The GitHub Actions control plane is no longer free
3 days ago
- #Pricing Changes
- #GitHub Actions
- #CI/CD
- GitHub introduces a $0.002 per-minute platform fee for all GitHub Actions usage, effective March 1, 2026.
- Previously, self-hosted or third-party runners incurred no GitHub costs; now, all usage is monetized.
- GitHub reduces prices for GitHub-hosted runners, making them more attractive compared to self-hosting.
- The platform fee monetizes the control plane, ensuring GitHub earns revenue regardless of where jobs run.
- Self-hosting now incurs both operational costs and GitHub's per-minute fee, reducing its cost advantage.
- CI performance and cost are now tightly linked, emphasizing the need to minimize job runtime and redundancy.
- GitHub's move shifts revenue focus from lower-margin compute to higher-margin platform fees.
- Third-party runners like Blacksmith are now ecosystem partners rather than cost-saving workarounds.