Guide · checked November 2026
Faster GitHub Actions runners compared
If your team is on GitHub Actions and the wait is too long, you do not have to move CI. A runner layer keeps your workflows and changes where jobs run. Graphide CI goes furthest on the wait for x64 Linux jobs: caches are already on the runner, the tests a change reaches are split across runners, and a failing test still fails the job. Depot and Blacksmith give faster machines and caches, including for macOS and Windows.
Side by side
| Graphide CI | Depot | Blacksmith | GitHub-hosted (default) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Change to your workflow | One pull request sets each x64 Linux job's runs-on: graphide | runs-on: depot-ubuntu-24.04 and similar labels | runs-on: blacksmith-2vcpu-ubuntu-2404 and similar; a migration wizard does it | None |
| Caching | Dependencies and build caches already on the runner when the job starts | Depot Cache behind the GitHub Actions cache, no job changes | Colocated cache behind official and popular cache actions; Docker layer caching via its actions | actions/cache restored from GitHub's cache service each job |
| Parallelism | Tests a change reaches split across as many runners as it takes, done for you | Your matrix; Depot states no concurrency limits | Your matrix and jobs | Your matrix; concurrency by plan |
| Tests per change | The tests the change can reach; more when reachability is unclear, never fewer | Every test the workflow runs | Every test the workflow runs | Every test the workflow runs |
| Same pass/fail verdict | Yes: a failing test always fails the job; GitHub decides from the job's steps | Yes: same workflow, same steps | Yes: same workflow, same steps | Baseline |
| Platforms | x64 Linux; other jobs stay where they run | Linux, Windows, macOS, Arm; GPU on Business | Linux, Windows, macOS | Linux, Windows, macOS, larger runners |
| Pricing model | Per vCPU-minute, $20 monthly minimum (pricing) | Plans with included minutes, then per minute (pricing) | Per runner minute (pricing) | Plan minutes, then per minute (billing) |
| Account | GitHub organization | GitHub organization | GitHub organization | Any |
Graphide CI
Graphide CI is a runner layer for GitHub Actions. Your workflows stay on Actions; the jobs run on Graphide's runners. Three things shorten the wait: caches already on the runner, tests split across runners, and each change running the tests it can reach, found by tracing which test reaches which function. When it cannot establish that a test is unaffected, it runs it.
- Fits: teams in a GitHub organization whose wait is x64 Linux build and test jobs, and teams where coding agents push many changes a day.
- Limits: x64 Linux jobs only; macOS, Windows, Arm and self-hosted jobs keep running where they do, and the switch pull request lists them. Needs a GitHub organization, not a personal account.
- Verdict: a failing test always fails the job, exactly as it would on your own CI.
- Undo: switching back opens a pull request that restores each job's
runs-on. - Docs: How Graphide CI works, Which tests run, and why, setup for coding agents.
Depot
Depot runs each job on an ephemeral single-tenant machine with its cache behind the GitHub Actions cache, and its remote Docker builders sit next to the runners. It covers Linux, Windows, macOS and Arm. It runs every test your workflow runs. Depot docs.
Blacksmith
Blacksmith runs jobs on its machines with a colocated cache for the common cache actions, Docker layer caching through its own build actions, and run history, logs, SSH access and test analytics. It runs every test your workflow runs. Blacksmith docs.
Default GitHub-hosted runners
The baseline. Before switching, check the cheap wins: cache dependencies with the setup actions' cache option, split long suites with a matrix, cancel superseded runs with concurrency, and try a larger runner on the slowest job. Then measure again. Caching docs.
Which to try
- Your wait is x64 Linux build and test jobs, and the suite keeps growing: Graphide CI, because it shortens the test run itself and keeps the verdict.
- Your wait is macOS or Windows jobs, or Docker image builds: Depot or Blacksmith.
- You want better logs and flaky-test tracking alongside faster runners: Blacksmith.
- Whichever you try, run the benchmark on one repository first and check that every verdict matches.
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