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Developer Tools · head to head

CodeSandbox vs Ona (formerly Gitpod)

C

CodeSandbox

Developer Tools

Cloud platform for instant, isolated development sandboxes and code execution

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Ona (formerly Gitpod) logo

Ona (formerly Gitpod)

Developer Tools

Cloud development environments repositioned as a control plane for software engineering agents

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.; Ona (formerly Gitpod) acquisition risk has already materialised: the company closed a sale to OpenAI on 10 August 2026 and now sits inside the Codex team, so nothing public guarantees pricing, continuity or neutrality between model vendors beyond honouring existing commitments.
  • They diverge on capability: CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Ona (formerly Gitpod) covers Ephemeral environments.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which CodeSandbox and Ona (formerly Gitpod) actually diverge.

Attributes where CodeSandbox and Ona (formerly Gitpod) differ
AttributeCodeSandboxOna (formerly Gitpod)
Pricing modelfreemiumPer month by compute unit
Platformsweb, apiWeb, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud Platform

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 Ona (formerly Gitpod)

  • Ephemeral environments
  • Agent sessions
  • Bring your own cloud
  • Devcontainer standard
  • Compute unit budgeting
  • Enterprise identity

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

Ona (formerly Gitpod)

  • Giving a large engineering team identical, disposable environments so onboarding is a link rather than a two day setupnot CodeSandbox
  • Running several coding agents in parallel against real databases and services instead of on a laptopnot CodeSandbox
  • Keeping source code off contractor and offshore laptops by moving the whole environment into a controlled accountnot CodeSandbox
  • Reproducing a hard-to-configure toolchain for a short-lived project without polluting anyone machinenot 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.

Ona (formerly Gitpod)

  • Acquisition risk has already materialised: the company closed a sale to OpenAI on 10 August 2026 and now sits inside the Codex team, so nothing public guarantees pricing, continuity or neutrality between model vendors beyond honouring existing commitments.
  • Two disruptive changes of direction inside a year, from development environments to agent orchestration and then from independence to acquisition, mean the product a browser IDE buyer originally chose no longer exists in that form.
  • The Gitpod Classic sunset on 15 October 2025 required manual conversion of configuration, hand-moved secrets, self-rescued workspace data and a brand new account, which is the clearest available precedent for how the vendor handles deprecation.
  • Community self-hosting is finished: the AGPL-3.0 repository is deprecated by its own README, and self-hosted now means a vendor-operated install in your AWS or GCP account, with no Azure, no on-premises and no air-gapped path.
  • Pricing is difficult to model because it runs on a compute unit currency where subscription credits expire at the end of the month, the mapping from units to actual compute is not published on the pricing page, and Enterprise is quotation only.

Pricing, plan by plan

CodeSandbox

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Public sandboxes
    • Basic sandbox usage

Ona (formerly Gitpod)

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 3 parallel environments
    • Machines up to 4 vCPU, 16 GB memory and 80 GB disk
    • Ona Cloud multi-tenant only
  • Core$20/month
    • From 20 US dollars a month, up to 100 team members
    • Includes 80 to 2,200 recurring compute units a month depending on tier
    • Additional units from 10 US dollars per 40 units
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Single-tenant deployment in your own AWS or GCP account
    • SAML and OIDC single sign-on
    • Dedicated account management and forward deployed engineers

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 Ona (formerly Gitpod) if

  • You need ephemeral environments.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud Platform.
  • You also want agent sessions.
Ona (formerly Gitpod) review

Questions people ask

Is CodeSandbox or Ona (formerly Gitpod) better?
Neither clearly leads. CodeSandbox starts at Free and Ona (formerly Gitpod) at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, CodeSandbox or Ona (formerly Gitpod)?
CodeSandbox starts at Free and Ona (formerly Gitpod) at Free.
Does CodeSandbox or Ona (formerly Gitpod) run on more platforms?
CodeSandbox runs on web, api. Ona (formerly Gitpod) runs on Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud Platform.
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 Ona (formerly Gitpod) is typically brought in for.
What can CodeSandbox do that Ona (formerly Gitpod) cannot?
CodeSandbox covers Instant sandboxes, Programmatic sandbox API, Secure isolated execution, Browser-based editor. Ona (formerly Gitpod) covers Ephemeral environments, Agent sessions, Bring your own cloud, Devcontainer standard.

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
Ona (formerly Gitpod): Is Gitpod still called Gitpod?

No. It rebranded to Ona in September 2025, and gitpod.io now redirects to ona.com. The company was acquired by OpenAI in a deal that closed on 10 August 2026.

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
Ona (formerly Gitpod): Can I still self-host it for free?

No. The AGPL-3.0 self-hosted project is deprecated by its own README. What is offered now is a vendor-operated single-tenant install in your AWS or GCP account on the Enterprise plan.

Ona (formerly Gitpod): What happened to Gitpod Classic?

Pay-as-you-go Classic was switched off on 15 October 2025. Migration required converting gitpod.yml to devcontainer.json, moving secrets by hand, downloading workspace data before the cutoff and creating a new account.

Ona (formerly Gitpod): What does it cost?

Core starts at 20 US dollars a month and includes a monthly allowance of Ona Compute Units, with more from 10 dollars per 40 units. Subscription credits expire monthly. Enterprise is quoted.

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