boat vs Together Code Sandbox
Together Code Sandbox starts VMs from Docker-image snapshots and can save their memory when they end. boat gives each agent a whole machine you can sign up for today, with SSH, Docker, /dev/kvm, private HTTPS hosting, a desktop and coding agents built in.
Where boat stands out
A whole machine, not just a command runner
A boat sandbox is a full VM with SSH, systemd, root, Docker and /dev/kvm, so Android emulators and nested VMs run too. Together's new SDK runs commands as a normal user by default, does not read Dev Containers or Docker Compose, and documents neither Docker inside nor nested virtualization.
Hosting that is private by default
boat serves HTTPS on up to 50 ports per sandbox, token-protected by default, and also takes raw TCP on a dedicated IPv6 or IPv4. On Together every port is public, preview URLs are listed as coming soon, and access rules are an experimental feature.
Agents, desktop and keys built in
Claude Code, Codex and other agents come preinstalled, and you prompt, steer and follow them from outside through one API. Each sandbox also has a 60fps desktop with Chromium for computer use, and real API keys stay outside it in a credentials proxy that can switch to another account when one runs out of credits.
The companies and products
boat
boat.dev runs sandboxes for AI agents: each one is a full Linux VM with its own kernel.
You start a machine with one command or one API call, then SSH in, run Docker, open a desktop, or let a built-in agent (Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode and others) work in it. The disk stays between sessions, and a stopped sandbox costs nothing.
- Isolation
- Full VM per sandbox, own kernel
- Regions
- EU: Germany, Finland, France
Together Code Sandbox
Together AI is a cloud for running and training AI models, and Code Sandbox is its product for running code in isolated VMs.
You build a snapshot from a Docker image or Dockerfile on Together's builder, then start sandboxes from it and run commands and file operations through the together-sandbox SDK or CLI. When a sandbox ends you can save its disk, and its memory too, as a new snapshot to start more sandboxes from. It is aimed at model-generated code, agent tool calls and reinforcement learning rollouts, and it must be enabled for your organization by Together. Together also sells Code Interpreter, a separate API that runs Python code in short sessions.
Which use cases each one fits
For each use case, Battleships prices every sandbox provider on the same workload and sorts them from the cheapest monthly bill up. “3rd cheapest of 367” means 2 of the other 366 providers run that workload, with every feature it needs, for less. “With limits” means the provider runs it but misses something, so it is listed after every full match. Open a use case for its whole ranking and what each provider misses.
| Use case and its workload | boat: price rank | Together Code Sandbox: price rank |
|---|---|---|
| Software factory 100 at once · 4 vCPU / 8 GB · 2,200 sessions of 8 h a month A software factory needs Docker, root and often /dev/kvm; boat has all three on every machine, while Together's new SDK runs commands as a normal user and does not document Docker inside or nested virtualization. | 3rd cheapest of 367 $634 a month | 65th of 367, with limits $528 a month |
| Always-on AI employees 50 machines 24/7 · 2 vCPU / 4 GB An assistant that lives on its machine all month fits boat; Together sandboxes have no idle detection or wake on request, so you start and stop them from your own backend. | 5th cheapest of 366 $657 a month | 152nd of 366, with limits $1,095 a month |
| Code interpreter bursts 100 at once · 1 vCPU / 2 GB · 200,000 sessions of 1 min a month Together's Code Interpreter suits short Python runs, billed per 60-minute session; it runs only Python and keeps nothing after the session ends. | 186th of 345, with limits $2,000 a month | 326th of 345, with limits $2,190 a month |
