B3IQ vs Vast.ai
Vast.ai lets you select rented capacity from individual hosts. B3IQ gives you a machine purchase and a hosting or delivery choice. The useful comparison is how long you need the hardware and who handles its operation.
Some source observations are due for review. Check the linked provider terms before purchasing. Dated list prices are no longer prefilled in the worksheet.
Consider B3IQ
Evaluate B3IQ after you know the model, GPU fit and steady workload, and want control of a purchased machine.
Consider Vast.ai
Evaluate Vast.ai for experiments, variable demand or a particular host configuration without committing capital to a machine.
01 / The offer
What you are comparing.
Show offer
| Compare | B3IQ | Vast.ai |
|---|---|---|
| On-demand offer | Machine purchase, not an on-demand GPU-hour offer.Source ↗ | Host-set on-demand rates. Interruptible offers have a different interruption policy.Source ↗ |
| What you purchase | Purchase the machine; host it with B3IQ or have it shipped.Source ↗ | Rent an instance from a marketplace host.Source ↗ |
| Access and operation | Private compute runs on your account's machines. B3IQ provisions the hardware.Source ↗ | Choose an instance and deployment template; inspect the host offer before renting.Source ↗ |
| Location | Hosted capacity in Oregon; shipped machines run at your chosen site.Source ↗ | Host-specific. Select a region and verify the individual listing.Source ↗ |
| Stored data | Machine storage is part of its configuration. Backup and migration requirements need a separate plan.Source ↗ | Host-set storage charges continue while an instance exists, including when stopped.Source ↗ |
| Data transfer | Confirm connectivity and transfer terms for your hosting agreement.Confirm with providerSource ↗ | Upload and download rates depend on the host offer.Source ↗ |
| Capacity and interruption | Check the selected product's availability and lead time. A listed machine is not an instant rental allocation.Source ↗ | Inventory and price vary by host. Interruptible instances may be paused.Source ↗ |
Support response times, uptime commitments and compliance scope need the agreement for the exact service. A missing public term is not evidence that a provider cannot offer it.
02 / Your workload
Run the same experiment.
40-hour experiment
For a 40-hour experiment, inspect a Vast on-demand offer with enough VRAM, RAM and disk. Add data upload and checkpoint download costs. Buying a B3IQ node solely for this short run is a different commitment; test the workload first.
A quote worksheet, not a price ranking.
Use whole-instance rates for the same GPU edition, count and region. 40 hours in this example. Inputs stay in the URL so you can share the assumptions.
Planning horizon
Cash paid over 1 period.
Repeat the selected 40-hour workload once per period. A period is a month for the operating quote; this is a scenario, not a utilization forecast.
Enter matching quotes to draw the horizon.
B3IQ · own the machine
- Acquisition
- $99,971
- Operation / rental · 1 periods
- Quote required
- Cash paid
- Not established
- Remaining asset · not subtracted
- Unknown
Vast.ai · rent
- Acquisition
- $0
- Operation / rental · 1 periods
- Quote required
- Cash paid
- Not established
An owned machine remains an asset. Its resale value is unknown unless you enter an estimate; it is separate from cash paid. Quotes need matching editions, GPU counts, region and terms. No earnings, tax, financing or performance equivalence is assumed.
Cost method and limits
The worksheet supports 1, 3, 12 or 24 months. Rental cash repeats the selected 40-hour or 720-hour workload and entered storage and transfer each month. Ownership cash includes acquisition once plus the quoted monthly operating costs over that horizon. Missing or invalid inputs produce no total. Remaining asset value is unknown unless you enter an estimate and stays separate from cash paid. These offers use different purchase units; this is not a break-even calculation. No earnings, tax, financing or performance equivalence is assumed.
An offer is the unit of comparison
Marketplace listings can differ in CPU, RAM, disk speed, network limits and interruption policy even when they use the same GPU name. Save the offer details and test your own image before comparing it with a complete B3IQ node.
Plan how the data leaves
Stopped instances can still incur storage charges. Keep a separate copy of weights, checkpoints and deployment configuration, and test the export path. For an owned machine, include backup storage and the work needed to migrate or ship it when your requirements change.
03 / Evidence
Check the source.
Capabilities are source-documented, not independently tested. Quote and region details can change.
- B3IQ machine ownership ↗Checked Sep 30, 2026
B3IQ machine purchase and operating model
- B3IQ store ↗Checked Sep 30, 2026
Published machine configurations; values resolve from the shared store
- B3IQ private compute ↗Checked Sep 30, 2026
Owner-scoped compute
- Vast.ai instance pricing ↗Checked Sep 30, 2026Review due
Marketplace on-demand, reserved and interruptible instances
- Vast.ai instance overview ↗Checked Sep 30, 2026
GPU instance deployment
Review history and corrections
Sep 30, 2026: first source review. No provider access, capacity allocation or matched workload benchmark was tested for this guide.
Send a source URL and the affected claim to hello@b3iq.org. Corrections update the shared evidence record and each affected comparison.
Evidence methodology
