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Blacksmith vs Vespa

Blacksmith logo

Blacksmith

Developer Tools

2x faster GitHub Actions with 60% cost savings

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit BlacksmithFull review
Vespa logo

Vespa

Databases

Distributed AI search platform for retrieval, ranking, and inference

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Visit VespaFull review

The short version

  • Blacksmith is a GitHub Actions runner service; Vespa is an open-source distributed serving engine.
  • Vespa is free; Blacksmith starts at $0.004/mo.
  • Only Blacksmith lists bare metal runners; only Vespa lists vector search.
  • Where Blacksmith falls short: per-minute pricing model requires estimating usage to predict costs.
  • Where Vespa falls short: pricing not publicly listed, requires contacting sales.
  • Prices and features on this page were last checked on 29 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Blacksmith and Vespa actually diverge.

Attributes where Blacksmith and Vespa differ
AttributeBlacksmithVespa
PlatformsGitHub Actions, Linux, Windows, macOSWeb, Self-hosted
CategoryDeveloper ToolsDatabases

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes).

Not yet recorded: pricing model for Blacksmith, founded for Blacksmith.

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Blacksmith

  • Bare metal runners
  • Multiple OS support
  • ARM support
  • Docker layer caching
  • Sticky disks
  • GitHub Actions observability
  • Free tier
  • Static IPs

Only in Vespa

  • Vector search
  • Text and structured search
  • Machine-learned ranking
  • Real-time serving
  • SQL interface
  • Automatic scaling
  • Open-source

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Blacksmith

  • Replacing GitHub Actions runners with faster, cheaper infrastructurenot Vespa
  • Accelerating CI build times for organizations with heavy CI loadnot Vespa
  • Reducing cloud spend on GitHub Actions by 60% or morenot Vespa
  • Supporting ARM architecture builds without GitHub runnersnot Vespa

Vespa

  • Build RAG systems with semantic search over documentsnot Blacksmith
  • Power e-commerce search with ML rankingnot Blacksmith
  • Create recommendation engines for personalizationnot Blacksmith
  • Implement real-time search for news or feedsnot Blacksmith
  • Deploy private semantic search over sensitive datanot Blacksmith

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Blacksmith

  • Per-minute pricing model requires estimating usage to predict costs
  • macOS M4 pricing ($0.08/min) is significantly higher than GitHub Actions
  • Docker layer caching and sticky disks are paid add-ons at $0.50/GB/mo
  • Static IP add-on costs $100/IP/mo

Vespa

  • Pricing not publicly listed, requires contacting sales
  • Steeper learning curve compared to simpler search tools
  • Operational complexity for self-hosted deployments
  • Smaller ecosystem compared to cloud-native alternatives

Pricing, plan by plan

Blacksmith

Free
  • Ubuntu x64$0.004/minute
    • 3,000 free minutes per month
    • 2x faster hardware
    • 4x faster cache downloads
  • Ubuntu ARM$0.0025/minute
    • 3,000 free minutes per month
    • 2x faster hardware
    • 4x faster cache downloads
  • Windows x64$0.008/minute
    • 3,000 free minutes per month
    • 2x faster hardware
    • 4x faster cache downloads
  • macOS M4$0.08/minute
    • 3,000 free minutes per month
    • 2x faster hardware
    • 4x faster cache downloads

Vespa

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Vespa review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Blacksmith if

  • You need bare metal runners.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on GitHub Actions, Linux, Windows, macOS.
  • You also want multiple os support.
Blacksmith review

Choose Vespa if

  • You need vector search.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Self-hosted.
  • You also want text and structured search.
Vespa review

Questions people ask

Is Blacksmith or Vespa better?
Neither clearly leads. Blacksmith starts at Free and Vespa at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Blacksmith or Vespa?
Blacksmith starts at Free and Vespa at Free.
Does Blacksmith or Vespa run on more platforms?
Blacksmith runs on GitHub Actions, Linux, Windows, macOS. Vespa runs on Web, Self-hosted.
Can I use Blacksmith for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Blacksmith best used for?
Blacksmith is most often used for replacing github actions runners with faster, cheaper infrastructure, accelerating ci build times for organizations with heavy ci load, reducing cloud spend on github actions by 60% or more, supporting arm architecture builds without github runners. Of those, replacing github actions runners with faster, cheaper infrastructure and accelerating ci build times for organizations with heavy ci load are not what Vespa is typically brought in for.
What can Blacksmith do that Vespa cannot?
Blacksmith covers Bare metal runners, Multiple OS support, ARM support, Docker layer caching. Vespa covers Vector search, Text and structured search, Machine-learned ranking, Real-time serving.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Blacksmith: How much do Blacksmith runners cost compared to GitHub Actions?

Blacksmith offers 60-75% cost savings depending on OS. Ubuntu x64 costs $0.004/min vs GitHub at $0.012/min. All plans include 3,000 free minutes monthly.

Source
Vespa: Is Vespa open-source?

Yes, Vespa is open-source under the Apache 2.0 license. The code is available on GitHub, and you can self-host or use the managed cloud service.

Source
Blacksmith: Can I use Docker layer caching with Blacksmith?

Yes, Docker layer caching is available as an add-on at $0.50/GB/mo. Managed Docker layer persistence is included with the base service.

Source
Vespa: What latency can Vespa achieve?

Vespa is designed for sub-100 millisecond latencies with thousands of queries per second, suitable for real-time search and recommendation applications.

Source
Blacksmith: What is the SLA for Enterprise plans?

Enterprise Blacksmith plans include a 99.9% SLA guarantee along with 24/7 priority support, dedicated Slack channels, white-glove onboarding, and CI optimization support.

Source
Vespa: Does Vespa support vector search?

Yes, Vespa provides native vector search capabilities alongside text, structured data, and tensor operations for building comprehensive search and AI applications.

Source
Vespa: What is the pricing model for Vespa Cloud?

Vespa Cloud pricing is not publicly listed and requires contacting their sales team to discuss your specific use case and scale requirements.

Source
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