OpenAI Code Interpreter vs Shellbox

OpenAI Code Interpreter bills memory only, at $0.09 per GiB-hour. Shellbox costs $0.01 per vCPU-hour. OpenAI Code Interpreter runs containers. Shellbox runs Firecracker microVMs and has no session limit.

Updated Oct 23, 2026

OpenAI Code Interpreter

Sandboxed containers where OpenAI models write and run Python code.

Isolation: Container
Free tier: Not listed
Max session: Not listed

Visit site OpenAI Code Interpreter profile

Shellbox

Linux microVMs for developers and AI agents, made and controlled over SSH.

Isolation: Firecracker microVM
Free tier: Not listed
Max session: No limit

Visit site Shellbox profile

What is different

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

Field

OpenAI Code Interpreter

Shellbox

RAM, per GiB-hour: OpenAI Code Interpreter: $0.09; Shellbox: Included
Billing: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Memory only; Shellbox: Bundled machine time
Idle stop: OpenAI Code Interpreter: After 20 minutes; Shellbox: After 2 minutes
Isolation: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Container; Shellbox: Firecracker microVM
Integrations: OpenAI Code Interpreter: OpenAI Agents SDK; Shellbox: Claude Code

Full comparison

18 fields, at each provider's list price

OpenAI Code Interpreterdevelopers.openai.com/api/docs/pricingdevelopers.openai.com

Shellboxshellbox.dev/#pricingshellbox.dev

Pricing

vCPU, per hour: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: $0.01
RAM, per GiB-hour: OpenAI Code Interpreter: $0.09; Shellbox: Included
Storage: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: A stopped box costs $0.50 per x1 slot per month
Free tier: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Not listed
Paid plan from: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Pay as you go
Billing: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Memory only; Shellbox: Bundled machine time

Limits

Max session: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: No limit
Idle stop: OpenAI Code Interpreter: After 20 minutes; Shellbox: After 2 minutes
Largest sandbox: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: 16 vCPU · 32 GiB
Concurrent sandboxes: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Up to 16

Platform

Isolation: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Container; Shellbox: Firecracker microVM
GPU: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Not listed
Snapshots: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox:
Pause and resume: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox:

Developer

SDKs: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Python, JavaScript / TypeScript, Go, Java, Ruby; Shellbox: Not listed
Integrations: OpenAI Code Interpreter: OpenAI Agents SDK; Shellbox: Claude Code

Trust

License: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Not listed
BYOC: OpenAI Code Interpreter: Not listed; Shellbox: Not listed

Hourly cost

One sandbox running for one hour

Size

OpenAI Code Interpreter

Shellbox

1 vCPU · 2 GiB: OpenAI Code Interpreter: $0.180; Shellbox: $0.010
2 vCPU · 4 GiB: OpenAI Code Interpreter: $0.360; Shellbox: $0.020
4 vCPU · 8 GiB: OpenAI Code Interpreter: $0.720; Shellbox: $0.040

Compute only, at list rates.

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Which one fits

Based on the fields above

OpenAI Code Interpreter fits when

You use the OpenAI Agents SDK.
You want one rate for memory, with CPU included.
You need SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and GDPR.

Shellbox fits when

You want each sandbox in its own microVM.
You use Claude Code.
You want the lower list price: $0.020 against $0.360 an hour for 2 vCPU and 4 GiB.
You need snapshots.

More comparisons

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OpenAI Code Interpreter

Shellbox

What is different

Full comparison

Pricing

Limits

Platform

Developer

Trust

Hourly cost

Which one fits

OpenAI Code Interpreter fits when

Shellbox fits when

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