# InstaBox

> Firecracker machines with a browser desktop, sold as a subscription that is also a monthly credit.

Website: https://instabox.sh  
Guide page: https://botperch.com/providers/instabox/  
Checked: 2026-10-28

**Short answer:** One always-on personal agent (2 vCPU / 4 GiB / 20 GiB) costs about $20.00 a month here, the 4th cheapest of the 12 providers that run it as described. The AI model adds about $14.70 a month on top (GLM 5.3, 30 requests a day at 40k tokens each, median zero-retention price; from $6.84 at the cheapest host). Fits well: A real free plan: one 4 vCPU / 8 GiB machine that never converts and needs no card.

InstaBox sells full Linux virtual machines, one per AI agent, that boot in about a second, keep their disk between sessions, and can be paused with memory and running processes intact.
Each machine is a Firecracker microVM running Debian 13 with its own kernel, root, systemd and Docker. You drive it from a web dashboard, a CLI, a TypeScript SDK or plain HTTP, and you can watch or take over its graphical desktop.
The intended buyer is a team running coding or computer-use agents that needs a real machine per task, not a single shared dev box. InstaBox is not InstaCloud, InsForge's separate managed-backend product.

**Who it is for:** Teams and individuals running agents that need a persistent, general-purpose Linux box with a browser and desktop, who are comfortable with a CLI or API.

**Isolation:** Firecracker microVM with its own kernel, root and passwordless sudo. Docker works. Templates are versioned images; you cannot bring your own OCI image.

**Sizes and regions:** Fixed vCPU/RAM pairs by plan: Free is 4/8 only; Pro adds 2/4 and 8/16; Builder goes to 16/32; Team to 32/64. One disk at /data, 20 GiB by default, growable live to 200 GiB on Pro.

## How it charges

- model: Monthly subscription that is also a credit: $20, $100 or $500, reset monthly.
- meter: Per second while running, on the size you asked for: $0.004 per vCPU-hour, $0.00225 per GiB-hour, $0.00011 per GiB-hour of storage, $0.02 per GiB of egress.
- stopped: Storage only. Paused and stopped machines pay GiB-hours for their disk and snapshots; paused memory is not billed and does not count as stored data.
- planFee: The plan fee is the credit. Usage comes out of it first, then pay-as-you-go, and unused credit expires at month end.
- minimum: $20 a month on Pro, or the free plan: one 4/8 machine, five snapshots, 100 GiB of egress a month.

Per second on the size you asked for, out of a monthly plan that is also a credit; storage bills in every state.
- The free plan is one 4 vCPU / 8 GiB machine that pauses after 30 idle minutes; it is not priced here.
- Egress is $0.02 per GiB and is not included.

## Monthly cost for each preset workload

- A personal agent that stays on (Hermes, OpenClaw): $20.00
- A coding agent for one developer: $20.00
- A code interpreter inside your product: $20.00
- A browser agent for a small team: $90.50
- Self-hosted n8n for a small team: $20.00
- A Discord or Slack bot for one server: $20.00
- Claude Code for a team of five: $43.26
- A scraper that runs four times a day: $20.00
- Your own remote MCP server: $20.00
- A: 1,000 short tasks: $20.00
- B: one always-on box: $28.84
- C: three hours a day: $20.00

## Fits well

- A real free plan: one 4 vCPU / 8 GiB machine that never converts and needs no card.
- A browser desktop and a dashboard that creates the machine without a terminal.
- Claude Code and Codex in the default image, with logins that persist in /data/home.

## Fits badly

- An always-on agent on the free plan, which always pauses at 30 idle minutes.
- A client-facing service on your own address: there is no custom domain, and only private ports carry a token.
- A US-only data-residency requirement with a published region selector or status page.

