HEAD-TO-HEAD · PRICES VERIFIED 2026-08-25
Modal (Sandboxes) vs Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner)
Across 3 benchmark profiles, Modal (Sandboxes) prices lower in 2 of 3 — by up to ~92% where the gap is widest. Both rows use identical workload inputs and USD list rates from the capture-dated catalog; verify current rates via each vendor's source link.
Monthly Cost Across Realistic Benchmarks
100 hr × 1 vCPU / 2 GiB
Modal (Sandboxes): $11.90 Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner): $153.59
Cheaper: Modal (Sandboxes)500 hr × 2 vCPU / 4 GiB
Modal (Sandboxes): $119.00 Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner): $153.59
Cheaper: Modal (Sandboxes)2,000 hr × 4 vCPU / 8 GiB
Modal (Sandboxes): $952.00 Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner): $153.59
Cheaper: Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner)Rate Card Snapshot
| Vendor | $/vCPU-hr | $/GiB-hr | Billing granularity | Concurrency note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modal (Sandboxes) | $0.0710 | $0.0240 | per-second | Concurrency scales with plan; Starter $30/mo credits, Team $250/mo incl. $100/mo credits, Enterprise custom. |
| Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner) | — | incl. | — | Bounded only by host capacity — the point of self-hosting. |
Fit Notes
- Modal (Sandboxes) — Skip if pure sandbox price is the decision — you pay ~40% over E2B/Daytona for the same vCPU-hour; Modal earns it back only when the rest of your stack already lives on Modal functions.
- Self-host Firecracker (Hetzner) — Skip if usage is bursty or spiky — the host bills 24/7 whether sandboxes run or not; below roughly half utilization the managed providers win on total cost and you still own the pager.
Run your own workload through the full interactive calculator, or browse all pairs on the comparisons hub.