GitHub Actions runner alternatives (2026): 11 runners priced at 3,000, 20,000 and 100,000 minutes
What are the best GitHub Actions runner alternatives in 2026?
The cheapest hosted x64 GitHub Actions runner is Sengi Basic (our product), at $0.001, $0.002 and $0.004 a minute for 2, 4 and 8 vCPU, with 3,000 free Basic minutes a month: 100,000 minutes at 8 vCPU cost $397, against $2,182 on GitHub. Below, 11 runner services are priced at 3,000, 20,000 and 100,000 minutes with the sum in every cell, and each has its own alternatives page with what it is best for, what to watch out for and when to stay.
Last checked November 7, 2026, against each provider’s own public pricing page. Linux x64, US dollars, list prices.
Alternatives, runner by runner
Each page prices the same ten options against the runner you use today, then maps your labels to Sengi’s:
- GitHub-hosted runner alternatives
- Blacksmith alternatives
- WarpBuild alternatives
- Depot alternatives
- Namespace alternatives
- RunsOn alternatives
- Actuated alternatives
- BuildJet alternative: BuildJet stopped running jobs on March 31, 2026.
Quick answer: which runner for which job?
- Lowest bill on hosted Linux x64: Sengi Basic (our product), $0.001 a minute at 2 vCPU.
- CPU-bound builds that need to finish sooner: Sengi Premium (our product), from $0.003 a minute; it built a production Docker image in 7m34s against 14m36s on GitHub’s 4 vCPU runner.
- Runners inside your own AWS account: RunsOn, at AWS’s spot price plus a licence from €300 a year.
- macOS and Windows beside Linux: GitHub, Blacksmith, WarpBuild, Namespace or Avrea.
- arm64 at the lowest list price: FlameWill, $0.0009 a minute for 2 vCPU and 8 GB, in the EU.
- Remote Docker builders on the same bill: Depot or WarpBuild.
- Tooling for coding agents: Latchkey or StarSling.
What does a month cost on every runner?
Minutes × list price, less the provider’s free or included usage, plus its plan fee, on its cheapest published plan:
| Runner | 3,000 minutes, 2 vCPU | 20,000 minutes, 4 vCPU | 100,000 minutes, 8 vCPU | Where jobs run |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sengi Basic (our product) | 3,000 × $0.001 = $3 − $3 free = $0 | 20,000 × $0.002 = $40 − $3 free = $37 | 100,000 × $0.004 = $400 − $3 free = $397 | Hosted, Linux x64 |
| Sengi Premium (our product) | 3,000 × $0.003 = $9 | 20,000 × $0.006 = $120 | 100,000 × $0.012 = $1,200 | Hosted, Linux x64 |
| GitHub-hosted | 3,000 × $0.006 = $18 − $18 included = $0 | 20,000 × $0.012 = $240 − $18 included = $222 | 100,000 × $0.022 = $2,200 − $18 included = $2,182 | Hosted by GitHub |
| Blacksmith | 3,000 × $0.004 = $12 − $12 free = $0 | 20,000 × $0.008 = $160, before free minutes | 100,000 × $0.016 = $1,600, before free minutes | Hosted |
| WarpBuild | 3,000 × $0.004 = $12 | 20,000 × $0.008 = $160 | 100,000 × $0.016 = $1,600 | Hosted, or in your own AWS, GCP or Azure account |
| Depot | 3,000 × $0.006 = $18 − $12 included + $20 Developer plan = $26 | 20,000 × $0.012 = $240 − $12 included + $20 Developer plan = $248 | 100,000 × $0.024 = $2,400 − $12 included + $20 Developer plan = $2,408 | Hosted |
| Namespace | 3,000 × $0.006 = $18 | 20,000 × $0.012 = $240 − $150 included + $100 Team plan = $190 | 100,000 × $0.024 = $2,400 − $375 included + $250 Business plan = $2,275 | Hosted |
| RunsOn | 3,000 × $0.0009 = $2.70 + licence | 20,000 × $0.0013 = $26 + licence | 100,000 × $0.0021 = $210 + licence | Your own AWS account |
| compiler.dev | 3,000 × $0.002 = $6 | 20,000 × $0.004 = $80 | 100,000 × $0.008 = $800 | Hosted |
| Latchkey | 3,000 × $0.0025 = $7.50 − $5 included + $5 Developer plan = $7.50 | 20,000 × $0.005 = $100 − $5 included + $5 Developer plan = $100 | 100,000 × $0.010 = $1,000 − $5 included + $5 Developer plan = $1,000 | Hosted |
| Avrea | 3,000 × $0.004 = $12 − $12 free = $0 | 20,000 × $0.008 = $160 − $12 free = $148 | 100,000 × $0.016 = $1,600 − $12 free = $1,588 | Hosted |
| StarSling | 3,000 × $0.004 = $12 | 20,000 × $0.008 = $160 | 100,000 × $0.016 = $1,600 | Hosted |
Sengi Basic’s 3,000 free credits are worth $3 at every size; GitHub’s row uses GitHub Team’s $18 of included usage; Blacksmith’s free minutes are applied at 2 vCPU only, because its pricing page does not say how they count at larger sizes. Per-minute rates at every size are in every runner compared, and the 100,000-minute month at 2, 4 and 8 vCPU is in what 100,000 GitHub Actions minutes cost.
