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BuildShip vs RunsOn
Short answer: Pick BuildShip if you want visual AI workflow builder with code export; pick RunsOn if you want cheap, scalable CI on AWS. BuildShip has a free plan, paid from $19/month; RunsOn has a free plan.
Which to pick
Pick BuildShip if you want…
- Visual AI workflow builder with code export
- Visual backend creation
- Integrations with OpenAI, Stable Diffusion or HuggingFace (on BuildShip's list, not RunsOn's)
Pick RunsOn if you want…
- Cheap, scalable CI on AWS
- Integrations with GitHub Actions, CloudFormation or Terraform (on RunsOn's list, not BuildShip's)
Side by side
- What it is
- BuildShip:BuildShip is an AI-powered low-code visual backend builder for creating APIs, workflows and AI agents.
- RunsOn:RunsOn runs GitHub Actions jobs on on-demand AWS EC2 instances, cutting CI cost and latency.
- Best for
- BuildShip:Visual AI workflow builder with code export
- RunsOn:Cheap, scalable CI on AWS
- Who it’s for
- BuildShip:Developers and product teams building AI-driven backends and automations.
- RunsOn:Engineering teams that self-host CI on AWS and use GitHub Actions.
- Pricing
- BuildShip:Freemium
- RunsOn:Paid
- Starting price
- BuildShip:$19/month (Starter)
- RunsOn:—
- Free plan or trial
- BuildShip:Free trial
- RunsOn:Free plan (Free (non-commercial)) · Free trial
- Plans
- BuildShip:Starter $19 per month · Pro $59 per month · Business $449 per month
- RunsOn:Starter €300/ year per year · Enterprise €3,600/ year per year · Free (non-commercial) free
- Open source
- BuildShip:Yes
- RunsOn:Yes, 1,339 GitHub stars
- Works with
- BuildShip:OpenAI, Stable Diffusion, HuggingFace, AWS, GCP, Azure, GitHub
- RunsOn:GitHub Actions, CloudFormation, Terraform
BuildShip features
- AI-generated flows. Describe an idea in natural language and AI creates the flow logic and nodes instantly.
- Visual flow editor. Drag-and-drop interface with 50+ ready-made nodes for building and testing workflows.
- Full code access. Export clean modular JavaScript or customize nodes with custom JS and any NPM package.
- Flexible deployment. Host on BuildShip Cloud, self-host on Vercel, GCP, AWS, Azure or export code.
- Role-based access control. Granular permissions for admins, editors and viewers.
- Version control. Two-way GitHub sync with workflow history and reversible changes.
- Monitoring & alerts. Real-time logs, status page, email/webhook alerts for failed executions.
- Enterprise security. GDPR, HIPAA, SOC2, ISO 27001 compliance and VPC support.
RunsOn features
- Dynamic instance selection. Specify CPU, RAM, architecture or GPU in a label and RunsOn launches the matching EC2 spot or on-demand instance.
- Fast job startup. Typical 30 s from queued to running; warm pools can reduce latency to under 6 s.
- Unlimited machine types. Any EC2 instance type, including x64, ARM64 and GPU, can be used per job.
- S3-backed caching. Add extras=s3-cache to use an unlimited S3 bucket in your VPC for cache storage.
- Nested virtualization. KVM for Linux and Hyper-V for Windows enable Android emulators, VM-based e2e tests and Windows containers.
- Per-job isolation. Each job runs on a fresh VM that is terminated when the job finishes, keeping data private.
BuildShip vs RunsOn FAQ
What is the difference between BuildShip and RunsOn?+
BuildShip provides a visual backend builder and AI assistance, not a low-cost EC2-based CI runner.
Should I use BuildShip or RunsOn?+
Pick BuildShip if you want visual AI workflow builder with code export, visual backend creation or integrations with OpenAI, Stable Diffusion or HuggingFace (on BuildShip's list, not RunsOn's). Pick RunsOn if you want cheap, scalable CI on AWS or integrations with GitHub Actions, CloudFormation or Terraform (on RunsOn's list, not BuildShip's).
Is BuildShip or RunsOn free?+
BuildShip has a free plan; paid plans start at $19/month (Starter). RunsOn has a free plan (Free (non-commercial)) and paid plans.
Is BuildShip or RunsOn open source?+
Yes, both are open source: BuildShip (rowyio/buildship on GitHub) and RunsOn (runs-on/runs-on on GitHub, MIT license).
Do BuildShip and RunsOn integrate with the same tools?+
Their integration lists don't overlap: BuildShip lists OpenAI, Stable Diffusion, HuggingFace, AWS and 3 more; RunsOn lists GitHub Actions, CloudFormation and Terraform.
On DevHunt
BuildShip
118 upvotes · Launched on DevHunt on Jan 17, 2023
Based on each tool's website and DevHunt data. Details may change; check the official sites.