Compare / Sandboxes
Daytona vs Northflank
Northflank is cheaper: about $0.067 an hour for 2 vCPU and 4 GiB, against $0.17 on Daytona. Northflank isolates more strongly by default, with a microVM with its own kernel. Daytona uses a shared-kernel container.
At a glance
| Daytona | Northflank | |
|---|---|---|
| Isolation | Linux container by default, with optional VM, Windows, macOS and GPU runtimes | MicroVM for CPU sandboxes, gVisor for GPU sandboxes |
| Price | Disk is $0.000108 per GiB-hour after 5 GiB free. | $0.01667 per vCPU-hour and $0.00833 per GB-hour. In your own cloud (BYOC), $0.02083 per node vCPU-hour and memory isn't billed. |
| 2 vCPU, 4 GiB for an hour | $0.17 | $0.067 |
| Free tier | $200 of free compute, no card needed. | A free Sandbox tier with up to $20 a month of resources, no card needed. |
| Longest session | No time limit by default. Idle sandboxes auto-stop after 15 minutes and archive after 7 days. | No time limits; sandboxes run until deleted. |
| Largest sandbox | 4 vCPU, 8 GB and 10 GB disk per organization by default | Plans listed up to 8 vCPU and 16 GB, with custom plans available |
| Pause and persistence | Stopping keeps files but clears memory; archived sandboxes move to object storage. | Ephemeral by default, with volumes up to 64 TB and pause and resume. |
| Start time (published) | Under 90 ms advertised (container runtime). | Under 1 s; 0.8 s with a cached image. |
| GPUs | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosting | Enterprise bring-your-own-cloud only. The open-source repository was archived on 3 October 2026. | Bring your own cloud on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle or bare metal; enterprise customers can self-host the control plane. |
| SDKs | TypeScript, Python, Ruby, Go, Java | JavaScript, Python, plus REST and CLI |
| Real build benchmark | 0 of 7 phases | 0 of 7 phases |
On a real coding-agent build
The open-source ComputeSDK sandbox-dax benchmark runs OpenCode's provider benchmark in each sandbox: install packages and Bun, clone OpenCode, bun install, then bun typecheck. Results from the run of 30 October 2026:
- Daytona completed 0 of 7 phases; the run hit an API error, so this says nothing about speed.
- Northflank completed 0 of 7 phases; the benchmark's account was disabled, so this says nothing about speed.
Each provider is one run, and sandboxes report different CPU counts, so treat small gaps as noise. For what this build needs from a sandbox, and what isolation costs, see our benchmark write-up.
Which should you choose?
Choose Northflank if
- price per hour matters most
- you want a separate kernel for each sandbox
- you may need to run it in your own cloud or data center
If neither fits because your code and API keys must stay on your own hardware, Hotcell runs sandboxes on machines you control, and Directionally Local sets it up with the Autopilot coding agent harness in one command. More options: E2B alternatives.
More comparisons
- E2B vs Daytona
- E2B vs Northflank
- Modal vs Daytona
- Modal vs Northflank
- Daytona vs Vercel Sandbox
- Daytona vs Blaxel
Sources
- Daytona: Daytona pricing
- Daytona: Daytona sandboxes docs
- Daytona: daytonaio/daytona (archived)
- Northflank: Northflank pricing
- Northflank: Northflank sandboxes
- Benchmark: ComputeSDK sandbox-dax results
Prices change often. We check them by hand and the benchmark refreshes on every build; if something here is out of date, tell us.
FAQs
Is Daytona cheaper than Northflank?
Northflank is cheaper. A sandbox with 2 vCPU and 4 GiB running for an hour costs about $0.067 there, against $0.17 on Daytona.
Which is faster, Daytona or Northflank?
Daytona completed 0 of 7 phases; the run hit an API error, so this says nothing about speed. Northflank completed 0 of 7 phases; the benchmark's account was disabled, so this says nothing about speed. The workload is OpenCode's provider benchmark: clone, bun install and typecheck. Results are from ComputeSDK's run of 30 October 2026, one run each.
Which has stronger isolation, Daytona or Northflank?
Northflank. It uses a microVM with its own kernel, while Daytona uses a shared-kernel container by default.
Can I self-host Daytona or Northflank?
Daytona: Enterprise bring-your-own-cloud only. The open-source repository was archived on 3 October 2026. Northflank: Bring your own cloud on AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, Oracle or bare metal; enterprise customers can self-host the control plane.
Is there an alternative to Daytona and Northflank that runs on my own hardware?
Yes. Hotcell is an open-source sandbox runtime (Apache-2.0) that runs Docker containers, Firecracker microVMs or Apple Virtualization microVMs on your own machines. Real API keys stay on the host, and each sandbox gets a short-lived, spend-capped token. Directionally Local sets it up together with the Autopilot coding agent harness with one command.