| Sandboxes for your users 300 at once · 2 vCPU / 4 GB · 30,000 sessions of 23 min a month On Together every port of a sandbox is public and preview URLs are listed as coming soon, so giving each user a private app needs work that boat's token-protected HTTPS URLs already do. | Cheapest of 361 $209 a month | 234th of 361, with limits $900 a month |
| RL rollouts 1,000 at once · 2 vCPU / 4 GB · 1,000,000 sessions of 3 min a month Together can save a sandbox with its memory and start many copies from it, which suits rollouts that branch from one warm state, but the VM product needs Together to enable it. | 34th of 360, with limits $2,000 a month | 315th of 360, with limits $21,900 a month |
| Agent evals 250 at once · 4 vCPU / 8 GB · 15,000 sessions of 20 min a month Together documents a Harbor integration for running agent evals; boat ships the coding agents themselves, with an API to prompt, steer and follow each run. | 10th cheapest of 364 $200 a month | 258th of 364, with limits $450 a month |
| CI runners 40 at once · 8 vCPU / 16 GB · 6,000 sessions of 12 min a month | 4th cheapest of 377 $86 a month | 251st of 377, with limits $180 a month |
| 24/7 dev boxes 1 machine 24/7 · 4 vCPU / 8 GB | 18th cheapest of 368 $26 a month | 210th of 368, with limits $22 a month |
| Computer-use agents 50 at once · 4 vCPU / 8 GB · 20,000 sessions of 15 min a month Computer-use agents need a desktop and a browser, which boat streams at 60fps and Together Code Sandbox does not offer. | 6th cheapest of 369 $200 a month | 184th of 369, with limits $600 a month |
| Browser-use agents 50 at once · 2 vCPU / 4 GB · 30,000 sessions of 10 min a month boat ships Chromium on a full desktop in every sandbox; on Together you install a headless browser in your own image. | 7th cheapest of 367 $200 a month | 301st of 367, with limits $900 a month |
| Scraping & bots (startup scale) 50 at once · 1 vCPU / 2 GB · 100,000 sessions of 3 min a month | 6th cheapest of 346 $90 a month | 219th of 346, with limits $180 a month |
| Mass scraping & bots (undetectable) 1,000 at once · 1 vCPU / 2 GB · 3,000,000 sessions of 2 min a month | 71st of 338, with limits $1,800 a month | 124th of 338, with limits $3,600 a month |
| Parallel red teaming 200 at once · 2 vCPU / 4 GB · 5,000 sessions of 30 min a month | 2nd cheapest of 360 $200 a month | 167th of 360, with limits $150 a month |
| GPU eval jobs 10 at once · 8 vCPU / 32 GB · 500 sessions of 30 min a month | Can't run it | Can't run it |
| macOS agents 5 at once · 4 vCPU / 8 GB · 1,000 sessions of 20 min a month | Can't run it | Can't run it |
Key features
| Feature | boat | Together Code Sandbox |
|---|---|---|
| Isolation | Full VM with its own kernel on dedicated AMD Ryzen 9 9950X hosts | A VM per sandbox on Together's infrastructure |
| Getting started | Sign up and start a sandbox from the API, CLI or dashboard | The SDK and CLI must be enabled for your organization by Together |
| Machine size | 2 to 16 vCPU with 2 GB per vCPU, up to 16 vCPU / 32 GB on the $100 plan and above | 0.1 to 16 cores, 1 to 8 GB of memory per core; disk size fixed |
| Docker, root and systemd | Docker, systemd and root on every machine | Commands run as user 1000 by default, root on request; Dev Containers and Docker Compose are not read; Docker inside not documented |
| Nested virtualization | Yes, /dev/kvm for Android emulators and VMs | Not documented |
| Shell access | SSH, plus exec and files over the API | Commands, interactive shells and files through the SDK and CLI; no SSH |
| Saving state | Disk saved every minute and on stop; a stopped sandbox costs nothing; resume boots the machine again | End a sandbox with a snapshot of its disk, or disk and memory; a new sandbox resumes with its processes running |
| Fork | Fork a running sandbox; the original keeps running | No live fork: the parent stops, then you start many sandboxes from its snapshot |
| Idle and wake | Runs until you stop it or its time to live ends; started again by API | Time to live counts from creation; no idle detection and no wake on request |
| Reaching the sandbox | HTTPS URLs for up to 50 ports, token-protected by default; raw TCP; dedicated IPv6 or IPv4 | All ports public; preview URLs coming soon; an experimental inbound allowlist by IP or token |
