Celesto vs GitHub-hosted runners
Keep GitHub Actions and run Linux jobs on Celesto instead of GitHub's own runners. On the same 2 vCPU · 8 GB, Celesto gives you 9× more CI per dollar, and in our matched test it had 18% higher CPU throughput. GitHub saved and restored caches faster and covers every platform.
- Same 2 vCPU · 8 GB runner
- 9×more CI per dollar
- 89% less per minute · $0.00067 vs $0.006
- Measured CPU, 4 vCPU runners
- +18%
- Celesto's median four-core throughput in our matched benchmark. GitHub's cache was about 2× faster.
- Smallest runner
- $0.00025/min
- Celesto Micro, 1 vCPU · 2 GB. GitHub's 1 vCPU ubuntu-slim is $0.002/min.
9× more CI for the same budget.
Pick a monthly runtime and a runner size.
You keep $107 a month — or run 9× more CI for the same budget.
List runtime prices before free allowances or credits, at equal runtime on both. GitHub includes 2,000 free minutes a month on Free and 3,000 on Pro and Team for private repositories, and standard runners are free in public repositories. Celesto starts with a one-time $5 credit.
88% less at every runner size.
Each GitHub-hosted runners Linux x64 runner next to the Celesto runner with the same CPU and memory.
| Hardware | GitHub-hosted runners | Celesto | CI per dollar |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 vCPU · 8 GB | $0.006/min | $0.00067/min | 9×89% less |
| 4 vCPU · 16 GB | $0.012/min | $0.0013/min | 9×89% less |
| 8 vCPU · 32 GB | $0.022/min | $0.0027/min | 8.3×88% less |
+17.9% faster CPU with the same configuration.
October 17, 2026. GitHub ubuntu-24.04 against Celesto Large, both with 4 vCPU, 16 GiB RAM, Ubuntu 24.04.5, and Node 22.23.3. Three cold and warm pairs per provider; all 12 jobs passed.
| Measurement | GitHub-hosted runners | Celesto | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single-core CPU, iterations/s | 199.4 million | 233.2 million | Celesto +16.9% |
| Four-core CPU, iterations/s | 786.7 million | 927.5 million | Celesto +17.9% |
| Restore a 512 MiB cache | 3.30 s | 6.23 s | GitHub 1.89× faster |
| Save a 512 MiB cache | 2.50 s | 5.18 s | GitHub 2.08× faster |
Medians from a small synthetic test. CPU models, kernels, and disks differed despite matching CPU and memory, and GitHub's fastest four-core sample beat Celesto's. Results will vary with your workload.
Same workflows and logs, with 2.5× the cache storage.
A dot marks whoever has the edge on that line.
Price
- 2 vCPU · 8 GB, per minute
- $0.00067(Celesto has the edge)
- $0.006
- Smallest runner
- 1 vCPU · 2 GB at $0.00025/min(Celesto has the edge)
- 1 vCPU · 5 GB at $0.002/min
- Free usage
- $5 one-time credit
- 2,000 to 3,000 min a month; free in public repos(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
- GitHub's charge for the runner
- None; GitHub doesn't bill self-hosted runners(Celesto has the edge)
- Per minute, rounded up per job
Caching
- actions/cache
- Served by Celesto, no workflow change
- GitHub's cache service
- Cache storage
- Up to 25 GB per repo, no fee(Celesto has the edge)
- 10 GB per repo included
Platforms
- Linux x64
- Ubuntu 24.04
- Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04, and 26.04(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
- Largest Linux runner
- 8 vCPU · 32 GB
- 96 cores · 384 GB(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
- ARM, Windows, macOS, GPU
- Not yet
- All four(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
- Docker and service containers
- Not supported
- Supported on Ubuntu runners(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
Running jobs
- Isolation
- Fresh microVM per job
- A new VM per runner, except single-CPU
- Logs and results
- In GitHub Actions
- In GitHub Actions
- Migration
- Change runs-on
- Already the default(GitHub-hosted runners has the edge)
Celesto has the edge GitHub-hosted runners has the edge
Move CPU-heavy Linux jobs to Celesto; keep Docker and macOS on GitHub.
Choose Celesto if
- Private-repo Linux jobs cost too much: 9× more CI per dollar on the same 2 vCPU · 8 GB
- You run more than about 3,400 minutes a month past GitHub's free allowance
- Builds and tests are CPU-bound: 18% higher median throughput in our matched test
- Coding agents open pull requests all day, and CI runs on every push
Stay on GitHub-hosted runners if
- Your repositories are public, where standard runners are free
- Your usage fits inside the included free minutes
- You need ARM, Windows, macOS, GPUs, or more than 8 vCPU
- Your jobs use Docker actions, container jobs, or service containers
- Large caches dominate job time: GitHub saved and restored a 512 MiB cache about twice as fast
Switch in one line.
Install the GitHub App, then swap the runner label. Your steps, caches, and logs stay in GitHub Actions.
− runs-on: ubuntu-latest+ runs-on: [self-hosted, celesto-memory]Questions.
Is Celesto cheaper than GitHub-hosted runners?
For private repositories, yes. GitHub's standard ubuntu-latest runner in a private repository has 2 vCPU and 8 GB and costs $0.006 a minute; Celesto's runner with the same CPU and memory costs $0.00067, 89% less, or 9× more CI per dollar. The 4- and 8-core larger runners show a similar gap. GitHub includes 2,000 to 3,000 free minutes a month, so on Pro or Team Celesto costs less once you run more than about 3,400 minutes a month. Public repositories use standard GitHub-hosted runners for free.
Is Celesto faster than GitHub Actions?
On CPU, in our test. On October 17, 2026 we ran the same benchmark on GitHub's ubuntu-24.04 and Celesto Large, both with 4 vCPU and 16 GiB. Celesto's median single-core throughput was 16.9% higher and four-core 17.9% higher. GitHub restored a 512 MiB cache 1.89× faster and saved it 2.08× faster. It is a small synthetic test on differing CPU models, and the workflow, results, and raw data are public in github.com/CelestoAI/ci-benchmarks.
Does GitHub charge for jobs that run on Celesto?
No. GitHub's billing documentation says Actions usage is free for self-hosted runners, and Celesto runners join your repository as self-hosted runners. You pay Celesto's per-minute rate; logs and results stay in GitHub Actions.
How do I move a workflow from GitHub-hosted runners to Celesto?
Install the Celesto CI GitHub App and finish setup. Then change runs-on: ubuntu-latest to [self-hosted, celesto-memory], which has the same 2 vCPU and 8 GB as ubuntu-latest in a private repository. Your steps and actions/cache keep working unchanged.
What do GitHub-hosted runners support that Celesto does not?
GitHub offers ARM, Windows, macOS, and GPU runners, Linux runners up to 96 cores, Ubuntu 22.04 and 26.04 images, Docker actions, container jobs, and service containers. Celesto runs Linux x64 jobs on Ubuntu 24.04 with up to 8 vCPU.
Can I use Celesto and GitHub-hosted runners together?
Yes. The runner is chosen per job by its runs-on label, so you can move long or CPU-heavy Linux jobs to Celesto and keep Docker, macOS, Windows, or quick jobs on GitHub's runners.
Start with $5 in credits. Rerun your slowest workflow.
Install Celesto CIGitHub-hosted runners details from its public pricing and documentation, checked October 17, 2026: Runner pricing · Actions billing · Hosted runners · Larger runners · Service containers · Celesto benchmark. Celesto prices come from the current runner catalog. Rates compare list prices, not measured job speed; the benchmark section reports one measured run. GitHub-hosted runners is a trademark of its owner; Celesto is not affiliated with it.