## Features

- **Isolation** (yes): Firecracker; root + Docker. A Firecracker microVM running Debian 13 with its own kernel, root, passwordless sudo and Docker. [source](https://instabox.sh/) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits)
- **Sizes and regions** (partly): 32 vCPU / 64 GiB; US only. Fixed vCPU/RAM pairs by plan, from 2/4 to 32/64, one 20 GiB disk that grows live. No published region selector; the terms say the United States. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits)
- **Lifecycle** (partly): RAM; 1 s resume. Pause keeps memory and running programs and resumes in about a second; stop loses them, and a paused machine cannot be stopped at all. A resume can cold-boot and report processesPreserved false. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/integrate) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines)
- **Snapshots and forks** (partly): Disk only; may stop source. Snapshots are disk-only and may stop the machine to take them; a fork is snapshot-save plus create, not an instant clone; snapshots survive deleting the machine and include saved logins. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots)
- **Storage** (partly): 20 GiB at /data. One disk at /data, 20 GiB by default and growable, with the root disk owned by the template. No volumes and no second disk; the free plan's disk is fixed. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits)
- **Idle and waking** (partly): 30 min idle. Paid machines have no lifetime timeout, but idle auto-pause defaults to 30 minutes; paid plans can choose 5–30 minutes or off. Nothing deletes a paused or stopped machine: there is no forced TTL. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/concepts) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines)
- **Reaching it** (partly): Public or token-only links. An HTTPS link per port, up to 16, either public or private behind a replaceable token. SSH and mosh go through a gateway. Raw non-web ports are in an admin-only preview, later paid plans only with 5 per workspace. No custom domain. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports)
- **Custom domains** (not-published): Not published. No custom-domain support is published. The public-port URL is a fixed vendor subdomain, and the OpenAPI PublicPort object has only port, name, url and machineId, with no customDomain or cname field. No roadmap entry exists. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports)
- **Outbound network** (partly): 100 GiB–50 TiB included. No general egress allowlist is published; host scoping applies to Secrets, not all sandbox traffic. Each plan includes egress every month (100 GiB Free, 1 TiB Pro, 5 TiB Builder, 50 TiB Team), then $0.02 per GiB. Outbound addresses are not published. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits)
- **Keys and secrets** (yes): No, proxy on 443. Org Secrets in proxy mode: the sandbox sees an ibsec_ placeholder and the real value is added only to HTTPS headers on port 443 to named hosts. Env mode exposes the value. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/secrets) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/secrets)
- **Ways to drive it** (partly): Yes, dashboard. REST, a TypeScript SDK, a CLI, SSH and mosh through a gateway, a web terminal and a VNC desktop. No control-plane MCP is published. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/start) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/keys-sdk)
- **Built-in agents** (yes): Claude Code + Codex. Claude Code and Codex are in the default and agent templates, and sign-ins persist because home is /data/home. There is no hosted agent-run API. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits)
- **Teams and accounts** (partly): Monthly cap stops machines. Organisations and workspaces with roles, scoped keys and a monthly spend cap that stops machines. SSO, SCIM and audit logs are Enterprise only. [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/api/account)
- **Billing models** (yes): $20 plan, then usage. A subscription that is also credit: $20, $100 or $500 a month, then per-second vCPU and RAM, GiB-hour storage and $0.02 per GiB of egress. Paused and stopped machines pay storage only. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing)
- **Trials and free tiers** (yes): Free plan, 1 machine. A real free plan: one 4 vCPU / 8 GiB machine, 20 GiB fixed disk, five snapshots, 100 GiB egress, a fixed 30-minute idle pause and two templates. It never converts. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing) [docs](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing)
- **The company** (partly): InsForge AI, Inc.; 99.9% Enterprise. InsForge AI, Inc., Delaware; InstaBox is its second product, launched 14 October 2026 and priced 19 October. Founded 2025 by Hang Huang (CEO) and Tony Chang (CTO), YC Spring 2026, six people, $8M seed in September 2026. The YC badge is on insforge.dev, not instabox.sh. No public status page; per-machine metrics only. 99.9% SLA on Enterprise only, with no credits or measurement published. HIPAA badge only; no SOC 2 report, ISO or public DPA. Fees non-refundable; terminate through support. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)

