What is the difference between Beam and Thunder Compute?

Beam and Thunder Compute are both cloud GPU providers offering different pricing models, features, and GPU availability. Use our comparison tool to see real-time pricing and feature differences.

Which is cheaper: Beam or Thunder Compute?

Pricing varies by GPU model and usage requirements. Check our real-time comparison table to find the best deals for your specific needs.

Can I switch between Beam and Thunder Compute?

Yes, both providers offer flexible cloud GPU services. However, consider factors like data transfer costs, setup time, and specific features when switching between providers.

How many GPU models are available for comparison?

We track pricing for 7 different GPU models across both Beam and Thunder Compute, with 0 models available from both providers.

Beam vs Thunder Compute

Compare GPU pricing between Beam and Thunder Compute. Find the best rates for AI training, inference, and ML workloads.

Beam

Provider 1

GPUs Available

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Thunder Compute

Provider 2

GPUs Available

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Comparison Overview

Total GPU Models

Beam GPUs

Thunder Compute GPUs

Direct Comparisons

Average Price Difference: $0.30/hour between comparable GPUs

GPU Pricing Comparison

Total GPUs: 7Both available: 1Beam: 3Thunder Compute: 5

Showing 7 of 7 GPUs

Last updated: 10/3/2026, 10:10:00 PM

GPU Model ↑	Beam Price	Thunder Compute Price	Price Diff ↕	Sources
A100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$1.09/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
A100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $1.09/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
H100 PCIe 80GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$3.20/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
H100 PCIe 80GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $3.20/hour Updated: 9/29/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
H100 SXM 80GB VRAM • BeamThunder Compute	$3.50/hr	$3.20/hr★ Best	↑+$0.30(+9.3%)	Beam Thunder Compute
H100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Beam $3.50/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 Thunder Compute $3.20/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Price Difference:↑+$0.30(+9.3%) Beam Thunder Compute
L40 40GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$0.79/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
L40 40GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $0.79/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
RTX 4090 24GB VRAM • Beam	$0.69/hr★ Best	Not Available	—	Beam
RTX 4090 24GB VRAM • Beam $0.69/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 ★Best Price Not Available Beam
RTX 5090 32GB VRAM • Beam	$1.09/hr★ Best	Not Available	—	Beam
RTX 5090 32GB VRAM • Beam $1.09/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 ★Best Price Not Available Beam
RTX A6000 48GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$0.35/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
RTX A6000 48GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $0.35/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute

A100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$1.09/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
A100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $1.09/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
H100 PCIe 80GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$3.20/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
H100 PCIe 80GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $3.20/hour Updated: 9/29/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
H100 SXM 80GB VRAM • BeamThunder Compute	$3.50/hr	$3.20/hr★ Best	↑+$0.30(+9.3%)	Beam Thunder Compute
H100 SXM 80GB VRAM • Beam $3.50/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 Thunder Compute $3.20/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Price Difference:↑+$0.30(+9.3%) Beam Thunder Compute
L40 40GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$0.79/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
L40 40GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $0.79/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute
RTX 4090 24GB VRAM • Beam	$0.69/hr★ Best	Not Available	—	Beam
RTX 4090 24GB VRAM • Beam $0.69/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 ★Best Price Not Available Beam
RTX 5090 32GB VRAM • Beam	$1.09/hr★ Best	Not Available	—	Beam
RTX 5090 32GB VRAM • Beam $1.09/hour Updated: 10/1/2026 ★Best Price Not Available Beam
RTX A6000 48GB VRAM • Thunder Compute	Not Available	$0.35/hr★ Best	—	Thunder Compute
RTX A6000 48GB VRAM • Not Available Thunder Compute $0.35/hour Updated: 10/3/2026 ★Best Price Thunder Compute

