Which is better, Runloop or Freestyle?
It depends on whether you want evaluation tooling or VMs that stay running. For evals and agents that wait on a model, Runtime costs $0.64 on the benchmark. That compares with $2.25 on Freestyle and $5.33 on Runloop. Runtime also offers pause and forks that keep memory. Pick Runloop for an evaluation platform that runs on your own workload. Pick Freestyle for forks that leave the source VM running.
At a glance
| Runloop | Freestyle | Runtime | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isolation | microVM, with a container inside | Full Linux virtual machines | Firecracker microVM, own kernel |
| CPU | $0.108 per CPU-hour while running | $0.04032 per allocated vCPU-hour | $0.025 per vCPU-hour of measured CPU, with a small floor |
| Memory | $0.0252 per GB-hour | $0.0129 per GiB-hour | $0.0075 per reserved GiB-hour |
| Suspend | Keeps the disk; processes restart | Hibernates with memory | Keeps memory and processes while you have credit |
| Extras | Evaluation and RL rollout tools | Live forks, custom domains | Harbor and Inspect integrations |
Suspend that keeps memory
A suspended Runloop devbox keeps its disk and restarts its processes. A hibernated Freestyle VM comes back with memory in place, as does a paused Runtime sandbox. For an agent that holds a running server or a loaded model, that is the difference between resuming and rebuilding.
Cost for the same job
2 vCPU and 4 GB, 60 seconds a run, 20 CPU-seconds, 1,000 runs (a MEDIUM
devbox with 8 GB of disk; Freestyle with 32 GiB):
- CPU
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 2 × $0.108
- $3.60
- Memory
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 4 × $0.0252
- $1.68
- Disk
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 8 × $0.00034236
- $0.05
- CPU
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 2 × $0.04032
- $1.34
- Memory
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 4 × $0.0129
- $0.86
- Disk
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 32 × $0.000086
- $0.05
- CPU
- 1,000 × 20 s / 3,600 × $0.025
- $0.14
- Memory
- 1,000 × 60 s / 3,600 × 4 × $0.0075
- $0.50
Both rivals bill the same whether the CPUs are busy or idle. With both CPUs busy for the whole minute, the cost is $5.33 on Runloop and $2.25 on Freestyle, and $1.33 on Runtime.
Which one to pick
- Runloop for evaluation on your own workload and RL rollouts.
- Freestyle for forks that leave the source VM running.
- Runtime for evals and agents at the lowest price per run.
See Runtime vs Runloop and Runtime vs Freestyle.
Runtime Cloud
Runtime runs the benchmark for 88% less than Runloop and 72% less than Freestyle. The
benchmark, 1,000 one-minute runs of a 2 vCPU, 4 GiB sandbox with 20
CPU-seconds of work each, is $5.33 on a Runloop MEDIUM devbox, $2.25 on
Freestyle and $0.64 on Runtime.
Get going with npx withruntime login and the free monthly usage. The
migration guide covers code written for Runloop or Freestyle.
Sources
Runloop rates checked 25 October 2026; Freestyle rates checked 25 October 2026.
Facts on this page were checked on 26 October 2026.