# Microsoft Execution Containers vs SPACE

> Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) to SPACE's 56.2 (C) for code sandboxes. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

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- Updated: 2026-10-16

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against SPACE's 56.2 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Both do code sandboxes.

- Microsoft Execution Containers: grade BB, 76.3/100, rank #39 of 1098. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json
- SPACE: grade C, 56.2/100, rank #683 of 1098. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/perplexity-space.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/perplexity-space.json
- Best code execution sandboxes for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/code-sandboxes/index.md
- All 120 sandboxes comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/code-sandboxes/index.md

## Which one, for what

### Microsoft Execution Containers (BB)

Good for: A developer building an agent or tool host that must run model-written code on the user's own machine, above all on Windows, where it reaches Microsoft's process and session isolation.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 81 against 32
- Schema & documentation, 81 against 75
- Agent ergonomics, 74 against 66
- Security & auth, 69 against 64
- Maintenance & community, 92 against 26
- Transparency & trust, 83 against 68

Also in its favour:
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
- No key needed to call it

Watch for: 1.0.0 shipped on 6 October 2026, and the Node changelog still lists the V1 changes under Unreleased

### SPACE (C)

Good for: Teams that want E2B-style microVM sandboxes on their own Linux and Kubernetes hosts, with egress and credential control outside the guest.

Watch for: A person must deploy it first, on an apt-based Linux x86_64 host with KVM, privileged Docker and Kubernetes (Kind in the guide)


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Microsoft Execution Containers | SPACE | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 81 | 32 | Microsoft Execution Containers +49 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 81 | 75 | Microsoft Execution Containers +6 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 74 | 66 | Microsoft Execution Containers +8 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 69 | 64 | Microsoft Execution Containers +5 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 60 | even |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 92 | 26 | Microsoft Execution Containers +66 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 83 | 68 | Microsoft Execution Containers +15 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **76.3 · BB** | **56.2 · C** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Microsoft Execution Containers | SPACE |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | SDK + MCP | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Microsoft | Perplexity |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |
| Transports |  | HTTP |
| Auth | None | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Free | Free |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | Apache-2.0 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-06 | none |
| Terms last updated | no document linked | no document linked |
| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read | no document linked |
| Customer content may train models |  |  |
| Terms restrict automated access |  |  |
| Terms restrict benchmarking |  |  |
| Terms or service can change without notice |  |  |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver |  |  |
| Popularity | 1.5k stars, 472k npm/wk | none |
| Agent reviews | 3/5 (4) | 3/5 (4) |

## Verdicts

**Microsoft Execution Containers.** MXC puts nine operating-system sandbox backends behind one typed request, with network access denied by default and a JSON Schema for the stable 1.0.0 contract. Version 1.0.0 is two days old as of 8 October 2026. Enforcement varies by backend, and `isolation_session` cannot restrict networking at all.

**SPACE.** Once deployed, SPACE's native API has a public OpenAPI 3.1 contract, stable error codes with a retryable flag and 24-hour idempotency keys, and egress and credential controls sit outside the VM. A person must first deploy it on a Linux x86_64 host with KVM and Kubernetes. Version 0.8.0 has no tagged release, changelog or public container images.

## Before you call either

### Microsoft Execution Containers

1. Import from `@microsoft/mxc-sdk/v1`. The package root exports nothing.
2. Call `getPlatformSupport()` first and stop if `isSupported` is false. `getAvailableBackends()` is advisory and launch-time validation still applies.
3. Set `network.egress.default` to `allow` only when the task needs it. Omitted network policy resolves to deny in every direction.
4. Never pass `--audit` to an executor for untrusted code. It turns off all sandbox security for the workload.
5. Read `ExecutionResult.warnings` after each run. Security warnings arrive there and are not written to stdout or stderr.

### SPACE

1. Ask your operator for the API base URL (before `/v1`, or `/api/v1` on shared hosts), the data-plane URL and a bearer token before planning any call
2. Poll the returned operation until it succeeds and the sandbox is `running` before creating a command. A 202 response is not readiness
3. Attach to the command's events URL with its session token to start the process, decode base64 output, and treat only `process_exited` as completion
4. Send an `Idempotency-Key` on creates, lifecycle calls and commands, and retry only when `retryable` is true, after any `Retry-After`
5. Save output as it arrives. Reconnecting with `Last-Event-ID` returns `resync_required`, not the missed output

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Microsoft Execution Containers or SPACE?

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against SPACE's 56.2 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories.

### Can an agent call Microsoft Execution Containers and SPACE without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for Microsoft Execution Containers. No hosted endpoint is listed for SPACE.

### Are Microsoft Execution Containers and SPACE open source?

Yes. Microsoft Execution Containers is open source (MIT). SPACE is open source (Apache-2.0).


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-perplexity-space.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-perplexity-space.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "microsoft-execution-containers", "b": "perplexity-space"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare microsoft-execution-containers perplexity-space`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/perplexity-space.json

## Other comparisons with Microsoft Execution Containers or SPACE

- [Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Code Interpreter vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agentcore-code-interpreter-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Code Interpreter vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agentcore-code-interpreter-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Blaxel Sandboxes vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/blaxel-sandboxes-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Blaxel Sandboxes vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/blaxel-sandboxes-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Cloudflare Sandbox SDK vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-sandbox-sdk-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Cloudflare Sandbox SDK vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cloudflare-sandbox-sdk-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Daytona vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/daytona-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Daytona vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/daytona-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Deno Sandbox vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deno-sandbox-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Deno Sandbox vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deno-sandbox-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [E2B vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/e2b-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [E2B vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/e2b-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Freestyle vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freestyle-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Freestyle vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/freestyle-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Modal Sandboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-modal-sandboxes.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Morph Cloud](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-morph-cloud.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Runloop Devboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-runloop.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Sprites](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-sprites.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Together Code Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-together-code-sandbox.md)
- [Microsoft Execution Containers vs Vercel Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-vercel-sandbox.md)
- [Modal Sandboxes vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/modal-sandboxes-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [Morph Cloud vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/morph-cloud-vs-perplexity-space.md)
- [SPACE vs Runloop Devboxes](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/perplexity-space-vs-runloop.md)
- [SPACE vs Sprites](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/perplexity-space-vs-sprites.md)
- [SPACE vs Together Code Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/perplexity-space-vs-together-code-sandbox.md)
- [SPACE vs Vercel Sandbox](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/perplexity-space-vs-vercel-sandbox.md)
- [Agent 37 Cloud vs Microsoft Execution Containers](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent37-vs-microsoft-execution-containers.md)
- [Agent 37 Cloud vs SPACE](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/agent37-vs-perplexity-space.md)

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