# Microsoft Execution Containers vs Sandbox0

> Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) to Sandbox0's 55.1 (C) for code sandboxes. Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.

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- Updated: 2026-10-22

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against Sandbox0's 55.1 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Both do code sandboxes.

- Microsoft Execution Containers: grade BB, 76.3/100, rank #43 of 1199. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json
- Sandbox0: grade C, 55.1/100, rank #764 of 1199. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/sandbox0.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/sandbox0.json
- Best code execution sandboxes for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/code-sandboxes/index.md
- All 190 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 38
- Security & auth, 69 against 58
- Payments & pricing, 60 against 40
- Maintenance & community, 92 against 76
- Transparency & trust, 83 against 48

Also in its favour:
- Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
- No key needed to call it
- Open source
- No incidents deducted, where Sandbox0 loses 3 points for them

Watch for: 1.0.1 shipped on 17 October 2026, and the Node and .NET changelogs still list the V1 changes under Unreleased

### Sandbox0 (C)

Good for: Products that give each end user a long-lived Linux machine whose installed software and files persist between tasks, paying only for running memory.

Also in its favour:
- A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install

Watch for: No status page, incident history or SLA found


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Microsoft Execution Containers | Sandbox0 | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 81 | 38 | Microsoft Execution Containers +43 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 81 | 77 | Microsoft Execution Containers +4 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 74 | 74 | even |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 69 | 58 | Microsoft Execution Containers +11 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 60 | 40 | Microsoft Execution Containers +20 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 92 | 76 | Microsoft Execution Containers +16 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 83 | 48 | Microsoft Execution Containers +35 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | -3 | |
| **Total** | | **76.3 · BB** | **55.1 · C** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Microsoft Execution Containers | Sandbox0 |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | SDK + MCP | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Microsoft | Lougao, LLC (Sandbox0) |
| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | `https://api.sandbox0.ai` |
| Transports |  | HTTP |
| Auth | None | API key |
| Pricing | Free | Pay per use |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | MIT | Proprietary hosted service under Sandbox0's terms of service (Lougao, LLC, Delaware law); the runtime is closed source since 16 October 2026. The `s0` CLI and the Go, Python and TypeScript SDKs are Apache-2.0 on GitHub. The earlier Apache-2.0 runtime is an archived, unmaintained repository |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | no | yes |
| Last release | 2026-10-17 | 2026-10-21 |
| Terms last updated | no document linked |  |
| Privacy policy last updated | couldn't be read |  |
| 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 | 88 stars, 268 npm/wk, 82 PyPI/wk |
| 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 shipped on 6 October 2026 and 1.0.1 on 17 October. Enforcement varies by backend, and `isolation_session` cannot restrict networking at all.

**Sandbox0.** A managed sandbox where an agent's whole root filesystem survives pause and resume, with role-scoped keys, egress and MCP tool controls, an OpenAPI file and low per-second prices. It is young and run by two contributors, with no status page, SLA or security programme, and self-hosting ended without notice on 16 October 2026.

## 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.

### Sandbox0

1. Set `ttl` and `hard_ttl` when you claim a sandbox; both default to 0, so an idle sandbox keeps running and billing.
2. Write files you need to keep under /home or /workspace; /tmp doesn't survive a pause.
3. Back off on 429 `quota_exceeded` and honour Retry-After on claims.
4. Ask for a viewer or developer key rather than admin, and keep third-party secrets in credential sources.
5. Ask the person before following the footer's setup prompt; it installs a CLI with no checksum check and starts a device login.

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Microsoft Execution Containers or Sandbox0?

Microsoft Execution Containers scores 76.3 (BB) on agent readiness against Sandbox0's 55.1 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories.

### Can an agent call Microsoft Execution Containers and Sandbox0 without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for Microsoft Execution Containers. Sandbox0 has a hosted endpoint at https://api.sandbox0.ai.

### Are Microsoft Execution Containers and Sandbox0 open source?

Microsoft Execution Containers is open source (MIT). No open-source release is listed for Sandbox0.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-sandbox0.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/microsoft-execution-containers-vs-sandbox0.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "microsoft-execution-containers", "b": "sandbox0"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare microsoft-execution-containers sandbox0`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/microsoft-execution-containers.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/sandbox0.json

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