,
 } from "./api.js";
 
-export { VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF };
-
 const venicePresetAppliers = createModelCatalogPresetAppliers({
   primaryModelRef: VENICE_DEFAULT_MODEL_REF,
   resolveParams: (_cfg: OpenClawConfig) => ({
diff --git a/extensions/venice/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/venice/openclaw.plugin.json
index 0cfbd25e983c..3c516bb0ff3f 100644
--- a/extensions/venice/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/venice/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -43,6 +43,7 @@
       "venice": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.venice.ai/api/v1",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "kimi-k2-5",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "zai-org-glm-5-2",
diff --git a/extensions/zai/model-definitions.ts b/extensions/zai/model-definitions.ts
index e2b6b45af414..e5099483032c 100644
--- a/extensions/zai/model-definitions.ts
+++ b/extensions/zai/model-definitions.ts
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-// Zai plugin module implements model definitions behavior.
 import { buildManifestModelProviderConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared";
 import type { ModelDefinitionConfig } from "openclaw/plugin-sdk/provider-model-shared";
 import manifest from "./openclaw.plugin.json" with { type: "json" };
@@ -7,7 +6,7 @@ export const ZAI_CODING_GLOBAL_BASE_URL = "https://api.z.ai/api/coding/paas/v4";
 export const ZAI_CODING_CN_BASE_URL = "https://open.bigmodel.cn/api/coding/paas/v4";
 export const ZAI_GLOBAL_BASE_URL = "https://api.z.ai/api/paas/v4";
 export const ZAI_CN_BASE_URL = "https://open.bigmodel.cn/api/paas/v4";
-export const ZAI_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "glm-5.1";
+export const ZAI_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = manifest.modelCatalog.providers.zai.defaultModel;
 export const ZAI_CODING_DEFAULT_MODEL_ID = "glm-5.2";
 
 const ZAI_MANIFEST_CATALOG = manifest.modelCatalog.providers.zai;
diff --git a/extensions/zai/onboard.test.ts b/extensions/zai/onboard.test.ts
index d11fd7943f53..541a55bc9781 100644
--- a/extensions/zai/onboard.test.ts
+++ b/extensions/zai/onboard.test.ts
@@ -40,6 +40,13 @@ describe("zai onboard", () => {
     ).not.toHaveProperty("baseUrl");
   });
 
