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Alternatives to GitHub Actions runners

GitHub Actions runners are a powerful tool for automating your workflows, but they can be expensive and have limitations. Fortunately, there are several alternatives that offer cheaper and faster runners, including Buildjet, Warpbuild, RunsOn, and Ubicloud. In this guide, we’ll explore these alternatives and help you find the best fit for your needs.

RunsOn

RunsOn (this site) offers 10x cheaper runners. Fully self-hosted in your private AWS account.

  • Can support instances up to 256cpu.

  • Unlimited concurrency.

  • Among the fastest CPUs, and constantly improving thanks to AWS. Also can get even cheaper by switching to cheap burstable instances (t3 / t4) for less CPU-intensive workflows.

  • ARM64 and x64 supported, no Mac (due to Apple licensing requiring min 24h usage).

  • Support for GPUs and Windows.

  • Bandwidth to the outer internet can easily reach 500MB/s + you have a dedicated peering endpoint with S3 in case you need to store/retrieve large artefacts there.

  • Self-hosted, one-click installation and upgrades. No 3rd-party dependency.

Ubicloud

Ubicloud offers 10x cheaper runners. This is a third-party service. You need to give access to your source code and they are managing the runners.

  • Uses slower Hetzner hardware.

  • Max concurrency is 64cpu at any time, unless you pay more. So for busy companies you’ll have to pay extra for the concurrency override.

  • Does not support instances over 16cpu.

  • arm64 and x64 supported, no Mac.

Warpbuild

Warpbuild offers runners 2x cheaper. This is a third-party service. You need to give access to your source code and they are managing the runners.

  • No concurrency limit.
  • arm64, x64, and Mac M2 supported.

Since July 2024 they also introduced an option to spawn runners in your own AWS account (BYOC). Runners start slower there (~60s depending on configuration), and you are still reliant on their centralized service to orchestrate the runner launches.

Buildjet

Buildjet offers runners 2x cheaper. This is a third-party service. You need to give access to your source code and they are managing the runners.

  • Does not support instances over 32cpu.

  • Max 64 concurrent AMD vCPUs and 32 concurrent ARM vCPUs. Or pay 300$/month to get 100 more concurrent vCPUs.

  • arm64, x64, no Mac.

  • Network bandwidth can be as slow as 20MB/s (Hetzner), so you have to use their own caching action to get reasonable speeds.

GitHub

GitHub runners have the slowest machines from the bunch, and are the most expensive. But they are integrated into GitHub, and boot the fastest.

  • x64, Mac M1/M2, Windows support.

  • ARM linux and GPU runners are in beta (since June 2024), and limited to Team and Enterprise plans.

Conclusion

In conclusion, when choosing an alternative runner for your GitHub Actions, it’s important to consider the specific needs of your workflows.

Each runner has its own strengths and weaknesses, and the best choice will depend on factors such as cost, performance, and compatibility with your existing infrastructure and security requirements.

A continuously updated benchmark of those services and others is available here.