Depot alternatives for GitHub Actions runners

We build CRACI, so weigh that in; we describe every option from its own documentation and say when another tool fits better.

Why teams look beyond Depot

Depot (depot.dev) offers Linux runners from 2 to 64 vCPUs, Windows, and macOS on the Startup plan and above, wired into a distributed cache, plus a remote Docker build service with a persistent layer cache. Linux runners support egress filtering, and on the Business plan runners can live in your own AWS account.

Teams look elsewhere when their situation changes:

• Price. As of September 2026, a 2 vCPU runner costs $0.006 per minute beyond plan minutes, tracked per second.
• Evidence. Depot can scan images with Syft, but it does not record an SBOM of what each job fetched.
• Focus. Much of Depot's value is in Docker and remote build caching; builds that do not need it pay for less of it.

What to look for

• Price per vCPU-minute, memory per vCPU, and how usage is rounded.
• Operating systems and architectures you need, including ARM64.
• Dependency and Docker layer caching.
• Egress control, and whether it is a policy on the job or network plumbing you maintain.
• Build evidence: SBOMs, provenance and a record of what each job fetched.
• Where runners live: hosted, in your cloud account, or on your hardware.

The options

1. CRACI (our product)

CRACI is a GitHub Actions-compatible runner built around supply chain security, and it runs builds about twice as fast as GitHub-hosted runners. Install the CRACI GitHub App and set runs-on: craci. Billing is $0.002 per vCPU-minute ($0.004 for a default 2 vCPU runner), metered per second, with no monthly fee and no per-SBOM charge. ARM64 is billed at the same rate (ARM64 capacity is limited). Sizes run from 1 to 32 compute units of 1 vCPU and 3 GB of RAM. Each job produces an SBOM of what it fetched, with a completeness state, runs under an egress policy that fails closed, and records provenance data that the API returns.

Best for: Linux builds of software you ship, where you need to show what went into each release.

Consider if: evidence and egress control matter as much as cost. CRACI is Linux only today (Windows and macOS are on the roadmap) and has no free tier.

CRACI vs GitHub-hosted runners

2. Blacksmith

Blacksmith runs GitHub Actions jobs in Firecracker microVMs, with Ubuntu on x64 and ARM from 2 to 32 vCPU, Windows in public beta, and macOS on Apple M4. It says its runners are twice as fast as GitHub-hosted runners. A colocated cache works with the standard cache actions, and sticky disks provide Docker layer caching at $0.50 per GB per month. As of September 2026, 2 vCPU x64 costs $0.004 per minute and ARM $0.0025, with 3,000 free minutes a month.

Best for: faster, cheaper Actions with Docker caching and SSH debugging.

CRACI vs Blacksmith

3. Namespace

Namespace runs Linux, Windows and macOS runners on hardware it operates itself, selected through runner profiles. Cache volumes keep data on local storage across runs. Its egress policies run in block mode or in advisory mode, which records decisions without blocking so you can build an allowlist from real traffic. As of September 2026, a 2 vCPU, 4 GB Linux runner costs $0.002 per minute in plan and $0.003 in overage.

Best for: Linux, Windows and macOS runners from one vendor, with cache volumes.

Consider if: you want to trial an egress policy before enforcing it.

CRACI vs Namespace

4. WarpBuild

WarpBuild offers Linux runners on x86-64 and arm64 up to 32 vCPUs, Windows Server, and macOS on Apple M4 Pro, with container-layer caching and snapshot runners. Its bring-your-own-cloud option runs the same runners in your AWS, GCP or Azure account at $0.002 per minute plus your cloud bill. Hosted 2 vCPU x86-64 costs $0.004 per minute (as of September 2026). WarpBuild advertises builds two to ten times faster.

Best for: managed runners inside your own cloud account.

Consider if: you need GitHub Enterprise Server support or a 99.9% uptime SLA.

CRACI vs WarpBuild

5. Ubicloud

Ubicloud is an open source cloud, and its managed GitHub Actions runners switch over with one label, such as ubicloud-standard-2. It offers Ubuntu runners on x64 and arm64 from 2 to 30 vCPUs. As of September 2026, 2 vCPU costs $0.00125 per minute on x64 and on arm64, billed by the minute, and every account gets a $2.50 monthly credit, about 1,250 minutes. Ubicloud also lets you manage your own runners.

Best for: a low per-minute price for Linux jobs on hosted runners.

Consider if: you only need Linux. Ubicloud's runner documentation lists Ubuntu images only.

