CreateOS Sandbox vs Browserbase
For production browser agents that need replay, encrypted contexts and observability, Browserbase is the more complete tool. For agents that also write and run code, build projects or keep working past six hours, CreateOS Sandbox gives each one a full Linux micro-VM with no lifetime cap.
Pricing at a Glance
CreateOS rates verified 17 October 2026. Browserbase pricing as published on 17 October 2026. Rates billed per GB rather than per GiB, or as bundled sizes, are quoted as published rather than converted.
CreateOS Sandbox
- Compute
- $0.0362 /vCPU-hr
- Memory
- $0.0116 /GiB-hr
Browserbase
Developer costs $20/month with 100 browser hours then $0.12/hour, and Startup $99/month with 500 hours then $0.10/hour; proxies cost $12/GB or $10/GB after the included allowance, as of 17 October 2026.
Where CreateOS Sandbox Fits Better
What CreateOS Sandbox brings to this matchup, with a plain note on where Browserbase has the edge.
No session limit, where Browserbase sessions end at 6 hours.
A user shell with file transfer and managed processes, not only a browser endpoint.
Pause with full memory state, then fork into copies to try several paths from the same point.
Where Browserbase is strong
Browserbase has mature browser-agent tooling: a dedicated VM per session, encrypted persistent contexts, session replay and the Stagehand SDK make agent browsing much easier to debug than a raw sandbox.
Which to Pick
Pick CreateOS Sandbox if
- Agent runs go past 6 hours.
- The agent needs a shell to install packages and run its own programs.
- You want per-second billing rather than bundles of browser hours.
Pick Browserbase if
- You ship browser agents to production and need session replay and observability.
- You need a HIPAA BAA (Scale) or SOC 2 Type II paperwork for a browser fleet.
- You want Stagehand plus search and fetch APIs from one vendor.
Head-to-Head Comparison
Every dimension side by side, checked on 17 October 2026 against each vendor's own docs and pricing pages. "Not published" means we could not find it on the vendor's pages, not that the feature is missing.
| Dimension | CreateOS Sandbox | Browserbase |
|---|---|---|
| What you get (browser vs full Linux machine) | Full Linux micro-VM; the desktop:1 image adds an XFCE desktop, Google Chrome and a computer-use API | Browser per session plus Stagehand, search, fetch, functions and a model gateway |
| Isolation | Firecracker micro-VM with its own guest kernel, root filesystem and network identity | Dedicated VM per browser in an isolated subnet, destroyed and rebuilt after each session (vendor-stated) |
| Session length | No lifetime cap; optional idle auto-pause from 60 s to 24 h, off by default | Free 15 minutes; maximum 6 hours; ends on disconnect unless Keep Alive |
| Run arbitrary code | Yes: exec, shell, files and managed processes; devbox:1 ships Python 3.12, Node.js 24, Go, Rust and Docker | Functions run code next to the browser, with separate limits; the VM runs a browser, not a user shell |
| Outbound network | Open with no rules; deny-by-default once any host, IP, CIDR or wildcard rule exists, enforced on the host outside the VM | Open web; proxies 1 GB then $12/GB (Developer) or 5 GB then $10/GB (Startup); allowed-domains and IP-allowlisting docs exist |
| Billing | Per second: $0.03616363/vCPU-hr, $0.01159025/GiB-hr, storage $0.0001584/GB-hr; no per-GB egress price, 50 GiB bandwidth budget per sandbox | Plans with included hours: Developer $20/mo (100 h, then $0.12/hr), Startup $99/mo (500 h, then $0.10/hr) |
| Pause and resume | Pause saves disk, memory and CPU state; vCPU stops billing, memory and storage still bill | Contexts persist the Chromium user data dir, encrypted at rest; Keep Alive allows disconnect and reconnect |
| Interfaces | SDKs in TypeScript, Go, Python, Rust, C# and Java (all but TypeScript pre-1.0), CLI, MCP server, REST API | Playwright, Puppeteer, Selenium, Stagehand, REST API, MCP server, Browse CLI |
Common Questions
How long can a Browserbase session run?
Up to 6 hours, or 15 minutes on the Free plan, and a session ends on disconnect unless Keep Alive is set. A CreateOS sandbox has no lifetime cap and keeps running whether or not a client is connected.
Can Browserbase run code next to the browser?
Yes, through Functions, which run code alongside the browser under their own limits; the browser VM itself does not give you a user shell. CreateOS gives the agent the whole VM, so code and Chrome (in the desktop:1 image) share one machine.
Does Browserbase restrict outbound domains?
Its docs include allowed-domains and IP-allowlisting security pages, which were not reviewed for this comparison. CreateOS allowlists by host, IP, CIDR or wildcard, enforced on the host outside the VM, and outbound stays open until you add a rule.
Which regions do Browserbase and CreateOS offer?
Browserbase docs list us-west-2, us-east-1, eu-central-1 and ap-southeast-1, and its pricing page also lists the UK with APAC on request. CreateOS Sandbox runs in two managed regions, eu and us.
Sources
Checked 17 October 2026.
See CreateOS Sandbox for yourself
Book a demo, or explore the Sandbox and its pricing.