# Lightpanda Cloud

Official pricing: https://lightpanda.io/pricing  
Category: browser · Isolation: container

## Pricing regimes (raw)

- **Cloud headless browser** (sizes): Cloud headless browser ? vCPU/? GiB $0.08/h

## Features

Yes: idle auto-stop, browser, browser automation API, open internet, self-hosting, BYOC, open source, arm64, Python, Node.js, MCP server

No: snapshots, memory snapshots, fork/clone, pause/resume, persistent disk, volumes, ≥24 h sessions, start from your own snapshot, your own Docker/OCI image, full VM (own kernel), Docker inside, nested virtualization, desktop GUI, computer-use API, desktop control API, browser + desktop control, anti-bot stealth, CAPTCHA solving, residential IPs, preinstalled agents, SSH, public IPv4, HTTPS preview URLs, egress allowlist, static egress IP, SOC 2, HIPAA, SSO, GPU, Windows, macOS, GPU desktop, HTTP method/path egress rules, wake on request, live resize, live fork (no pause), memory fork, EU data residency, automatic snapshots, snapshots on demand, agent harness API, hosted agent API (their own agent), gVisor or VM (no shared kernel), inbound access rules, firewall inside (nftables), secret proxy, secret proxy for any API, extra volumes, shared volumes

Unknown: everything else. Evidence (source + quote) per feature: https://battleships.dev/data/providers/lightpanda.json → feature_evidence

## Caveats

- Storage, snapshot GiB-month and public IPv4 prices are not published in the reviewed sources; null is not free.
- No guaranteed vCPU allocation published; browser-hour is not a verified 4-vCPU/8-GiB VM equivalent. The sizes card keeps unknown hardware null; do not coerce it to zero or auto-rank against resource-guaranteed VMs.
- Browser RAM is not published unless a specific mode overrides it.
- Resource-footprint and performance marketing comparisons are not CPU/RAM allocation guarantees. Compatibility is a CDP/WebAPI subset, not full Chrome desktop.
- Builder concurrency 30 cannot fulfill 50 simultaneous browsers without Enterprise. Card preserves unknown resources null.
- Cloud docs: metered by the second. CDP connection closes after 15 minutes regardless of quota; MCP idle timeout 5 minutes, active sessions can continue. Channel-specific cap cannot be represented by one max_session_h.
- No graphics rendering pipeline: screenshot CDP returns a placeholder, not actual rendered page pixels. Local PNG/PDF output is text-only per README. This is not a screenshot-driven computer-use desktop substitute.

## How this provider charges


As of 2026-09-28. USD unless explicitly stated; public list prices unless a row is marked promotion, historical, or quote-only.

## Regime table

| Regime | When it applies | How billed | Numbers / terms | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud | Managed headless browser | Browser hour | Explorer: 10 hours/month free; Builder: $19/month includes 300 hours, then $0.08/hour. | https://lightpanda.io/pricing |
| Self-host | Own environment | Own compute | Open-source browser; not free managed hosting | https://github.com/lightpanda-io/browser |
| Proxy | Bring your own | External bill | No bundled residential GB rate | https://lightpanda.io/pricing |
| Explorer | Account plan | Monthly fee / commitment | $0; concurrency 5; 10 hours/month; BYOP; do not price unlimited usage at free tier. | https://lightpanda.io/pricing |
| Builder | Account plan | Monthly fee / commitment | $19; concurrency 30; 300 hours×$.08=$24 overage-equivalent included value; then $.08/hour. BYOP. | https://lightpanda.io/pricing |
| Enterprise | Account plan | Monthly fee / commitment | Quote / unknown; concurrency unpublished/custom; Custom limits/volume, on-prem/private cloud, SLA. | https://lightpanda.io/pricing |

## Gotchas

- Resource-footprint and performance marketing comparisons are not CPU/RAM allocation guarantees. Compatibility is a CDP/WebAPI subset, not full Chrome desktop.

- Builder concurrency 30 cannot fulfill 50 simultaneous browsers without Enterprise. Card preserves unknown resources null.

- Cloud docs: metered by the second. CDP connection closes after 15 minutes regardless of quota; MCP idle timeout 5 minutes, active sessions can continue. Channel-specific cap cannot be represented by one max_session_h.

- No graphics rendering pipeline: screenshot CDP returns a placeholder, not actual rendered page pixels. Local PNG/PDF output is text-only per README. This is not a screenshot-driven computer-use desktop substitute.

- Storage, snapshot GiB-month and public IPv4 prices are not published in the reviewed sources; null is not free.

- No guaranteed vCPU allocation published; browser-hour is not a verified 4-vCPU/8-GiB VM equivalent. The sizes card keeps unknown hardware null; do not coerce it to zero or auto-rank against resource-guaranteed VMs.

- Browser RAM is not published unless a specific mode overrides it.

## Browser and desktop dimensions

```json
{
  "hour_usd": 0.08,
  "included_hours": {
    "Explorer": 10,
    "Builder": 300
  },
  "proxy_residential_gb_usd": null,
  "proxy_datacenter_gb_usd": null,
  "captcha_solve_usd": null,
  "stealth_surcharge_usd": null,
  "recording_storage_gib_month_usd": null,
  "recording_retention": null,
  "persistent_profiles": null,
  "resolution": "No pixel-rendering engine; screenshot placeholder/text-only output, not a GUI resolution tier.",
  "gpu_desktops": null,
  "os_options": [],
  "browsers": [
    "Lightpanda custom headless engine (not Chromium)"
  ],
  "session_limits": {
    "cdp_max_minutes": 15,
    "mcp_idle_minutes": 5
  }
}
```

## Worked example

Requested: 4 vCPU / 8 GiB; 50 concurrent × 8 hours/day × 22 days = **8,800 runtime hours**, 1,100 eight-hour starts if recreated daily; 30% CPU; 50 GiB-month snapshots; 100 GiB egress.

Fifty concurrent sessions require **Enterprise**, since Builder permits 30. Ignoring that constraint, Builder would be $19+(8,800−300)×$.08=$699, but this is not an eligible quote. CDP sessions also close at 15 minutes, requiring segmentation. No graphics-rendered desktop, 4/8 resource guarantee, or priced general snapshots.

## Sources

- https://lightpanda.io/pricing

- https://lightpanda.io/docs/

- https://github.com/lightpanda-io/browser

- https://lightpanda.io/docs/run-on-lightpanda-cloud/limits-and-billing

- https://lightpanda.io/docs/core-concepts/architecture-overview

- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/lightpanda-io/browser/main/README.md