Northflank vs Replicate Deployments

Northflank

OpenAPI 3.0 with over 100 paths, enums and per_page, page and cursor on every list. No scale to zero for services; minimum instances must be at least 1.

Replicate Deployments

OpenAPI file, llms.txt and an MCP server with a two-tool code mode. Private instances bill set-up and idle time, H100 at $5.49 an hour.

Northflank

1. Issue the agent a team token under an API role limited to one project, not a personal token
2. Read x-ratelimit-remaining and wait x-ratelimit-reset seconds on a 429; the default is 1,000 calls an hour
3. Page lists with per_page up to 100 and the returned cursor instead of numbered pages
4. Use a job, not a service, for anything that finishes; services bill until paused or deleted
5. Fetch any docs page with .md appended to get Markdown

Replicate Deployments

1. List GET /v1/hardware first and use the returned sku in the deployment body
2. Set min_instances to 0 for bursty work; a warm H100 bills $5.49 an hour whether called or not
3. Send Prefer: wait on deployment predictions to block instead of polling
4. Copy outputs within an hour; API prediction data is deleted after that
5. Wait for the reset time in the 429 body before retrying; prediction creates cap at 600 a minute