Show HN: MacRun, dedicated Mac Minis you can rent by the day

MacRun launched a service renting dedicated M6 Mac minis from $15 a day, provisioned in under 5 minutes from a private facility in New Jersey, with Xcode 27.1 and the iOS simulator preinstalled. Each Mac mini is single-tenant with administrator access and is offered either as an unlimited GitHub Actions macOS runner or as an always-on agent machine with Claude Code and Codex installed, billed monthly and cancellable anytime. MacRun pitches the flat daily rate against GitHub-hosted macOS minutes priced at $0.062 to $0.102 per minute, and says M4 units are available when free while M5 Pro units are on pre-order.

Dedicated M6 Mac minis · private facility in NJ Rent a Mac in the cloud. A dedicated M6 Mac mini from $15 a day. A real Mac mini that only you use, with admin rights. Xcode 27.1 and the iOS simulator come installed. Use it for a day. Run it as your GitHub Actions runner. Or keep your AI agent working 24/7. Ready in under 5 minutes. Each square is a real Mac mini. A green frame means it is free right now. Uptime for every Mac is on the status page https://macrun.dev/status . Same M6. Pick the job. Every unit is a dedicated Mac mini with only your work on it. Choose whether it builds your app or runs your agent. Need both? Lease one of each. GitHub Actions runner Unlimited macOS builds on your own M6. on the M6, available now · M4 when one is free · M5 Pro to pre-order billed monthly · cancel anytime from your portal · live uptime https://macrun.dev/status - +Dedicated M6 now, an M4 when one is free, or a pre-order M5 Pro - +Unlimited macOS build minutes, no meter - +Pinned Xcode and warm caches on local SSD - +GitHub Actions ready; GitLab, Bitbucket, Buildkite and Jenkins work too - +Administrator access: sudo, Homebrew, any Xcode version - +SSH and screen sharing on a private network Ready in under 5 minutes · cancel anytime · we wipe the box Always-on agent Mac Launch your 24/7 agent on a dedicated Mac in under 5 minutes. on the M6, available now · M4 when one is free · M5 Pro to pre-order billed monthly · cancel anytime from your portal · live uptime https://macrun.dev/status - +Dedicated M6 now, or pre-order an M5 Pro for local models - +Claude Code and Codex installed, waiting for your sign-in - +Use the Claude or ChatGPT plan you already pay for, no API key - +Open the desktop from any browser tab, no install - +Drive it from your phone, check in when it needs a human Ready in under 5 minutes · cancel anytime · we wipe the box Pick a plan Choose a CI runner or an agent Mac, tell us a little about yourself, and check out. No sales call, no demo booking. We provision Your dedicated M6 Mac mini is set up and ready in under 5 minutes. We email you the moment it is live. Connect and go Runners: change two lines of YAML and build. Agents: open the Mac in your browser, sign in to Claude Code or Codex, and give it your first task on your code. Launch your 24/7 agent in under 5 minutes. Claude Code and Codex need a machine that never sleeps and a desktop someone can reach when they get stuck. That is what an agent Mac is. It works on your software around the clock. You bring the subscription you already pay for. A Mac that stays up Sleep is off, the session stays logged in, and the machine is on wired ethernet with battery backup. Your agent keeps working while your laptop is closed. Claude Code and Codex, ready Both are installed. You pick which one runs first. Sign in with your own Claude or ChatGPT account. You pay your usual plan and nothing per token to us. A real desktop in your browser Click Open my Mac in your portal and the desktop appears in a tab. Approve a login, paste a code, or watch the agent work. Nothing to install. Control from your phone Once signed in, send tasks from the Claude app or the ChatGPT app. Come back to the desktop only when the agent gets stuck on something a human has to do. Install anything else It is your Mac. Add Chrome extensions, Homebrew packages, or another coding agent. We set up Claude Code and Codex. The rest is yours to run, on your software. Real email support Write to support@macrun.dev and someone who knows your machine answers, usually within the hour. No ticket queue. Flat beats metered past the first hour. Keep your GitHub Actions pipeline. Change two lines of YAML. Stop paying $0.062 to $0.102 per macOS minute. Built for GitHub Actions. Works with GitLab, Bitbucket, Buildkite and Jenkins too. Xcode 27.1 and the iPhone Duo simulator come installed. | | GitHub-hosted macOS | Codemagic fixed | MacRun | |---|---|---|---| | Pricing model | $0.062 