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Developer Tools · head to head

CodeSandbox vs Teleport

C

CodeSandbox

Developer Tools

Cloud platform for instant, isolated development sandboxes and code execution

From
Free
Free plan
Yes
Full reviewWebsite
Teleport logo

Teleport

Cybersecurity

Certificate-based access to servers, Kubernetes, databases and apps, replacing shared credentials and VPNs

From
On request
Free plan
No
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only CodeSandbox has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: CodeSandbox detailed paid plan pricing was not published on the accessible pages, making cost comparison difficult.; Teleport pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • They diverge on capability: CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Teleport covers Short-lived certificates.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CodeSandbox and Teleport actually diverge.

Attributes where CodeSandbox and Teleport differ
AttributeCodeSandboxTeleport
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, apiLinux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud
CategoryDeveloper ToolsCybersecurity

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Teleport

  • Short-lived certificates
  • Protocol coverage
  • Session recording and replay
  • Access Requests
  • Device Trust
  • Identity provider integration
  • Machine identity
  • FIPS and FedRAMP builds

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 Teleport
  • Prototyping and sharing web projects in-browsernot Teleport
  • Executing untrusted code for a code playground productnot Teleport
  • Using sandboxes as ephemeral CI/CD build environmentsnot Teleport

Teleport

  • Removing long-lived SSH keys and shared database passwords so that offboarding an engineer takes one action in the identity providernot CodeSandbox
  • Producing session recordings and per-user database audit trails as direct evidence for SOC 2 or FedRAMPnot CodeSandbox
  • Giving contractors or on-call engineers time-boxed, approved access to production instead of standing admin rightsnot CodeSandbox
  • Replacing a flat VPN with per-resource authorisation across servers, Kubernetes and internal web appsnot 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.

Teleport

  • Pricing is not published and is described as active users plus protected resources, so an autoscaling estate cannot forecast the bill and finance teams discover the true cost only after the first true-up.
  • The proxy is a hard dependency on reaching production, so it needs its own high availability deployment and a tested break-glass path or an outage in Teleport becomes an outage in your ability to respond to outages.
  • The open source Community Edition omits Access Requests, Device Trust and the FIPS builds, which are exactly the controls an auditor asks about, so the free tier rarely survives a compliance review.
  • Self-hosting means running and upgrading a certificate authority and its backing store, and Teleport releases frequently enough that upgrade work becomes a standing operational commitment.
  • Coverage across protocols is uneven in depth, so teams with legacy systems, unusual databases or bespoke network appliances find gaps that still require the old VPN to remain in place alongside it.

Pricing, plan by plan

CodeSandbox

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Public sandboxes
    • Basic sandbox usage

Teleport

On request
  • Teleport Community Edition$undefined/year
    • Open source, self-hosted
    • SSH, Kubernetes, database and app access
    • Session recording
  • Teleport Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Cloud-hosted or self-hosted
    • Access Requests and approval workflow
    • Device Trust and hardware key enforcement

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 Teleport if

  • You need short-lived certificates.
  • You work on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
  • You also want protocol coverage.
Teleport review

Questions people ask

Is CodeSandbox or Teleport better?
Neither clearly leads. CodeSandbox starts at Free and Teleport at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CodeSandbox or Teleport?
CodeSandbox has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for CodeSandbox and On request for Teleport.
Does CodeSandbox or Teleport run on more platforms?
CodeSandbox runs on web, api. Teleport runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, Kubernetes, Cloud.
Can I use CodeSandbox for free?
Yes. CodeSandbox has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Teleport starts at On request.
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 Teleport is typically brought in for.
What can CodeSandbox do that Teleport cannot?
CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Programmatic sandbox API, Secure isolated execution, Browser-based editor. Teleport covers Short-lived certificates, Protocol coverage, Session recording and replay, Access Requests.

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
Teleport: Is the open source edition usable in production?

Yes, but it lacks Access Requests, Device Trust and FIPS builds, which most compliance programmes end up requiring.

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
Teleport: How is it priced?

Not publicly. The vendor prices on active users and protected resources and provides a quote after a sales conversation.

Teleport: What happens if Teleport goes down?

Nobody reaches the resources behind it, so you need a highly available deployment and a documented break-glass procedure.

Teleport: Does it replace our VPN?

For anything you put behind it, yes. Legacy systems and appliances it does not support will keep the VPN alive.

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Related pages

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