+  it("uses the manifest default and alias for a fresh general endpoint setup", () => {
+    expect(resolveAgentModelPrimaryValue(defaultCfg.agents?.defaults?.model)).toBe("zai/glm-5.1");
+    expect(defaultCfg.agents?.defaults?.models).toEqual({
+      "zai/glm-5.1": { alias: "GLM" },
+    });
+  });
+
   it("resolves GLM-5.2 through the selected Coding Plan or custom endpoint", async () => {
     for (const [name, cfg, expectedBaseUrl] of [
       ["coding-cn", applyZaiConfig({}, { endpoint: "coding-cn" }), ZAI_CODING_CN_BASE_URL],
diff --git a/extensions/zai/openclaw.plugin.json b/extensions/zai/openclaw.plugin.json
index b61d7e3082a0..7b76a3bb5602 100644
--- a/extensions/zai/openclaw.plugin.json
+++ b/extensions/zai/openclaw.plugin.json
@@ -32,6 +32,7 @@
       "zai": {
         "baseUrl": "https://api.z.ai/api/paas/v4",
         "api": "openai-completions",
+        "defaultModel": "glm-5.1",
         "models": [
           {
             "id": "glm-5.2",
diff --git a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.test.ts b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.test.ts
index 3267c642f268..cdea7ebe1420 100644
--- a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.test.ts
+++ b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.test.ts
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ describe("model catalog normalization", () => {
             headers: {
               "x-provider": "openai",
             },
+            defaultModel: " gpt-5.4 ",
             defaultUtilityModel: " gpt-5.6-luna ",
             models: [
               {
@@ -130,6 +131,7 @@ describe("model catalog normalization", () => {
           headers: {
             "x-provider": "openai",
           },
+          defaultModel: "gpt-5.4",
           defaultUtilityModel: "gpt-5.6-luna",
           models: [
             {
diff --git a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.ts b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.ts
index a6dbc94a429d..150e956fd93a 100644
--- a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.ts
+++ b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-normalize.ts
@@ -537,11 +537,13 @@ function normalizeModelCatalogProvider(value: unknown): ModelCatalogProvider | u
   const baseUrl = normalizeOptionalString(value.baseUrl) ?? "";
   const api = normalizeModelCatalogApi(value.api);
   const headers = normalizeStringMap(value.headers);
+  const defaultModel = normalizeOptionalString(value.defaultModel) ?? "";
   const defaultUtilityModel = normalizeOptionalString(value.defaultUtilityModel) ?? "";
   return {
     ...(baseUrl ? { baseUrl } : {}),
     ...(api ? { api } : {}),
     ...(headers ? { headers } : {}),
+    ...(defaultModel ? { defaultModel } : {}),
     ...(defaultUtilityModel ? { defaultUtilityModel } : {}),
     models,
   };
diff --git a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-types.ts b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-types.ts
index 741597788a0c..10322e1bb409 100644
--- a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-types.ts
+++ b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/model-catalog-types.ts
@@ -245,6 +245,8 @@ export type ModelCatalogProvider = {
   baseUrl?: string;
   api?: ModelCatalogApi;
   headers?: Record<string, string>;
+  /** Provider-recommended primary model id. */
+  defaultModel?: string;
   /** Provider-recommended small model id for short internal utility tasks. */
   defaultUtilityModel?: string;
   models: ModelCatalogModel[];
diff --git a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.test.ts b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.test.ts
index ba1d3affd84c..98c6110a36ba 100644
--- a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.test.ts
+++ b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.test.ts
@@ -13,6 +13,8 @@ const validBundle = {
     anthropic: {
       baseUrl: "https://evil.test",
       headers: { Authorization: "bad" },
+      defaultModel: "claude-test",
+      defaultUtilityModel: "claude-test",
       models: [
         {
           id: "claude-test",
@@ -35,6 +37,10 @@ describe("remote model catalog bundle", () => {
     }
     expect(anthropic).not.toHaveProperty("baseUrl");
     expect(anthropic).not.toHaveProperty("headers");
+    expect(anthropic).toMatchObject({
+      defaultModel: "claude-test",
+      defaultUtilityModel: "claude-test",
+    });
     expect(anthropic.models[0]).not.toHaveProperty("baseUrl");
     expect(anthropic.models[0]).not.toHaveProperty("headers");
     expect(anthropic.models[0]?.compat).toEqual({ nested: {} });
diff --git a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.ts b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.ts
index 7d0851ccb037..87a4e776c9b7 100644
--- a/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.ts
+++ b/packages/model-catalog-core/src/remote-catalog-bundle.ts
@@ -57,6 +57,7 @@ export const remoteModelCatalogProviderSchema = z
     baseUrl: z.string().optional(),
     api: z.enum(MODEL_CATALOG_APIS).optional(),
     headers: stringMapSchema.optional(),
+    defaultModel: z.string().optional(),
     defaultUtilityModel: z.string().optional(),
     models: z.array(modelSchema).min(1),
   })
diff --git a/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.test.ts b/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.test.ts
index a8d0e1943916..72251ffabf17 100644
--- a/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.test.ts
+++ b/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.test.ts
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import {
   clearLiveCatalogCacheForTests,
   getCachedLiveCatalogValue,
   readConfiguredProviderCatalogEntries,
+  readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef,
   supportsNativeStreamingUsageCompat,
 } from "./provider-catalog-shared.js";
 import type { ModelDefinitionConfig } from "./provider-model-shared.js";
@@ -298,6 +299,7 @@ describe("provider-catalog-shared manifest provider configs", () => {
     const catalog: ModelCatalogProvider = {
       baseUrl: "https://api.example.test/v1",
       api: "openai-completions",
+      defaultModel: " example-model ",
       headers: { "x-provider": "example" },
       models: [
         {
@@ -368,6 +370,12 @@ describe("provider-catalog-shared manifest provider configs", () => {
         },
       ],
     });
+    expect(
+      readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+        { modelCatalog: { providers: { example: catalog } } },
+        "example",
+      ),
+    ).toBe("example/example-model");
   });
 
   it("normalizes retired nested Gemini ids before emitting manifest provider config", () => {
diff --git a/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.ts b/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.ts
index 8c51a9b3b42d..026212d5f616 100644
--- a/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.ts
+++ b/src/plugin-sdk/provider-catalog-shared.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 // Provider catalog helpers normalize, hash, and expose model catalogs for provider plugins.
 import { createHash } from "node:crypto";
 import { normalizeModelCatalog } from "@openclaw/model-catalog-core/model-catalog-normalize";
+import { buildModelCatalogRef } from "@openclaw/model-catalog-core/model-catalog-refs";
 import type {
   ModelCatalogCost,
   ModelCatalogMediaInputConfig,
@@ -12,6 +13,7 @@ import {
   isFutureDateTimestampMs,
   resolveExpiresAtMsFromDurationMs,
 } from "../../packages/normalization-core/src/number-coercion.js";
+import { normalizeOptionalString } from "../../packages/normalization-core/src/string-coerce.js";
 import { normalizeConfiguredProviderCatalogModelId } from "../agents/model-ref-shared.js";
 import { resolveProviderRequestCapabilities } from "../agents/provider-attribution.js";
 import type { ModelDefinitionConfig } from "../config/types.models.js";
@@ -125,6 +127,19 @@ function countRawManifestCatalogModels(catalog: unknown): number | undefined {
   return Array.isArray(models) ? models.length : undefined;
 }
 
+/** Reads a provider's normalized manifest default as a fully qualified model ref. */
+export function readManifestProviderDefaultModelRef(
+  manifest: unknown,
+  providerId: string,
+): string | undefined {
+  const catalog = (manifest as { modelCatalog?: { providers?: Record<string, unknown> } })
+    ?.modelCatalog?.providers?.[providerId];
+  const defaultModel = normalizeOptionalString(
+    (catalog as { defaultModel?: unknown })?.defaultModel,
+  );
+  return defaultModel ? buildModelCatalogRef(providerId, defaultModel) : undefined;
+}
+
 function cloneManifestCatalogTieredCost(
   tier: ModelCatalogTieredCost,
 ): NonNullable<ModelDefinitionConfig["cost"]["tieredPricing"]>[number] {