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Developer Tools · head to head

CodeSandbox vs Earthly

CodeSandbox logo

CodeSandbox

Developer Tools

Cloud platform for instant, isolated development sandboxes and code execution

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Earthly logo

Earthly

Developer Tools

Engineering guardrails for the AI era

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: CodeSandbox detailed paid plan pricing was not published on the accessible pages, making cost comparison difficult.; Earthly pricing model not published; requires sales contact
  • They diverge on capability: CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Earthly covers Policy as code.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CodeSandbox and Earthly actually diverge.

Attributes where CodeSandbox and Earthly differ
AttributeCodeSandboxEarthly
Pricing modelfreemiumNo pricing published on website
Platformsweb, apiWeb, CLI
FoundedUnknown2020

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Developer Tools).

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 CodeSandbox

  • Instant sandboxes
  • Programmatic sandbox API
  • Secure isolated execution
  • Browser-based editor
  • CI/CD sandbox support
  • Scalable VM infrastructure

Only in Earthly

  • Policy as code
  • Multi-stage enforcement
  • AI agent governance
  • Repository-wide policies
  • Incident response automation
  • Compliance management
  • Earthfiles build tool
  • Satellites

What people use each for

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

CodeSandbox

  • Running AI agent-generated code safely in isolationnot Earthly
  • Prototyping and sharing web projects in-browsernot Earthly
  • Executing untrusted code for a code playground productnot Earthly
  • Using sandboxes as ephemeral CI/CD build environmentsnot Earthly

Earthly

  • Enforcing engineering standards across AI and human developersnot CodeSandbox
  • Automating incident response procedures across all repositoriesnot CodeSandbox
  • Embedding compliance requirements into development workflowsnot CodeSandbox
  • Standardizing build processes with Earthfilesnot CodeSandbox

Where each one falls short

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

CodeSandbox

  • Detailed paid plan pricing was not published on the accessible pages, making cost comparison difficult.
  • Focus has shifted toward programmatic sandbox infrastructure, which may be less approachable for casual users just wanting a quick online editor.
  • Public sandboxes are visible to others by default, which is not ideal for proprietary code.

Earthly

  • Pricing model not published; requires sales contact
  • Earthly Lunar is a recent launch (2025) with limited track record
  • Primarily GitHub-focused; limited integration with other platforms
  • No public documentation on pricing or feature tiers

Pricing, plan by plan

CodeSandbox

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Public sandboxes
    • Basic sandbox usage

Earthly

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Earthly review.

Which should you pick?

Choose CodeSandbox if

  • You need instant sandboxes.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want programmatic sandbox api.
CodeSandbox review

Choose Earthly if

  • You need policy as code.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, CLI.
  • You also want multi-stage enforcement.
Earthly review

Questions people ask

Is CodeSandbox or Earthly better?
Neither clearly leads. CodeSandbox starts at Free and Earthly at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CodeSandbox or Earthly?
CodeSandbox starts at Free and Earthly at Free.
Does CodeSandbox or Earthly run on more platforms?
CodeSandbox runs on web, api. Earthly runs on Web, CLI.
Can I use CodeSandbox for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is CodeSandbox best used for?
CodeSandbox is most often used for running ai agent-generated code safely in isolation, prototyping and sharing web projects in-browser, executing untrusted code for a code playground product, using sandboxes as ephemeral ci/cd build environments. Of those, running ai agent-generated code safely in isolation and prototyping and sharing web projects in-browser are not what Earthly is typically brought in for.
What can CodeSandbox do that Earthly cannot?
CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Programmatic sandbox API, Secure isolated execution, Browser-based editor. Earthly covers Policy as code, Multi-stage enforcement, AI agent governance, Repository-wide policies.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CodeSandbox: Does CodeSandbox offer a free tier?

Yes, CodeSandbox offers a free option available on the platform. Users can start for free.

Source
Earthly: What is the difference between Earthfiles and Earthly Lunar?

Earthfiles is an open-source build tool that reached 12,000 GitHub stars and is used by companies like NVIDIA, Intel, and Databricks. Earthly Lunar is a separate governance platform launched in 2025 for enforcing standards across development workflows.

Source
CodeSandbox: Where can I find CodeSandbox's pricing details?

CodeSandbox maintains a dedicated pricing page, but specific tier names, feature breakdowns, and costs are not displayed on the landing page.

Source
Earthly: How does Earthly Lunar enforce standards?

Lunar converts engineering standards, compliance requirements, and processes documented in AGENTS.md files, wikis, and incident postmortems into enforceable guardrails that apply consistently across repositories and development stages.

Source
Earthly: What is the pricing for Earthly Lunar?

Pricing is not published on the website. Interested customers should contact Earthly's sales team for current pricing and feature tiers.

Source
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