CRACI vs Ubicloud

6. RunsOn

RunsOn launches one ephemeral EC2 instance per job in your own AWS account, from a single CloudFormation or Terraform stack. It runs Linux on x64 and arm64, Windows, and GPU instances; macOS jobs stay on GitHub-hosted runners. An S3 cache in your VPC and Docker layer caching are built in. As of September 2026, the license is a flat annual fee per legal entity, from about $348 (€300) a year on Starter to about $4,176 (€3,600) on Enterprise, and AWS bills the compute with no RunsOn markup. It is free for non-commercial use and has a 15-day trial.

Best for: runners inside your own AWS account for a flat license fee.

Consider if: you already run on AWS and want to pay for compute directly.

CRACI vs RunsOn

7. Cirun

Cirun offers "managed self-hosted runners at the fraction of cost, on your cloud." Runners start in your own account on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle, OpenStack or DigitalOcean, set up in a .cirun.yml file, and can run Linux or Windows, on ARM or with GPUs such as the NVIDIA Tesla T4. As of September 2026, Cirun is free for public repositories, Startup is $29 per month for 3 private repositories and Business is $79 for 10, and the machines run on your own cloud bill.

Best for: GPU runners in your own cloud account, on the cloud of your choice.

Consider if: you maintain open source projects, which Cirun supports for free.

Managed vs self-hosted runners

8. GitHub-hosted runners

GitHub-hosted runners give each job a fresh virtual machine with nothing to operate, on Linux, Windows and macOS. Plans include 2,000 to 50,000 minutes a month, and standard runners are free in public repositories. As of September 2026, GitHub lists a standard 2-core Linux x64 runner at $0.006 per minute and rounds each job up to the whole minute.

Best for: zero setup, every operating system, and usage that fits your plan's minutes.

GitHub-hosted runner alternatives

9. Self-hosted runners with Actions Runner Controller

Actions Runner Controller (ARC) is "a Kubernetes operator that orchestrates and scales self-hosted runners for GitHub Actions." Runner scale sets grow and shrink with the number of workflows running, and runners can be ephemeral containers. GitHub does not charge per minute for self-hosted usage as of September 2026, but you are responsible for the operating system and software, and GitHub warns that self-hosted runners should almost never be used for public repositories.

Best for: jobs that must run in your network or on your hardware.

Consider if: you already run Kubernetes and have the time to harden and maintain it.

Managed vs self-hosted runners

Side by side

"Not stated" means we could not confirm it in the vendor's public pages.

When to stay with Depot

• Your CI time is dominated by Docker image builds.
• You rely on remote caching for Bazel, Gradle, Turborepo or sccache.
• Runners must live inside your own AWS account.
• You can mix: the choice is per job, so some jobs can move while the rest stay.

Read more about CI/CD integration, CRACI pricing and the GitHub Actions runners compared.

Depot alternatives FAQ

Short answers to the questions teams ask when they compare

What is the best Depot alternative?

It depends on why you are leaving. For a lower price per minute, look at Ubicloud or Namespace. For runners in your own cloud account, look at WarpBuild, RunsOn or Cirun. If you need a record of what each build fetched and an egress policy that fails closed, CRACI records both on every job.

What is the cheapest Depot alternative?

Of the hosted runners here, Ubicloud lists the lowest price: $0.00125 per minute for 2 vCPU on x64 and arm64, as of September 2026. Depot's 2 vCPU runner costs $0.006 per minute beyond plan minutes. Self-hosted runners have no GitHub per-minute charge, but you pay for and maintain the hosts.

Which Depot alternatives run in my own cloud?

WarpBuild's bring-your-own-cloud option runs in AWS, GCP or Azure for $0.002 per minute plus your cloud bill. RunsOn runs in your AWS account for a flat annual license, and Cirun supports AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle, OpenStack and DigitalOcean. CRACI runners are managed today, with customer-hosted runners on the roadmap for Enterprise.

Which alternatives support Windows, macOS or GPUs?

GitHub-hosted runners, Blacksmith, Namespace and WarpBuild offer Windows and macOS, with Windows in public beta on Blacksmith. RunsOn and Cirun offer Windows and GPU instances in your own cloud. CRACI runs Linux x86-64 and ARM64 today, with Windows and macOS on the roadmap.

What does Depot do well?

Docker builds and remote caching. depot build runs Docker builds on remote BuildKit hosts with a persistent layer cache, and a remote cache serves Bazel, Gradle, Turborepo and sccache. If that is where your CI time goes, staying with Depot makes sense.