kitio.aiRunPod vs Vast.ai
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. RunPod starts at See pricing page and Vast.ai 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
- On-demand GPU pods
- Serverless endpoints
- Ready-made templates
- Community Cloud
- Instant Clusters
- GPU marketplace
- Docker templates
- Interruptible instances
- Serverless endpoints
- Per-second billing
| Feature | RunPod | Vast.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | On-demand GPU pods and serverless endpoints for AI workloads | Marketplace for renting low-cost GPUs from many hosts |
| Category | Models & APIs | Models & APIs |
| Pricing model | Paid | Paid |
| Starting price | See pricing page | See pricing page |
| Free plan | No | No |
| Made by | RunPod | Vast.ai |
| Based in | United States | United States |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
|
|
Both offer: Serverless endpoints.
Pricing compared
RunPod starts at See pricing page and Vast.ai starts at See pricing page. Check both pricing pages for current plans.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
5 plans
RTX 4090
$0.89 / hour
- 24 GB VRAM
- On-demand GPU pod
A100 PCIe
$1.79 / hour
- 80 GB VRAM
- On-demand GPU pod
H100 SXM
$3.99 / hour
- 80 GB VRAM, 20 vCPUs
- On-demand GPU pod
H200
$5.29 / hour
- 141 GB VRAM, 24 vCPUs
- On-demand GPU pod
Reserved Clusters
Contact sales
- Dedicated clusters with SLA
- Discounted committed rates
2 plans
On-demand
Per-second GPU billing
- Supply and demand pricing
- 68+ GPU types
Reserved
Contact sales
- 1, 3 or 6 month terms
- Guaranteed capacity
- Volume discounts
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
RunPod
- Low GPU hourly prices
- Easy templates for common tools
- Per-second serverless billing
- Community hosts vary in reliability
- Popular GPUs sell out
- Support is slower on small accounts
Vast.ai
- Very low GPU prices
- Wide hardware choice
- Pay by the second
- Host reliability varies
- Security depends on the host
- Less hand-holding than big clouds
Which one should you choose?
Choose RunPod if you want:
- Low GPU hourly prices
- Easy templates for common tools
- Per-second serverless billing
Watch out: community hosts vary in reliability.
Choose Vast.ai if you want:
- Very low GPU prices
- Wide hardware choice
- Pay by the second
Watch out: host reliability varies.
RunPod vs Vast.ai FAQ
What is the difference between RunPod and Vast.ai?
RunPod: On-demand GPU pods and serverless endpoints for AI workloads. Vast.ai: Marketplace for renting low-cost GPUs from many hosts. Both are models & apis tools.
Is RunPod or Vast.ai cheaper?
RunPod starts at See pricing page and Vast.ai starts at See pricing page. Check both pricing pages for current plans.
Do RunPod and Vast.ai have free plans?
RunPod: No. Vast.ai: No.
Who makes RunPod?
RunPod is made by RunPod, based in United States.
Who makes Vast.ai?
Vast.ai is made by Vast.ai, based in United States.
Which should I choose, RunPod or Vast.ai?
Choose RunPod if you value low gpu hourly prices and easy templates for common tools. Choose Vast.ai if you value very low gpu prices and wide hardware choice.