Runners priced another way
These publish one size, sell arm64 only or charge a flat monthly price, so they do not fit the table above:
| Runner | How you pay |
|---|---|
| CRACI | $0.002 per vCPU-minute, metered per second, no monthly fee: $0.004 a minute for its default 2 vCPU, 6 GB runner. |
| tempus.build | Per minute, billed per second, from a prepaid balance; 8 vCPU on request; GitHub organizations; runs in the EU. |
| Bitrise Build Hub | Linux Medium (4 vCPU, 16 GB) at $0.0125 a minute from a monthly budget, plans from $13.50 a month billed yearly; pay-as-you-go past the budget is twice the rate and off by default. |
| FlameWill | arm64 only, in the EU, per minute from a prepaid balance; x64 listed as coming. |
| Cirrus Runners | $150 a month per runner with unlimited minutes; the Linux x86 runner is 16 vCPU and 48 GB, and you buy one runner per job you want running at once. |
| Actuated | $150 a month for the first server and $125 for each additional one, unlimited minutes, on servers you provide. |
When is Sengi the wrong fit?
- macOS, Windows, arm64 or GPU jobs. Sengi runs Ubuntu 24.04 on Linux x64 only. Keep those jobs where they are and move the Linux x64 jobs; the runner is chosen job by job.
- More than 8 vCPU. Sengi’s sizes are 2, 4 and 8 vCPU with 8, 16 and 32 GB.
- Jobs that must run inside your own cloud account or network. Sengi is hosted; RunsOn, WarpBuild’s bring-your-own-cloud runners or Actuated keep the machines yours.
Before you compare bills, read the pricing traps: overage rates, plan minimums, memory per vCPU and cache fees change the total more than the headline rate.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best alternative to GitHub's hosted runners?
For the lowest bill on Linux x64, Sengi Basic: $0.001, $0.002 and $0.004 a minute at 2, 4 and 8 vCPU, against GitHub's $0.006, $0.012 and $0.022, with 3,000 free Basic minutes a month. For faster CPU-bound builds, Sengi Premium from $0.003. For runners in your own AWS account, RunsOn. For macOS and Windows beside Linux, Blacksmith, WarpBuild, Namespace or Avrea.
What is the cheapest hosted GitHub Actions runner?
Sengi Basic is the cheapest hosted x64 GitHub Actions runner on published price lists, read November 7, 2026: $0.001 a minute for 2 vCPU and 8 GB. The next lowest hosted x64 rates are compiler.dev at $0.002 and Latchkey at $0.0025. For arm64, FlameWill lists $0.0009 a minute for 2 vCPU and 8 GB.
How much do 100,000 GitHub Actions minutes cost?
At 8 vCPU, $397 on Sengi Basic after its free credits and $2,182 on GitHub Team after its $18 of included usage. At 2 vCPU, $97 on Sengi Basic and $582 on GitHub Team.
Which runner alternatives run in my own cloud account?
RunsOn runs in your own AWS account at AWS's spot price plus a licence from €300 a year. WarpBuild's bring-your-own-cloud runners are $0.002 a minute in your AWS, GCP or Azure account. Actuated runs on servers you provide for $150 a month for the first server. Sengi, like the other hosted services, runs jobs on its own machines.
What happened to BuildJet?
BuildJet stopped running jobs on March 31, 2026, after announcing its shutdown on February 6, 2026. Sengi Basic replaces its x64 runners at $0.001 a minute, a quarter of BuildJet's old $0.004.
How do I switch to a different GitHub Actions runner?
Change the job's runs-on to the new runner's label and merge. On Sengi that is sengi-basic-2-ubuntu-2404, sengi-basic-4-ubuntu-2404 or sengi-basic-8-ubuntu-2404, or the sengi-premium labels; workflows, secrets and logs stay in GitHub.
Keep your workflow. Cut your runner rate.
Sengi Basic starts at $0.001 a minute for 2 vCPU. Choose 4 or 8 vCPU for $0.002 or $0.004 a minute. Premium stays optional at $0.003, $0.006 and $0.012.
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