Features Comparison

Beam

Pay-per-millisecond Billing
Only charged when your code runs, no charges for cold starts or server spin-up
Sub-second Cold Starts
Memory snapshots and GPU checkpoint restore bring containers back in seconds, which Beam reports as up to 35x faster than a traditional cold boot
Secure Sandbox Environments
Run untrusted code safely in isolated environments for AI agents and code interpreters
Stateful, Persistent Runtimes
Pause and resume sessions while maintaining filesystem, memory, and running processes
Elastic GPU Scaling
Scale to zero when idle, burst to thousands of containers in seconds
Custom Docker Images
Bring your own Docker images for full environment control, including running the Docker daemon inside containers

Thunder Compute

Rapid deployment
Spin up a dedicated cloud GPU in seconds.
Flexible configurations
Customize vCPUs, RAM, and storage.
Networking
Supports 7-10 Gbps networking speeds.
Development tools
Integrated VS Code extension for easier development.
Snapshot capabilities
Ability to take snapshots for later use.

Pros & Cons

Beam

Advantages

Pay-per-millisecond billing with no charges for cold starts
Ultrafast boot times with sub-second cold starts via memory snapshots
GPU selection spanning RTX 4090 through B200, plus InfiniBand cluster nodes
On-demand machines priced flat per machine, including vCPU, RAM, and NVMe storage

Considerations

Serverless GPUs other than the RTX 4090 require a committed-spend agreement
GPU container concurrency is capped on the lower plan tiers
Multi-node InfiniBand clusters are sales-only with no published pricing

Thunder Compute

Advantages

User-friendly interface
Quick scaling options
Integrated development environment

Considerations

Limited availability in regions
Potential performance variability depending on load

Compute Services

Beam

Inference Endpoints

Deploy high-performance inference endpoints with custom models

Custom model hosting on GPU or CPU
Pre-loading models for fast response times

Sandboxes

Secure code execution environments for AI agents

Run untrusted LLM-generated code safely
Snapshot and restore complete system state

Task Queues

Run large-scale workloads with distributed processing

Audio processing pipelines
Data processing at scale

Thunder Compute

Pricing Options

Beam

Pay-per-millisecond

Serverless GPU, CPU, and sandbox usage billed by the millisecond with no minimum charges

Committed Spend

Serverless access to GPUs beyond the RTX 4090 is arranged through a committed-spend agreement

On-Demand Machines

Flat hourly price per machine that already includes the vCPU, RAM, and NVMe storage

Reserved Clusters

Multi-node InfiniBand clusters reserved monthly or yearly, quoted through sales

Bring Your Own Cloud

Per-vCPU and per-GB management fee on top of compute billed directly by your own cloud provider

Storage

Persistent volumes and snapshots included up to a capacity threshold, then billed per GB per month

Monthly Plans

Developer plan free with usage, Team plan with a monthly base fee plus usage, and a contact-sales Growth tier

Free Monthly Credits

All plans include monthly free credits that refresh each month

Volume Discounts

Discounts available for high monthly usage, arranged through sales

Thunder Compute

Getting Started

Beam

Get Started

1
Create an account
Sign up on the Beam platform to receive monthly free credits
2
Set up Python environment
Create a virtual environment and install the Beam SDK
3
Authenticate with API token
Configure your API token to connect to Beam
4
Deploy your first app
Run a function locally, then deploy it as a web endpoint with the Beam CLI

Thunder Compute

Get Started

1
Create an account
Sign up for an account on the Thunder Compute platform.
2
Choose a template
Select a pre-built template for your AI workflow.
3
Customize your setup
Adjust the vCPUs, RAM, and storage as necessary.
4
Launch your instance
Start your GPU instance with a single click.
5
Connect to your environment
Use the VS Code extension to access your persistent environment.

Support & Global Availability

Beam

Global Regions

30+ regions spanning the US, EU, Asia-Pacific, and Canada, with workloads routed across clouds and regions in real time

Support

Documentation, public Slack community, and a status page; live chat support on paid plans and a private Slack channel on the top tier

Thunder Compute

Global Regions

Available in the US and possibly other regions.

Support

24/7 support via email and chat.