to $0.102 / minute | From about $299 / mo | $139 / mo flat | | Machine | Shared, per job | Shared pool | Dedicated M6, all yours | | Concurrency | Metered, adds cost | Plan limited | Serialized on your box | | Build caches | Cold every run | Partially cached | Warm on local SSD | | Idle cost | $0 | Included in plan | $0, flat either way | | Best for | Light or bursty CI | Teams wanting a UI | Heavy, steady iOS CI | Sources: GitHub-hosted macOS per-minute pricing and Codemagic published plan pricing, as of 2026. Break-even against the cheapest metered rate is about 2,242 minutes per month. Run your own numbers on the calculator https://macrun.dev/calculator . What we are - +A dedicated Mac mini with only your work on it. - +For CI: your existing pipeline. GitHub Actions first-class; GitLab, Bitbucket, Buildkite and Jenkins work too. - +For agents: Claude Code and Codex installed, a desktop you open in a browser. - +Email support from someone who knows your machine, usually within the hour. What we are not - −No managed code signing or provisioning profiles. - −No API keys to buy from us. Your agent runs on the plan you already have. - −No proprietary build UI to learn. - −No SLA theater. Honest per-unit uptime on the status page. - −No lock-in. Cancel anytime and we wipe the box. Questions people ask before they sign up What is an agent Mac? + A dedicated M6 Mac mini in our rack that stays on 24 hours a day. Claude Code and Codex are installed and a session is kept alive, so a coding agent can work on your software while you sleep. You open its desktop from a browser tab and control it from your phone. It costs $169 a month, cancel anytime. Do I need an API key? + No. You sign in to Claude Code with your Claude account, or to Codex with your ChatGPT account. Your existing subscription covers the usage. We never see your keys or your conversations. Which agents are installed? + Claude Code and Codex. Both are installed and updated. At signup you pick which one is running when you first open the Mac. You can switch or run both later. Can I install other tools or agents? + Yes. Your account is an administrator, so sudo works with your own password. Install Homebrew packages, Xcode versions, simulator runtimes, other coding agents, or anything else your project needs. We support Claude Code and Codex directly. Other software is yours to run, and it has to stay on software work like everything else on the Mac. How much do GitHub Actions macOS minutes cost? + GitHub bills macOS runners at roughly $0.062 to $0.102 per minute depending on runner size, which is about 10 times the Linux rate. At the low end, a flat $139/mo dedicated runner breaks even at about 2,242 minutes per month. Past that point every extra minute on MacRun is free. What changes in my GitHub Actions workflow? + Two lines. You register the runner once with your repository or organization, then swap the runs-on label to point at your self-hosted macOS runner. Everything else in your pipeline stays exactly the same. Is renting a Mac for CI allowed under Apple's license? + Yes. Apple's macOS Software License Agreement permits leasing a whole Mac for permitted developer services on monthly terms. Every MacRun lease is one customer per machine, billed monthly, restricted to developer services. We never put two customers on one unit. How long does setup take? + We provision your machine within 5 minutes of payment and email you when it is ready. Registering the runner and updating your workflow takes about 10 minutes after that. What happens to my data when I cancel? + Access ends at the end of the paid period, then the machine is wiped automatically. Your account and data are deleted, the volume is securely erased, and the box is restored to a clean golden image before anyone else uses it. Is there an SLA? + No SLA theater. You get a fast dedicated machine and email support that usually answers within the hour. Live per-unit uptime is published on the status page so you can judge it yourself rather than take our word for it. Do you support GitLab, Bitbucket, Buildkite, or Jenkins? + Yes. The machine is a normal Mac with SSH access, and every one of those systems has an agent that runs on macOS and dials out to your CI, so no inbound ports are needed. GitHub Actions is what we set up for you and support first-hand. For the others, the other CI systems page has the install steps, and the machine side is identical. Working out whether this fits Rent or compare Rent a Mac by the day, week or month, or rent a physical oneRent a Mac for a day, a week or a few months. Where to rent a physical Mac or iMac, and