Run the agent all month for less than two Codespaces days
Codespaces bills by the hour and stops when you go idle. A box stays on around the clock at a flat price, with Docker, persistent tabs and every agent CLI ready. $5 a month.
From $5 a month · Docker and sudo included · Cancel from the dashboard any time
| Them | GitHub Codespaces, 2 cores | detachbox |
|---|---|---|
| Keeps running while you are away | Stops after the idle timeout, 4 hours at most | Around the clock |
| Price | $0.18 an hour, about $131 a month left on | $5 a month, flat |
| Docker | Yes | Yes, with compose |
| Interface | VS Code in the browser | Browser terminal with tmux tabs, plus SSH |
| Agent CLIs | Install them per codespace | Preinstalled on every box |
| All subscription limits in one view | No | Yes |
Vendor prices and limits from each vendor's own pages, checked 28 September 2026.
When it is the better pick
Codespaces wins when you want VS Code in the browser for a session you are sitting in, tied to GitHub. For an agent that works while you are gone, the box stays on.
Questions about this
Can I raise the Codespaces idle timeout?
Up to four hours. After that the codespace stops, and the agent with it.
How did you get $131?
$0.18 an hour for a 2-core codespace, times the roughly 730 hours in a month.
Can I use VS Code with a box?
The box is a Linux machine reachable over SSH with your keys, so any editor that works over SSH can connect. The browser terminal needs nothing installed.
Other comparisons
- lid closedvs your laptopThe laptop stops the agent when the lid closes. The box keeps going.
- €5.49 + an eveningvs a DIY VPSA bare VPS is cheap until you count the evening of setup.
- €6vs TerminalboxBoth stay on. One runs Docker, ten tabs and a limits board for less.
- $0 extravs cloud agentsCloud agents start fresh each task. A box remembers everything.
- API ratesvs Cursor background agentsCursor meters agent runs at API rates. A box runs your own plan at a flat price.
- $20–$200vs DevinDevin is its own agent on its own plans. A box runs the agents you already use.
Run the agent all month for less than two Codespaces days
Start a box, hand the agent the job and close the tab. Come back to finished work.
Start my boxCharged when the box starts · Cancel from the dashboard; the box runs to the end of the paid month