3,000 free minutes every month
CircleCI runners, 1.7x faster and up to 73% less a minute
Keep CircleCI. Point a job's resource class at BuildPulse and it runs on our machines through CircleCI's own self-hosted runner, 33% less a minute than CircleCI's Linux VM at 2 and 4 vCPU and 1.7x faster than its Large, measured. Pipelines, contexts and approvals stay where they are.
No credit card required. Per-minute billing with no minimums and no commitment. Cancel anytime.
The one-line change
This is the whole migration. Every other line in the file stays as it is.
version: 2.1jobs: test: machine: true resource_class: your-namespace/bp-x64-4x steps: - checkout - run: npm ci && npm test
Setup
- In CircleCI, open Self-Hosted Runners, create a namespace if your organization has none, then create a resource class, for example your-namespace/bp-x64-4x. Copy the resource class token CircleCI shows once.
- In CircleCI User Settings, Personal API Tokens, create a read-only token. BuildPulse uses it only to see when jobs are waiting for your resource class.
- In BuildPulse, open Runners, Setup, pick CircleCI and a size. Paste the resource class, its token and the API token. They are checked against CircleCI before saving and stored encrypted.
- Set machine: true and the resource class on one job, and push.
The full walkthrough, with screenshots of each setting, is in the CircleCI setup guide.
What a month on CircleCI costs
A job on a self-hosted runner uses no CircleCI credits for its run time, so the minute is our rate alone. CircleCI's 1.7x speed counts at 4 vCPU, the size we measured; the other sizes count the per-minute price alone. Both free allowances are taken off.
Linux x64
vCPU
A month of CI at 10,000 CircleCI minutes on 4 vCPU x64
resource_class: your-namespace/bp-x64-4x
CircleCI Linux VM
$102
10,000 min · 1,500 included · 8,500 × $0.012
BuildPulse
$35.06
5,882 min · 1,500 free · 4,382 × $0.008
1.7x the speed, measured against CircleCI's Large.
You pay
66% less
at 10,000 CircleCI minutes a month
$0.008/min, not $0.012/min, finishing 1.7x faster, and the first 1,500 free every month.
| Linux x64 | Memory | BuildPulse | CircleCI Linux VM | CircleCI Gen 2 | Total vs CircleCI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 vCPU | 8 GB | $0.004 | 33% less | ||
| 4 vCPU | 16 GB | $0.008 | 61% less | ||
| 8 vCPU | 32 GB | $0.016 | 73% less | ||
| 16 vCPU | 64 GB | $0.032 | 73% less | ||
| 32 vCPU | 128 GB | $0.064 | 64% less |
Per-minute list prices for the same vCPU count, October 5, 2026: CircleCI credits at $15 per 25,000. A self-hosted runner uses no credits for run time. The total counts our 1.7x speed at 4 vCPU, the size we measured against Large, and the per-minute price alone at the others.
3,000 free minutes a month
On every account, renewed monthly. Larger runners use them proportionally faster, so the grant is worth the same whichever size you run.
Flaky test detection included
Every run is parsed for flaky tests and per-test timing. No second tool, no separate bill.
Caching included
Docker layer, dependency and build caches that survive across runs, with no per-GB storage line.
Need your CI to reach a private registry or database behind an allowlist? Our runners leave from four fixed addresses you can allowlist today, and a dedicated egress IP is available on request. Talk to us.
Measured, not claimed
CircleCI benchmark · October 13, 2026
1.7x to 1.8x faster than CircleCI's Large at 4 vCPU on Docker, Node and Go builds, 61% to 62% less per build at list price.
Read the benchmark and rerun it →
Price by machine, class by class: BuildPulse vs CircleCI machines.
Common questions
Do I leave CircleCI?
No. CircleCI keeps running your pipelines, config, contexts, approvals and test insights. The only thing that changes is the machine a job runs on, and that goes through CircleCI’s own self-hosted runner. Move one job, see how it does, and leave the rest where they are.
What does CircleCI still charge me?
Your CircleCI plan as before. Jobs on a self-hosted runner use no credits for their run time. Restoring caches and workspaces to a self-hosted runner counts as network transfer, billed at 420 credits per GB once you pass your plan’s included allowance.
Which jobs are supported?
Linux machine jobs on Ubuntu 24.04 with Docker: machine: true with your resource class. macOS, Windows and Docker executor jobs are not supported. CircleCI caps self-hosted jobs running at once by plan: 5 on Free, 20 on Performance, unlimited on Scale.
How fast does a job start?
Each job gets a fresh machine, usually running in under a minute. You pay our per-minute rate from when CircleCI starts the job to when it ends; the boot is not billed.
Move one job and compare the bill
Create a resource class, paste its token, and point one job at it. Everything else in your pipeline stays on CircleCI.
3,000 free minutes every month · No credit card required