how to rent a dedicated cloud Mac from $15 a day that you use over the internet. Rent a Mac for a day or a week: a dedicated M6 from $15Rent a dedicated M6 Mac mini for a day at $15 or a week at $59. One payment, nothing renews, ready in under 5 minutes. What fits in a day, and how the price compares. Cloud Mac: rent a real Mac in the cloud from $15 a dayA cloud Mac is a real Mac you use over the internet. How a Mac in the cloud works, how you connect from Windows or Linux, and what it costs: a dedicated M6 from $15 a day. Leasing a Mac: Apple business leasing vs a monthly remote MacLeasing a Mac usually means equipment leasing for your desk. How Apple's business leasing and Apple Upgrade work, and when a monthly remote Mac lease fits better. Mac mini server: set up your own, or use a hosted Mac miniA Mac mini server is small, quiet and frugal. How to set up your own headless Mac mini server so it never sleeps and survives power cuts, and when hosting fits. OpenClaw hosting without buying a Mac mini: $169 a month or $15 a dayOpenClaw hosting on a dedicated M6 Mac mini that stays on 24/7. iMessage needs a real Mac, and this is one. $169 a month, or $15 for a day. iPhone Duo App Store screenshots without an iPhone Duo, $15 for a dayMake iPhone Duo App Store screenshots in the Xcode 27.1 simulator on a rented M6 Mac mini. $15 for a day, one payment. Apple's sizes, plus the commands. Best Mac cloud hosting in 2026: 11 providers comparedEleven Mac cloud hosts compared on price, chip, billing and location, read from their own pages in October 2026. What each one is good for. MacinCloud alternative 2026: a dedicated M6 Mac mini with admin rights, $15 a dayMacinCloud dedicated plans started at $114.99 a month for an M1 in September 2026. MacRun rents a dedicated M6 Mac mini with admin rights from $15 a day or $139 a month. MacStadium pricing and alternative: $109 to $449 a monthMacStadium pricing read in October 2026: Mac minis $109 to $349, no free trial, prepaid monthly. How Orka fits GitHub, and a $139 M6 alternative. AI agents on a Mac How to run Claude Code 24/7 on a Mac and control it from your phoneWhat it takes to keep Claude Code running all day on a Mac: a machine that never sleeps, a logged-in session, sign-in with the Claude subscription you already have, and phone control through Remote Control. Always-on Mac for AI agents: what you actually need to set upThe checklist for a Mac that runs AI agents unattended: power settings, automatic login, a supervised session, screen access for when it gets stuck, wired network and battery backup. Learned on real machines. Running OpenAI Codex 24/7 on a dedicated MacHow to keep OpenAI's Codex CLI running all day on a Mac: sign in with your ChatGPT account, keep a login session alive, and give it a real desktop and browser to work in. Renting a Mac for AI agents vs buying a Mac mini: the actual mathA straight comparison for someone who wants an always-on Mac for AI agents. What a Mac mini costs to buy and run, what renting one ready-made costs, and which fits depending on how long you need it and who does the setup. What an AI agent can and can't do on a hosted MacThe honest capabilities and limits of running an AI agent on a Mac in someone else's rack: what works, what is unreliable, and what is off the table, so you know before you rent. Claude Code stops when your Mac sleeps: 5 fixes, lid closed tooYour Mac went to sleep and Claude Code froze. Fix it with caffeinate, pmset, or one setting for a closed lid. Copy the commands, in the order to try them. Keep a Claude Code session alive with tmux and pick it up anywhereThe tmux setup for a coding agent that has to outlive your terminal window, your SSH connection, and your commute. Start, detach, reattach from a phone, and recreate the session after a reboot. Running Claude Code unattended: permissions, guardrails, and what never to allowHow to let Claude Code or Codex work with nobody watching: permission modes, allow and deny rules, hooks, git guardrails, scoped credentials, and the short list of things an unattended agent should never be able to do. How to let a coding agent work overnight without waking up to a messA repeatable way to hand a backlog to Claude Code or Codex at night and review clean pull requests in the morning: how to write the tasks, how to isolate each one, what the agent may do alone, and the ten-minute morning review. Where to run a 24/7 coding agent: laptop, Linux VPS, EC2 Mac, or a hosted Mac miniAn honest comparison of the places a Claude Code or Codex agent can live all day: your laptop, a Linux VPS, an EC2 Mac, a Mac mini you buy, or a