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Build Minutes Cost Calculator

Work out build minutes cost instantly with clear inputs, formula shown and shareable results.

About Build Minutes Cost Calculator

Hosted CI bills per runner minute, multiplied by a size factor — a 4-vCPU runner typically costs twice a 2-vCPU one and an 8-vCPU four times. That multiplier is why moving to a bigger runner only saves money if it cuts duration by more than the price increase, which is worth checking rather than assuming.

Formula

CI cost

minutes = builds x average duration; cost = minutes x price per minute x runner size multiplier

Worked example

With the default values below, Build Minutes Cost Calculator returns Monthly CI compute cost of $1,152.00. Change any input above and every figure here is recalculated in your browser.

Inputs used

Builds per monthminimum 1
6,000
Average build minutesminimum 0.1 min
12 min
Price per runner minuteminimum 0
0.008
Cost multiplier for the runner sizeaccepts 1–64 x
2 x

Results

Monthly CI compute cost
$1,152.00
Runner minutes consumed
72,000 min
Cost per build
$0.1920
Annual cost
$13,824.00

Step by step

  1. 1Values used
  2. 2CI cost
  3. 3Monthly CI compute cost= 1,152.00
  4. 4Runner minutes consumed= 72,000 min
  5. 5Cost per build= 0.1920
  6. 6Annual cost= 13,824.00

Assumptions and limits

  • The result is derived only from the 4 inputs listed above. Anything not among them is not part of the calculation.
  • In particular, this calculator does not take inflation, tax or compounding frequency into account.
  • Figures are rounded for display to 4 decimal places, so totals built from several rounded parts can differ slightly from the unrounded arithmetic.

How these calculators are built and tested is described on the Methodology page. If a figure looks wrong, please report it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a larger runner ever reduce cost?

Only if the build parallelises well enough that duration falls faster than the multiplier rises. A single-threaded build on an 8-vCPU runner costs four times as much for the same duration.

What is the biggest lever on CI spend?

Not running work that does not need running: path filters so unrelated changes skip suites, and cancelling superseded runs on the same branch.

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Build Minutes Cost Calculator | Calcrivo