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Developer Tools · head to head

Ona (formerly Gitpod) vs Writer

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
Writer logo

Writer

AI

Full-stack generative AI platform for enterprise content and agents

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Ona (formerly Gitpod) has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Writer pricing is not publicly disclosed and requires a sales conversation, unlike consumer AI writing tools.
  • They diverge on capability: Ona (formerly Gitpod) covers Ephemeral environments, Writer covers Palmyra LLMs.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

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

Attributes where Ona (formerly Gitpod) and Writer differ
AttributeOna (formerly Gitpod)Writer
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month by compute unitquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud Platformweb, api
CategoryDeveloper ToolsAI
FoundedUnknown2020

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 Ona (formerly Gitpod)

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

Only in Writer

  • Palmyra LLMs
  • Knowledge Graph
  • No-code agent builder
  • Brand compliance
  • AI writing assistant
  • Enterprise security controls

What people use each for

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

Ona (formerly Gitpod)

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

Writer

  • Enterprise marketing content generationnot Ona (formerly Gitpod)
  • AI-powered knowledge assistants grounded in company datanot Ona (formerly Gitpod)
  • Building custom generative AI agents without codenot Ona (formerly Gitpod)
  • Brand and compliance-consistent copywriting at scalenot Ona (formerly Gitpod)

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Writer

  • Pricing is not publicly disclosed and requires a sales conversation, unlike consumer AI writing tools.
  • Its proprietary Palmyra models are less widely benchmarked and documented than general-purpose models like GPT or Claude.
  • Primarily positioned for large enterprises, making it less accessible or cost-effective for individuals and small teams.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Writer

On request
  • Starter$undefined/month
    • For teams starting with agentic AI
    • Up to 5 users
    • 14-day free trial, no card required
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Contact sales
    • Unlimited users, teams and free collaborators
    • Lite seats for invited users

Which should you pick?

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

Choose Writer if

  • You need palmyra llms.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want knowledge graph.
Writer review

Questions people ask

Is Ona (formerly Gitpod) or Writer better?
Neither clearly leads. Ona (formerly Gitpod) starts at Free and Writer at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Ona (formerly Gitpod) or Writer?
Ona (formerly Gitpod) has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Ona (formerly Gitpod) and On request for Writer.
Does Ona (formerly Gitpod) or Writer run on more platforms?
Ona (formerly Gitpod) runs on Web, Linux, macOS, Windows, AWS, Google Cloud Platform. Writer runs on web, api.
Can I use Ona (formerly Gitpod) for free?
Yes. Ona (formerly Gitpod) has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Writer starts at On request.
What is Ona (formerly Gitpod) best used for?
Ona (formerly Gitpod) is most often used for giving a large engineering team identical, disposable environments so onboarding is a link rather than a two day setup, running several coding agents in parallel against real databases and services instead of on a laptop, keeping source code off contractor and offshore laptops by moving the whole environment into a controlled account, reproducing a hard-to-configure toolchain for a short-lived project without polluting anyone machine. Of those, giving a large engineering team identical, disposable environments so onboarding is a link rather than a two day setup and running several coding agents in parallel against real databases and services instead of on a laptop are not what Writer is typically brought in for.
What can Ona (formerly Gitpod) do that Writer cannot?
Ona (formerly Gitpod) covers Ephemeral environments, Agent sessions, Bring your own cloud, Devcontainer standard. Writer covers Palmyra LLMs, Knowledge Graph, No-code agent builder, Brand compliance.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Writer: What does Writer cost?

Writer does not publish prices. There are two tiers: Starter, for teams up to five users, with a 14-day free trial and no card required, and Enterprise, which is contact-sales and adds unlimited users and teams.

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.

Writer: What is the difference between Pro and Lite seats?

Pro is the standard paid seat, with full access to create, customise and automate workflows. Lite seats exist only on Enterprise, letting invited users view and run existing playbooks with limited monthly Agent use before needing a Pro seat.

Source
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.

Writer: What does Writer do with customer data?

Writer states a zero data retention approach and says customers retain full ownership of their data. By default it does not train or improve its models on customer data, rather than requiring an opt-out.

Source
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.

Writer: Which compliance standards does Writer meet?

Writer says it adheres to GDPR, HIPAA, SOC 2 Type II and PCI. HIPAA and SOC 2 Type II certifications and reports are available on request, and only for Enterprise plans.

Source
Writer: Are there discounts for nonprofits or education?

Yes. Writer offers 20% off the Starter and Enterprise plans to nonprofits and educational institutions, claimed by emailing from a nonprofit or .edu address.

Source
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