InstaVM vs Zipbox

InstaVM costs $0.0504 per vCPU-hour and Zipbox costs $0.00685 per vCPU-hour. InstaVM runs Firecracker microVMs. Zipbox runs Firecracker microVMs and has no session limit.

Updated Oct 23, 2026

InstaVM

Hardware-isolated microVMs for AI agent code.

Isolation: Firecracker microVM
Free tier: $50 credit
Max session: Not listed

Visit site InstaVM profile

Zipbox

Long-lived Firecracker microVMs for AI agents, each with its own desktop.

Isolation: Firecracker microVM
Free tier: $25 credit after a one-time $5 top-up
Max session: No limit

Visit site Zipbox profile

What is different

10 fields differ. The rest are the same or not listed.

Field

InstaVM

Zipbox

vCPU, per hour: InstaVM: $0.0504; Zipbox: $0.00685
RAM, per GiB-hour: InstaVM: $0.0162; Zipbox: Included
Storage: InstaVM: $0.0002 per GiB-hour after 10 free GiB; Zipbox: Free
Free tier: InstaVM: $50 credit; Zipbox: $25 credit after a one-time $5 top-up
Paid plan from: InstaVM: $100 / month; Zipbox: Pay as you go
Billing: InstaVM: Per second; Zipbox: Bundled machine time
Snapshots: InstaVM:; Zipbox: No
Pause and resume: InstaVM:; Zipbox: No
SDKs: InstaVM: Python, TypeScript; Zipbox: TypeScript, Python, Go, Rust
Integrations: InstaVM: Claude Code, OpenAI Agents SDK; Zipbox: MCP, Claude Code, Claude Agent SDK, OpenAI Agents SDK, Vercel AI SDK, LangChain

Full comparison

18 fields, at each provider's list price

InstaVMinstavm.io/pricing

Zipboxzipbox.ai/pricing

Pricing

vCPU, per hour: InstaVM: $0.0504; Zipbox: $0.00685
RAM, per GiB-hour: InstaVM: $0.0162; Zipbox: Included
Storage: InstaVM: $0.0002 per GiB-hour after 10 free GiB; Zipbox: Free
Free tier: InstaVM: $50 credit; Zipbox: $25 credit after a one-time $5 top-up
Paid plan from: InstaVM: $100 / month; Zipbox: Pay as you go
Billing: InstaVM: Per second; Zipbox: Bundled machine time

Limits

Max session: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: No limit
Idle stop: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: Not listed
Largest sandbox: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: 6 vCPU · 16 GiB
Concurrent sandboxes: InstaVM: Up to 100; Zipbox: Not listed

Platform

Isolation: InstaVM: Firecracker microVM; Zipbox: Firecracker microVM
GPU: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: Not listed
Snapshots: InstaVM:; Zipbox: No
Pause and resume: InstaVM:; Zipbox: No

Developer

SDKs: InstaVM: Python, TypeScript; Zipbox: TypeScript, Python, Go, Rust
Integrations: InstaVM: Claude Code, OpenAI Agents SDK; Zipbox: MCP, Claude Code, Claude Agent SDK, OpenAI Agents SDK, Vercel AI SDK, LangChain

Trust

License: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: Not listed
BYOC: InstaVM: Not listed; Zipbox: Not listed

Hourly cost

One sandbox running for one hour

Size

InstaVM

Zipbox

1 vCPU · 2 GiB: InstaVM: $0.083; Zipbox: $0.007
2 vCPU · 4 GiB: InstaVM: $0.166; Zipbox: $0.014
4 vCPU · 8 GiB: InstaVM: $0.331; Zipbox: $0.027

Compute only, at list rates.

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Which one fits

Based on the fields above

InstaVM fits when

You want the larger free credit: $50 against $25.
You need snapshots.
You need pause and resume.
You need SOC 2 Type II.

Zipbox fits when

You want to pay only for usage, with no plan fee.
You use MCP, the Claude Agent SDK, the Vercel AI SDK or LangChain.
You want the lower list price: $0.014 against $0.166 an hour for 2 vCPU and 4 GiB.

More comparisons

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InstaVM

Zipbox

What is different

Full comparison

Pricing

Limits

Platform

Developer

Trust

Hourly cost

Which one fits

InstaVM fits when

Zipbox fits when

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