## Capabilities

- Its own virtual machine: yes (Firecracker microVM) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Root access: yes (passwordless sudo) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Docker inside: yes (Docker on default image) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Nested virtualisation: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Your own image: partly (operator-built templates). You pick from fixed images or a saved copy; a different starting image needs an operator to build one for you. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Any size you like: no (fixed pairs by plan). Each plan sells fixed pairs of cores and memory, and any other combination is refused. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Large machines: yes (32 cores / 64 GiB). Only on the $500-a-month plan or above. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Resize while running: partly (only while stopped). Cores and memory change only while the machine is stopped, and take effect at its next start; the free plan cannot resize at all. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines.md)
- GPUs: no (no GPU). No graphics processor is offered on any plan. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Choose the region: no (no region setting). There is no region setting anywhere in the tools or docs, so you cannot ask for a European machine. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Runs in the EU: no (US only). There is no European region and no way to ask for one. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Pause keeps memory: partly (RAM; 1 s resume). A resume can come back without the running programs, and the machine reports that it did. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines.md)
- Pre-started pools: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Starts in under a second: partly (About a second). A resume usually takes about a second, which is not under one. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/integrate.md)
- Snapshots of files: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Snapshots with memory: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Copy a running machine: partly (A few seconds). A copy is made in a few seconds and carries the files but not the running programs. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Pick an older snapshot: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Reusable templates: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Automatic backups: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots.md)
- Files survive a stop: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines.md)
- Separate volumes: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- One volume, several machines: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Mount outside storage: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Large disk: yes (Up to 1024 GiB) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Can stay on indefinitely: partly (Paid plans only). Only paid plans can switch off the idle pause; on the free plan a machine always pauses after 30 idle minutes, though nothing is deleted and it wakes when used. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines.md)
- Choose the idle timeout: partly (5–30 min or off). Only paid plans can choose; the free plan is fixed at 30 minutes and cannot turn it off. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/concepts.md)
- Wakes on a request: partly. Only a machine the platform paused for being idle wakes on a request; one you paused yourself has to be resumed. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines.md)
- Scheduled runs: no [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/concepts.md)
- Public link to a port: yes (16 ports) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md)
- Private link: yes (Token in link) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md)
- Real SSH: yes (Gateway, short cert) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ssh.md)
- Terminal in the browser: yes (Dashboard) [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Tunnel to your computer: yes (ssh -L, yours only) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ssh.md)
- Non-web ports: partly (Preview, 5 per workspace). Raw non-web traffic is in a preview only administrators can use, and later will be paid-plan only with five ports per workspace. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md)
- Your own domain: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md)
- Automatic HTTPS: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/ports.md)
- Outbound data included: yes (100 GiB free) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Allow only some sites: no. There is no setting that limits which sites a machine may reach. [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Turn the internet off: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Fixed outgoing IP: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Stored secrets: yes (Org secrets) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/secrets.md)
- Secrets the agent cannot read: yes (Web headers only) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/secrets.md)
- Limited API keys: yes (Per-resource scopes) [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Create from the website: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/start.md)
- Command-line tool: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/start.md)
- Python SDK: partly. A Python library is named in one place but has no page, package name or install command. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- TypeScript SDK: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/sdk.md)
- Documented HTTP API: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/api.md)
- MCP server: no. No MCP server is published for the InstaBox API, so an assistant cannot create machines through one. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/llms.txt)
- Interactive terminal over the API: yes [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Files over the API: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/api/commands.md)
- Coding agents preinstalled: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Send it a prompt: no. There is no prompt endpoint; the API offers exec, files, desktop and snapshots. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/api/commands.md)
- One-click Hermes: no. No Hermes template, guide or one-click route is documented. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- One-click OpenClaw: no. No OpenClaw template or guide is published. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/limits.md)
- Browser built in: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/desktop.md)
- Desktop for computer use: yes [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/desktop.md)
- Runs other platforms' agents: no. No page documents another platform's cloud agents using InstaBox. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/llms.txt)
- Team workspace: yes [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Roles and permissions: yes [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Single sign-on: partly. Company sign-in, SAML and automatic user sync are listed only on the Enterprise plan. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- Hard spending cap: yes [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Usage alerts: yes [source](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)
- Audit log: partly. Audit logs are listed only on the Enterprise plan. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- Billed per second: yes (per second) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- CPU billed only while working: no (size while running). A waiting machine costs the same as a busy one of the same size. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Paused costs only storage: yes (storage only) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- No monthly fee: no ($20 minimum plan). The free plan is capped at one machine, and anything more needs a $20-a-month plan. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Flat monthly price: no (metered parts). The bill is cores plus memory per second, plus storage. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Ongoing free tier: yes (1 machine, 4 cores / 8 GiB) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Free starting credit: no (none). There is no starting credit; the free plan is a machine, and paid plans include usage equal to their fee. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Try without a card: yes (free plan) [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/pricing.md)
- Public status page: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/start.md)
- Uptime promise (SLA): partly (99.9%, Enterprise). A 99.9% promise is listed only on the Enterprise plan, with no published measurement or credits. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- SOC 2 report: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- Data processing agreement: not-published [source](https://instabox.sh/terms)
- Open source or self-hostable: no. InstaBox is a hosted service; no self-hosted or open-source edition is published. [source](https://instabox.sh/docs/start.md)

