buildhound
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Buildhound vs Xcode Cloud

Xcode Cloud is Apple's own CI, built into Xcode and App Store Connect and sold in compute hours. Buildhound runs your GitHub Actions workflows on a Mac you already have, for a flat price per machine.

Set up by hand
  • Checked 16 October 2026
  • No referral agreement

What a month costs

Minutes a month
  • Buildhound Teamone machine you already have$24
  • Xcode Cloudsold by the hour$49.99
  • GitHub-hostedmacos-latest, list price$310

One Mac you already have costs $24 a month on Team. Xcode Cloud costs $49.99, and GitHub-hosted $310.

List prices, before free minutes or credits on either side. One machine runs these minutes a job at a time; Personal is $10 a machine on a personal account.

Choose the one that fits

Choose Xcode Cloud when

  • The app is the whole pipeline, from build to TestFlight and the App Store.
  • You would rather not look after GitHub Actions at all.
  • The 25 hours a month that come with the developer programme cover your builds.

Choose Buildhound when

  • Your CI already lives in GitHub Actions.
  • The repository also has Linux jobs, a web app or tools Xcode Cloud does not run.
  • You want a flat price per Mac instead of compute hours.

Side by side

Xcode Cloud from its own pages, checked 16 October 2026

Two ways to run the same workflow
Clean runners on machines you already have$24a machine a month on Team
Xcode CloudApple's own CI, by the compute hour25 hoursfree a month, then from $49.99

Price

How it is priced
BuildhoundFlat, per machine$10 a machine a month on a personal account, $24 in an organisation, counted only on days it runs a job. Public repositories free.
Xcode CloudCompute hours a month25 come with the Apple Developer Program, then 100 for $49.99, 250 for $99.99, 1,000 for $399.99, 10,000 for $3999.99.
macOS
BuildhoundYour MacA fresh macOS VM per job; Apple allows two per Mac.
Xcode CloudApple platformsBuilds, tests and ships apps on the Xcode and macOS versions you pick.
Linux
BuildhoundYour Mac or Linux boxA fresh Linux VM per job, arm64 on a Mac.
Xcode CloudNot offered
Windows
BuildhoundNot yetWindows jobs stay on GitHub-hosted.
Xcode CloudNot offered

Where it runs

Machines
BuildhoundYoursA spare Mac, a Linux box, or a laptop while plugged in and not in use.
Xcode CloudApple's machines
Each job
BuildhoundA fresh VM, destroyed afterIt reaches the internet and never your network.
Xcode CloudA temporary build environmentFor each build.
Secrets
BuildhoundOn your hardwareOnly on a machine a person marked Trusted.
Xcode CloudOn Apple's machines

When things change

Setup
BuildhoundOne prompt to your coding agentOr two commands by hand.
Xcode CloudWorkflows in XcodeOr App Store Connect, not GitHub Actions; it connects to GitHub, GitLab or Bitbucket.

One line in runs-on

Xcode Cloud workflows live in Xcode and App Store Connect, not in runs-on.

Buildhoundruns-on: ${{ vars.BUILDHOUND_MACOS || 'macos-latest' }}The job runs on your machine while one can take it, and on GitHub-hosted when none can.

Put the machines you already have to work.

A spare Mac, a Linux box, or the laptop you code on while it is plugged in and not in use. One prompt into Claude Code, Codex or Cursor: Linux jobs run within minutes, macOS jobs once the Mac has built its image.

Set up by hand
  • The Buildhound agent holds no GitHub credential
  • A fresh VM per job, off your network
  • Your agent prepares, you approve
  • How security works