kitio.aiModal vs Beam
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. Modal starts at $250/mo and Beam starts at See pricing page. Check both pricing pages for current plans.
At a glance
Best for
Category
Pricing model
Starting price
Free plan
Made by
Based in
Rating
Key features
- Infrastructure as Python code
- Fast container starts
- Per-second GPU billing
- Agent sandboxes
- Scheduled jobs
- Serverless GPU functions
- Fast cold starts
- Code sandboxes
- Open-source runtime
- Per-second billing
| Feature | Modal | Beam |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Serverless cloud for running Python and GPU workloads on demand | Serverless GPUs and sandboxes for AI inference and agents |
| Category | Models & APIs | Models & APIs |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Freemium |
| Starting price | $250/mo | See pricing page |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Made by | Modal Labs | Beam |
| Based in | United States | United States |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
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Pricing compared
Modal starts at $250/mo and Beam starts at See pricing page. Check both pricing pages for current plans.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
2 plans
Starter
Free
- Plus compute usage
- $30/month free credits
- 3 seats, 10 GPU concurrency
Team
$250/mo
- Plus compute usage
- $100/month free credits
- Unlimited seats, 50 GPU concurrency
- Custom domains, static IP proxy
5 plans
Virtual Machines
From $0.0306 / hr
- 1 vCPU, 1 GiB RAM base
- 50 GiB root disk included
Sandboxes
From $0.319 / hr
- Isolated environments for untrusted code
- Billed by the millisecond
Serverless GPU
From $0.000192 / sec
- RTX 4090, 5090, H100 and more
- Pay only while code runs
On-demand GPUs
H100 from $1.83 / hr
- Flat price per machine
- vCPU, RAM and NVMe included
Clusters
Contact sales
- Multi-node GPU with InfiniBand
- Reserved monthly or yearly
Prices in USD, checked Oct 28, 2026 or later. Plans change often, so confirm on each tool's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
Modal
- Excellent developer experience
- Scales to zero
- Monthly free credits
- Python-centric
- GPU prices above bare rentals
- Vendor-specific code patterns
Beam
- Quick container start times
- Self-hostable runtime
- Simple Python API
- Smaller company than rivals
- Python-focused
- Fewer GPU regions
Which one should you choose?
Choose Modal if you want:
- Excellent developer experience
- Scales to zero
- Monthly free credits
Watch out: python-centric.
Choose Beam if you want:
- Quick container start times
- Self-hostable runtime
- Simple Python API
Watch out: smaller company than rivals.
Modal vs Beam FAQ
What is the difference between Modal and Beam?
Modal: Serverless cloud for running Python and GPU workloads on demand. Beam: Serverless GPUs and sandboxes for AI inference and agents. Both are models & apis tools.
Is Modal or Beam cheaper?
Modal starts at $250/mo and Beam starts at See pricing page. Check both pricing pages for current plans.
Do Modal and Beam have free plans?
Modal: Yes. Beam: Yes.
Who makes Modal?
Modal is made by Modal Labs, based in United States.
Who makes Beam?
Beam is made by Beam, based in United States.
Which should I choose, Modal or Beam?
Choose Modal if you value excellent developer experience and scales to zero. Choose Beam if you value quick container start times and self-hostable runtime.