Blacksmith vs Orca by Stably

Detailed side-by-side comparison to help you choose the right tool

Blacksmith

🔴Developer

developer-tools

High-performance managed runner platform for accelerating GitHub Actions workloads on purpose-built infrastructure.

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Starting Price

$0.004/minute
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Orca by Stably

🔴Developer

developer-tools

Free, open-source Agent Development Environment (ADE) that runs multiple CLI coding agents like Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor side-by-side, each in its own isolated git worktree, tracked in one desktop app.

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Starting Price

Free
Full ReviewVisit Site

Feature Comparison

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FeatureBlacksmithOrca by Stably
Categorydeveloper-toolsdeveloper-tools
Pricing Plans4 listed plans1 listed plan
Starting Price$0.004/minuteFree
Key Features
  • • Drop-in managed runners for existing GitHub Actions workflows
  • • Ubuntu x64, Ubuntu ARM, Windows x64, and macOS M4 compute
  • • Vendor-stated 4x faster cache downloads and 2x faster hardware
  • • Run any CLI coding agent (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, and more) side-by-side
  • • Isolated git worktrees per agent with fan-out prompts and merge-the-winner workflow
  • • WebGL terminal splits, VS Code-style editor, and embedded Chromium browser with Design Mode

Blacksmith - Pros & Cons

Pros

  • ✓Uses existing GitHub Actions workflow files and pull-request controls
  • ✓Transparent per-minute rates and 3,000 free minutes support measurable pilots
  • ✓ARM and Apple Silicon runners cover workloads unavailable on many basic CI services

Cons

  • ✗Focused on GitHub Actions rather than heterogeneous CI environments
  • ✗Advertised percentage savings depend on workload-specific speedups
  • ✗Storage add-ons, static IPs, and enterprise concurrency can raise total cost

Orca by Stably - Pros & Cons

Pros

  • ✓Run any CLI coding agent (Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, Copilot, and more) side-by-side. This directly supports the primary workflow.
  • ✓Isolated git worktrees per agent with fan-out prompts and merge-the-winner workflow.
  • ✓WebGL terminal splits, VS Code-style editor, and embedded Chromium browser with Design Mode.
  • ✓Native GitHub and Linear task workflows plus AI-diff annotation.

Cons

  • ✗Plan prices can omit usage overages, model-provider charges, implementation work, taxes, or required seats.
  • ✗Features and limits can change by plan, billing interval, region, and release; verify current documentation.
  • ✗No native MCP support is documented in this record, so agent workflows may require API work or another integration layer.
  • ✗A representative pilot is necessary because a feature list does not establish reliability or operational fit.

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Review BlacksmithReview Orca by Stably