{"id":"cheap-gpu","slug":"cheap-gpu","name":"Cheapest on-demand GPUs","shortName":"Cheapest on-demand GPUs","problemStatement":"Minimize $/GPU-hr for fault-tolerant training/batch.","whenNotTopPick":"Need SLA/security — RunPod Secure Cloud, Lambda, or CoreWeave. Never Vast for sensitive PII without review.","categoryIds":["cat-gpu-cloud"],"depotPickProviderId":"vast-ai","depotPickRationale":"pricePerf primary; reliability heavily discounted for marketplaces.","runnersUpIds":["runpod","oracle-gpu","fluidstack","thunder-compute","verda"],"weights":{"capabilityFit":0.22,"pricePerformance":0.25,"latencyReliability":0.15,"developerDx":0.12,"privacyPosture":0.08,"lockInRisk":0.08,"maturity":0.1},"methodologyNotes":"pricePerf primary; reliability heavily discounted for marketplaces.","tags":["cheap"],"depth":{"whenNotToUse":{"text":"Need SLA/security — RunPod Secure Cloud, Lambda, or CoreWeave. Never Vast for sensitive PII without review.","source":"editorial `whenNotTopPick` (data/jtbds.json)"},"whenNotToUseReason":null,"runnerUp":{"providerId":"runpod","name":"RunPod","overallForJob":8.34,"pickOverallForJob":7.2,"beatsPickOn":["capabilityFit","latencyReliability","developerDx","privacyPosture","maturity"],"source":"first resolvable entry of the job's editorially ranked `runnersUpIds`; scores are stored job-weighted scores"},"runnerUpReason":null,"lockIn":{"pickLockInRisk":2.5,"runnerUpLockInRisk":3.5,"scale":"0–10 stored curated estimate; higher = more lock-in (worse)","pickExitSignals":[],"runnerUpExitSignals":[],"pickNotes":[],"selfHostFallback":[],"migration":"The pick has lower stored lock-in risk than runner-up RunPod (2.5 vs 3.5).","migrationReason":null,"derivedFrom":"stored lockInRisk scores, provider tags (oss, self-host, openai-compat, open-models), free rows that list this job, and verbatim provider notes. No migration guide was invented."}},"freshness":{"pick":{"score":{"asOf":"2026-09-14","ageDays":43,"stale":true,"staleAfterDays":30,"reason":null},"lastReviewed":{"asOf":"2026-09-14","ageDays":43,"stale":true,"staleAfterDays":30,"reason":null},"sourceCheck":{"checkedAt":"2026-10-27","sourceUrls":3,"sourcesReachable":3,"pricingRows":0,"pricingRowsReconfirmed":0,"note":"A source re-check confirms the page is reachable and, for pricing rows, that the stored amount and SKU name appear on it. It does not re-derive or change the score.","reason":null}}},"depotPick":{"id":"vast-ai","slug":"vast-ai","name":"Vast.ai","tagline":"Cheapest GPUs if your job can die and restart. Never put customer PII training here without eyes wide open.","overall":7.2},"runnersUp":[{"id":"runpod","slug":"runpod","name":"RunPod","tagline":"Depot default for self-serve GPUs. Secure Cloud for anything customer-facing; Community/spot for batch.","overall":8.34},{"id":"oracle-gpu","slug":"oracle-gpu","name":"Oracle Cloud GPU","tagline":"Secret weapon for cheap cloud GPUs if you tolerate OCI quirks. Not the agent-native DX winner.","overall":7.7},{"id":"fluidstack","slug":"fluidstack","name":"FluidStack","tagline":"Useful opportunistic H100 capacity if the live console quote clears ~$2.1–2.5/hr. Remain medium until a…","overall":7.52},{"id":"thunder-compute","slug":"thunder-compute","name":"Thunder Compute","tagline":"Indie-friendly A100/H100 when you want simpler than Vast marketplace. RunPod/Salad for interruptible fleets…","overall":7.65},{"id":"verda","slug":"verda","name":"Verda","tagline":"Top EU list-price neocloud peer to Nebius. Prefer Nebius Depot default for global neocloud; Verda when EU…","overall":8.17}]}