Title: GitHub Actions cost and pricing per minute (2026) · Codemany docs URL: https://codemany.com/docs/guides/actions-cost Description: How much does GitHub Actions cost? Pricing per minute: $0.062 on macOS, $0.006 on Linux. Cut the bill: run jobs on your own machine for a flat $20/month. All pages as Markdown: https://codemany.com/llms.txt --- [Guides](https://codemany.com/docs#guides) # GitHub Actions cost per minute, and how to cut it GitHub bills hosted runners by the minute. Your own machine doesn't. GitHub Actions pricing for hosted runners is per minute, and macOS minutes cost the most: $0.062 a minute (3-core M1), against $0.006 a minute (2-core) on Linux. To cut the bill, run those jobs on a Mac or Linux machine you already own. Codemany does that for $20/month for 2 machines, $10/month for each extra, however many minutes the jobs take. ## GitHub Actions pricing per minute, 2026 | Runner | Price | | --- | --- | | GitHub, macOS | $0.062 a minute (3-core M1) | | GitHub, Linux | $0.006 a minute (2-core) | | Codemany | $20/month for 2 machines, $10/month for each extra | GitHub's list prices for its standard hosted runners since January 1, 2026 ([GitHub Docs: Actions runner pricing](https://docs.github.com/en/billing/reference/actions-runner-pricing)). Larger runners cost more. These are before the free minutes your GitHub plan includes. ## A worked example of a monthly bill 20 jobs a day × 10 minutes × 30 days = 6,000 minutes, half on macOS: $204 on GitHub against $20 on Codemany, so you keep $184 a month ($2,208 a year). Break-even at that mix: 589 minutes a month. Put in your own jobs, minutes and OS mix in the [GitHub Actions savings calculator](https://codemany.com/savings). ## Move macOS jobs first: macOS runner pricing On GitHub a macOS minute is $0.062 and a Linux minute $0.006, so iOS and macOS builds are where the bill grows fastest. On a flat price, long builds don't cost more. The Mac on your desk or a Mac mini in a closet can take them: see [iOS and Xcode builds on your own Mac](https://codemany.com/docs/guides/ios-xcode) and [a self-hosted runner on a Mac](https://codemany.com/docs/guides/mac-runner). Linux jobs can move too, to a server, home lab box or desktop: [a self-hosted runner on Linux](https://codemany.com/docs/guides/linux-runner). ## Reduce GitHub Actions cost: move jobs to your own machine 1. Install [Download Codemany](https://codemany.com/download) on a Mac, or install it on Linux with one command ([how](https://codemany.com/docs/machines#linux)). 2. Sign in with GitHub Your 14-day free trial starts by itself, with no card. 3. Pick repositories Choose repositories, or a whole organization. 4. Change one line Point the jobs you want to move at your machine: ``` jobs: build: runs-on: [self-hosted, codemany] steps: - uses: actions/checkout@v4 - run: swift test ``` Jobs left on `runs-on: macos-latest` or `ubuntu-latest` keep running on GitHub, so you can move one workflow at a time. Full setup: [Get started](https://codemany.com/docs/get-started). ## What else to count - **Jobs at once.** Each machine runs as many jobs as it has room for: 1 on an 8 GB Mac, 3 on a 16 GB Mac. Each extra machine is $10/month ([How many jobs per machine](https://codemany.com/docs/machines#size)). - **Cloud machines** are billed by your cloud provider, to your own account ([Other costs](https://codemany.com/docs/billing#other-costs)). - **GitHub's own charges** for self-hosted runners, if any, apply to Codemany and DIY runners alike. ## Questions ### How much does GitHub Actions cost? GitHub bills its hosted runners per minute: $0.062 a minute (3-core M1) on macOS and $0.006 a minute (2-core) on Linux, at its list prices since January 1, 2026. Larger runners cost more, and your GitHub plan includes some free minutes first. ### Do GitHub Actions cost money? Hosted runner minutes beyond the free minutes your plan includes do. What your plan includes is in [GitHub Docs: About billing for GitHub Actions](https://docs.github.com/en/billing/managing-billing-for-your-products/managing-billing-for-github-actions/about-billing-for-github-actions). ### What does GitHub Actions cost per minute on Linux and macOS? On GitHub's standard hosted runners, Linux is $0.006 a minute (2-core) and macOS is $0.062 a minute (3-core M1). On Codemany there is no per-minute price: $20/month for 2 machines, $10/month for each extra. ### What does the GitHub Actions free tier include? Each GitHub plan includes some free minutes; GitHub lists them in [GitHub Docs: About billing for GitHub Actions](https://docs.github.com/en/billing/managing-billing-for-your-products/managing-billing-for-github-actions/about-billing-for-github-actions). If your jobs fit in those, you may not need to move them. ### Is there a GitHub Actions cost calculator? Yes. The [GitHub Actions savings calculator](https://codemany.com/savings) takes your jobs, minutes and OS mix and shows GitHub's monthly cost against Codemany's flat price. ### How do I reduce GitHub Actions cost? Move the jobs that cost most, macOS ones first, to a machine you own with `runs-on: [self-hosted, codemany]`. On a flat price, a longer build doesn't cost more. ### Is it cheaper than GitHub-hosted runners? Above the break-even point, yes. In the example above it is 589 minutes a month; the [savings calculator](https://codemany.com/savings) works it out for your mix. ### Does a longer build cost more? No. There is no per-minute billing. The price depends only on how many machines you use ([Pricing](https://codemany.com/pricing)). ### What are GitHub Actions cost alternatives? Self-hosted runners on your own machines, DIY or with Codemany, or hosted runner services such as Depot, Blacksmith, WarpBuild and Cirrus Runners, most of which bill per minute. See [Codemany compared](https://codemany.com/docs/compare). ### Can I try it first? Yes. 14 days free on up to 2 machines, with no card ([Free trial](https://codemany.com/docs/billing#trial)). [Previous Single-use runners](https://codemany.com/docs/guides/ephemeral-runners)[Next Runner security](https://codemany.com/docs/guides/runner-security)