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Shubham
Shubham

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How to stop overpaying for GitHub Actions (And a free tool to fix it) 💸

If you are a developer or a DevOps engineer, you probably love GitHub Actions. It’s seamlessly integrated and easy to set up. But there is one universal truth we all figure out eventually: GitHub Actions pricing can be incredibly confusing, and the bills can escalate quickly.

The biggest trap? The runner multipliers.
Running a job on an Ubuntu runner is cheap, but the moment you switch to a Windows runner, you are paying 2x. Switch to a macOS runner, and suddenly you are paying 10x the per-minute rate.

If you have a complex .yaml file with matrix builds across different OS environments, estimating your end-of-month cost is basically a guessing game.

I got tired of doing this math manually, so I decided to build a solution.

Enter: GitHub Actions Cost Calculator 🛠️

I built a completely free, visual calculator that does the math for you.

Link: githubactionscost.online

How it works:

  1. You just paste your workflow .yml or .yaml file into the editor.
  2. It parses your jobs, steps, and OS environments instantly.
  3. It gives you a clear comparison of how much that workflow will cost across Ubuntu, Windows, macOS, and even Self-Hosted runners.

The Magic Feature: AI Optimization 🧠

Just knowing the price isn't enough; you need to reduce it. I integrated an AI-powered analyzer that reads your specific YAML architecture and suggests actionable ways to cut your execution time.

By applying these suggestions (like aggressive dependency caching, fixing missing step timeouts, or optimizing matrix strategies), you can realistically cut your CI/CD costs by 40% to 60%.

Built with Vanilla Tech & 100% Private 🔒

As developers, we are naturally (and rightfully) paranoid about pasting our infrastructure code into random websites.

  • Tech Stack: I built this entirely with Vanilla HTML, CSS, and JS. It is lightning-fast and has zero bloat.
  • Privacy First: There is no backend database storing your workflows. The parsing and calculation happen on the fly. Your secrets and architecture remain yours.

It requires no signup and is completely free to use.

I would absolutely love for the Dev.to community to try it out! Drop your workflow in there and let me know if the AI suggestions helped you find any cost-saving loopholes.

Any feedback, edge cases I missed, or feature requests are highly appreciated! 👇

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