## Usability

- Dashboard: Yes, a full console: create a machine from a template with a button, start/stop/pause, open the Computer tab to click the Linux desktop, publish ports, save snapshots from the Playground, read metrics and billing.
- Without code: Partly. Creating a machine, opening its desktop, using Chromium, publishing a port and saving a snapshot are all click-driven. Claude Code and Codex are preinstalled, so you can type a plain-English request into the box's terminal. There is no hosted agent product and no prompt-in, result-out API.
- Signup: GitHub or Google. Whether a brand-new free account needs a card is not published: the pricing page says $0, while the API has a cardMissingAt state that blocks free machines. Paid plans subscribe by card in the dashboard.
- Docs: 26 pages, each available as Markdown, plus an llms-full.txt bundle; every page states limits and failure modes. Support is email on paid plans, priority on Team, and there is a Discord. No public status page was found.
- Trips people up: The quick start is a terminal command, npx instabox@latest sh.
- Trips people up: Two different off switches: pause keeps the session, stop does not, and you cannot stop a paused machine.
- Trips people up: A snapshot does not save the session, only files and installs.
- Trips people up: Fork is not instant, despite the homepage.
- Trips people up: The free machine is not a server: it always pauses after 30 idle minutes.
- Trips people up: Public port URLs have no password.

## Company

- Legal entity: InsForge AI, Inc., a Delaware corporation. InstaBox is a product line, not a separate company. [source](https://instabox.sh/terms)
- History: Public launch 14 October 2026; pricing went live 19 October 2026. The company was founded in 2025. [source](https://instabox.sh/blog/instabox-pricing)
- Funding: $8M seed announced 29 September 2026; investors and valuation were not disclosed. [source](https://dealroom.co/news/158042-insforge-raises-8m-seed-to-build-cloud-infrastructure-for-ai-agents/)
- Headcount: 6, per Y Combinator's directory and Dealroom. Founders are Hang Huang (CEO) and Tony Chang (CTO). [source](https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/insforge-instacloud)
- Status and SLA: No status page. A 99.9% SLA is listed on Enterprise only, with no credits or measurement published. [source](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- Certification: The Trust Center lists HIPAA only and describes InsForge, not InstaBox. No SOC 2 badge. [source](https://app.vanta.com/insforge.dev/trust/9dxtxcntvvv5ow2tx7e4dm)
- YC badge: Displayed on insforge.dev, not on instabox.sh. [source](https://insforge.dev/)

## Caveats

- **The homepage says a fork copies running processes; the docs say otherwise** (contradiction): Marketing says fork a machine mid-run and copy a running machine in seconds, listing Running Processes. The docs say fork is snapshot save plus create, and a snapshot does not hold memory or running processes.
- **An 8-hour free run cap has left the docs** (open): Earlier research found MaxRunMinutes defaulting to 480 for free machines in the API schema. On 29 October no docs or API page mentions it and the machines page says there is no forced TTL, so the guide no longer states a cap.
- **Docs and API disagree on whether a preview visit wakes a paused machine** (contradiction): The ports page says a visit wakes an idle-paused machine; the OpenAPI says preview links remain offline until resumed.
- **Whether the free plan needs a card** (open): The pricing page says $0 and Get started; the API has a card-missing state that makes free sandboxes answer 402. It may apply only to workspaces that once had a paid plan.
- **Snapshots carry credentials** (open): Home is /data/home, so saved GitHub, Claude, Codex, git and SSH logins travel into every machine built from a snapshot.
- **No published regions and no status page** (open): The Terms say the United States; there is no region selector. status.instabox.sh does not resolve.

## Sources

- [Docs](https://instabox.sh/docs)
- [Lifecycle](https://instabox.sh/docs/api/lifecycle)
- [Machines](https://instabox.sh/docs/machines)
- [Snapshots](https://instabox.sh/docs/snapshots)
- [Secrets](https://instabox.sh/docs/secrets)
- [Pricing](https://instabox.sh/pricing)
- [OpenAPI document](https://api.instabox.sh/v1/openapi.json)