| Desktop and browser | Linux desktop streamed at 60fps, Chromium and computer-use tools | None; headless command and file access only |
| Coding agents | Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode and more preinstalled, with a prompt, steer and events API | Run your own agent through execs; a Harbor guide for agent evals |
| Keeping API keys out of the sandbox | Credentials proxy for model providers and any HTTPS API; switch a credential to another account when credits run out | No credentials proxy documented |
| Hosted code interpreter | No separate product; run code through exec in a sandbox | Code Interpreter API runs Python in sessions billed per 60 minutes |
| Compliance and transparency | SOC 2 is in progress. We're open about where we stand: live status and data retention policy. | SOC 2 |
Every feature Battleships tracks (43)
| Feature | boat | Together Code Sandbox |
|---|---|---|
| Full VM (own kernel) | Yes | Yes |
| Docker inside | Yes | Not published |
| Nested virtualization | Yes | No |
| Root | Yes | Yes |
| Systemd | Yes | Not published |
| Desktop GUI | Yes | No |
| Browser | Yes | No |
| Computer-use API | Yes | No |
| SSH | Yes | No |
| Persistent disk | Yes | Yes |
| Pause/resume | Yes | Yes |
| Automatic snapshots | Yes | No |
| Fork/clone | Yes | Yes |
| Live fork (no pause) | Yes | No |
| Memory fork | No | Yes |
| Custom image (Docker or snapshot) | Yes | Yes |
| ≥24 h sessions | Yes | Yes |
| Idle auto-stop | No | No |
| Wake on request | No | No |
| HTTPS preview URLs | Yes | Yes |
| Raw TCP inbound | Yes | No |
| Public IPv4 | No | No |
| Egress allowlist | No | No |
| Secret proxy | Yes | No |
| Secret proxy for any API | Yes | No |
| Preinstalled agents | Yes | No |
| Agent harness API | Yes | No |
| MCP server | No | Yes |
| GPU | No | No |
| Windows | No | No |
| Arm64 | No | No |
| Self-hosting | No | No |
| BYOC | No | No |
| Open source | No | No |
| Scoped API keys | Yes | Not published |
| Spend limits | Yes | Yes |
| Usage per sandbox (API) | Yes | Yes |
| Audit logs | No | Not published |
| SSO | No | Yes |
| SOC 2 | No | Yes |
| HIPAA | No | No |
| EU data residency | Yes | Not published |
| Zero data retention | Yes | Not published |
Performance
There is no comparable CPU measurement for Together Code Sandbox. boat did 26.69 runs per second on the StarSling hpc-sandbox-benchmarks Node.js test at 4 vCPU / 8 GB, on dedicated AMD Ryzen 9 9950X hosts, and Together was not part of that run.
Node.js build-and-test loop at 4 vCPU / 8 GB, higher is better. Measured with the open hpc-sandbox-benchmarks suite. Together Code Sandbox has no published run in this suite yet, so there is no like-for-like number to compare.
Pricing in five scenarios
Each bill is priced from the providers' public price lists by the open Battleships engine, with the cheapest plan that runs the scenario.
| Scenario | boat, a month | Together Code Sandbox, a month |
|---|---|---|
| One coding agent, workdays 4 vCPU / 8 GB, 50 GB disk, 8 hours a day, 22 days a month, files kept between days | $20 · $20/mo | $5 · Together pay-as-you-go (prepaid credits; Code Interpreter only) · with limits |
| One agent that never stops 4 vCPU / 8 GB, 50 GB disk, running 24/7 all month | $26 · $20/mo | $22 · Together pay-as-you-go (prepaid credits; Code Interpreter only) · with limits |
| 50 agents in parallel 50 machines of 4 vCPU / 8 GB at once, 8-hour sessions, 1,100 sessions a month, Docker inside | $317 · $20/mo × 3 seats | $264 · Together pay-as-you-go (prepaid credits; Code Interpreter only) · with limits |
| Sandboxes for your users 2 vCPU / 4 GB, 30,000 sessions of 10 minutes a month, up to 300 at once | $200 · $100/mo × 2 seats | $900 · Together pay-as-you-go (prepaid credits; Code Interpreter only) · with limits |
| 1,000 short jobs at once 2 vCPU / 4 GB, 1,000 at once, 3 minutes each, 200,000 jobs a month | $2,000 · $2000/mo · with limits | $6,000 · Together pay-as-you-go (prepaid credits; Code Interpreter only) · with limits |
boat: Plans start at $20 a month, and the whole fee becomes usage credit. You pay per second while a sandbox runs, and a stopped sandbox costs nothing and keeps its disk.
Together Code Sandbox: Together lists Code Sandbox at $0.0446 per vCPU-hour and $0.0149 per GiB-hour, but the VMs must be enabled for your organization, so the table prices Together with Code Interpreter, its only self-serve product with a published price: $0.03 per 60-minute session from prepaid credits. Code Interpreter runs only Python and keeps no disk, so it does not fit these scenarios.
Limits in those scenarios
The Together column is Code Interpreter, and its limits decide every row: sessions last 60 minutes, nothing is kept after a session, it runs only Python, and the machine size is not published. Together's VM product is closer to boat, with sandboxes up to 16 cores and a fixed disk, but it needs Together to turn it on. On boat the limit that bites is starts: 1,000 short jobs at once need more starts per hour and per day than even the $2,000 plan allows, so starts are queued.
| Scenario | boat | Together Code Sandbox |
|---|---|---|
| One coding agent, workdays | None that bite |
|
| One agent that never stops | None that bite |
|
| 50 agents in parallel | None that bite |
|
| Sandboxes for your users | None that bite |
|
| 1,000 short jobs at once |
|
|
Which one should you use?
Use Together Code Sandbox when
you already run models on Together and want light sandboxes, from a tenth of a core, that you can save with their memory and branch from, or a simple Python runner billed per session.
- Memory snapshots to branch from. Useful for rollouts and test variants: save a sandbox with its memory and start many copies with processes still running.
- Sandboxes next to your models. Handy if you already run inference or fine-tuning on Together: sandboxes and models share one account and API key.
- Very small machines and a Python runner. Good for many light jobs: sandboxes start at a tenth of a core, and a Python interpreter API bills per session.
Use boat when
your agents do real work for hours: installs, builds, Docker, emulators, a browser and servers other people reach, on a full machine you can start today with the agent and its keys already set up.
- A whole machine, not just a command runner. Agents and their tools expect a shell, a service manager and often KVM. Without them, compose stacks, emulator builds and VM-based tests do not start, and each missing tool has to be baked into the image first.
- Hosting that is private by default. An agent that starts a dev server or a database on Together exposes it to anyone who finds it until you write an experimental policy, and there is no stable preview URL yet to hand to a user.
- Agents, desktop and keys built in. On Together you build the harness, browser and desktop into your own image and wire every step through execs. Keys you pass in sit inside a machine the agent controls, where one prompt injection can leak them.
Questions people ask
Is boat cheaper than Together Code Sandbox?
The only self-serve Together price is Code Interpreter, and it does not fit these scenarios because sessions end after 60 minutes and keep no disk. It looks cheaper for small runs, $264 against $317 a month for 50 agents, but costs more at scale: $900 against $200 for sandboxes for your users, and $6,000 against $2,000 for 1,000 short jobs at once.
What is the difference between Together Code Sandbox and Code Interpreter?
Code Sandbox gives you VMs started from Docker-image snapshots, with commands, files and memory snapshots, and must be enabled for your organization. Code Interpreter is a simpler API that runs Python code in a session, billed per 60 minutes.
Is Together Code Sandbox the same as CodeSandbox SDK?
Not anymore. The first version ran on CodeSandbox's microVMs and is now called deprecated in Together's docs. Its successor, the together-sandbox SDK, drops live fork, idle hibernation and wake on request, and replaces them with snapshots taken when a sandbox ends.
Can I run Docker and Android emulators in each?
boat runs Docker, systemd and root on every machine and exposes /dev/kvm for Android emulators and nested VMs. Together builds sandboxes from Docker images, but its new SDK documents neither Docker inside a sandbox nor nested virtualization.
Can boat save a sandbox with its memory like Together?
No. boat saves the disk every minute and when the sandbox stops, so files survive and a stopped sandbox costs nothing, but resuming boots the machine again. Together can save memory too, so a new sandbox comes back with its processes running.
Is boat SOC 2 compliant?
SOC 2 is in progress. We're open about where we stand: live status at status.ascii.dev and our data retention policy at docs.boat.dev/data-retention.
Start a sandbox
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