hosted Mac mini. Costs with sources, what each cannot do, and a decision rule. Why an iOS coding agent needs a real Mac, and the build-run-screenshot loop that makes it usefulWhat an AI agent working on an iOS or macOS app can only do on macOS: build with Xcode, run the simulator, take screenshots of the result, and sign a build. The exact commands for the loop, and what a Linux box can and cannot do. Install OpenClaw on a Mac mini and keep it running 24/7Install OpenClaw on a Mac mini with the official script, run the gateway as a LaunchAgent so it survives reboots, and lock it down. Tested on macOS 26. Hermes Agent install on Mac: setup, gateway and 24/7 useInstall Nous Research's Hermes Agent on an Apple silicon Mac, connect a model, run the messaging gateway under launchd, and set approvals and allowlists safely. Claude Code channels: Telegram setup on an always-on MacClaude Code channels push Telegram, Discord or iMessage messages into a running session. How to set up the Telegram plugin and keep the session alive on a Mac. Run a local LLM on a Mac mini: what fits in 16, 48 and 64 GBWhich local LLMs fit a Mac mini with 16, 48 or 64 GB, how to install Ollama or MLX, and how to keep a model server running. Real sizes from the Ollama library. Install NanoClaw on a Mac mini and keep it running 24/7Install NanoClaw on a Mac mini with the official setup script. Keep Docker and its launchd service up after reboots, and connect a model with an API key. Install nanobot on a Mac mini and keep it running 24/7Install the HKUDS nanobot agent on a Mac mini with the official script. Pick a model in its WebUI and run its gateway as a LaunchAgent that survives reboots. macOS CI and build costs Self-hosted macOS runner for GitHub ActionsWhat a self-hosted macOS runner is, when it beats GitHub-hosted runners, and how to run one without managing the hardware yourself. Flat $139/mo. GitHub Actions macOS runner pricing: what a minute really costsA GitHub Actions macOS runner costs $0.062 to $0.102 a minute. That is about 10x Linux. 3,000 minutes a month comes to $240 to $480. Here is how to cut the bill. Rent a Mac mini for CI buildsHow renting a dedicated Mac mini for continuous integration works, what it costs versus buying, and the Apple license rules that make leasing legitimate. Xcode Cloud alternative and pricing 2026: 25 free hours, then from $49.99Xcode Cloud includes 25 compute hours a month, then costs $49.99 for 100 hours up to $399.99 for 1,000. How that compares with GitHub Actions and a dedicated M6 runner at $139 a month. GitHub Actions pricing 2026: Linux $0.006, macOS $0.062 per minuteEvery GitHub Actions rate in one table: Linux $0.006, Windows $0.010 and macOS $0.062 to $0.102 a minute. Why macOS uses free minutes 10 times faster, and what a month really costs. MacStadium vs GitHub Actions for iOS CI: which one, and whenTwo different products for the same job. When per-minute GitHub-hosted runners make sense, when a dedicated MacStadium machine does, and where a flat-price dedicated runner fits between them. GitHub-hosted macOS vs a dedicated Mac: the real cost comparisonA like-for-like cost comparison of GitHub-hosted macOS runners against a dedicated Mac at three usage levels, including the minutes you pay for rebuilding caches and the time spent waiting. How to cut your GitHub Actions macOS bill: a practical checklistNine concrete changes that reduce billed macOS minutes on GitHub Actions: move work to Linux, cache the right paths, cancel superseded runs, trim the matrix, and know when flat pricing wins. iOS CI/CD on GitHub Actions: the complete setup, step by stepA working iOS pipeline on GitHub Actions in one pass: workflow skeleton, Xcode selection, dependencies, building and testing on a simulator, code signing with an App Store Connect API key, archiving, and TestFlight upload. GitLab Runner on macOS: install, register and run iOS jobsInstall GitLab Runner on an Apple silicon Mac, register it with a glrt- runner token, keep it running after reboots, and run Xcode jobs with a .gitlab-ci.yml. Jenkins macOS agent: add a Mac build node that survives rebootsConnect a Mac to your Jenkins controller as an inbound agent over WebSocket, run it from a LaunchAgent so it returns after reboots, and build iOS in a pipeline. CircleCI self-hosted runner on macOS: machine runner 3 setupInstall CircleCI machine runner 3 on macOS with Homebrew, create a resource class and token, start it in the GUI domain, and target it from config.yml. Buildkite agent on macOS: Homebrew install, token and launchdInstall the Buildkite agent on macOS with Homebrew, add your cluster token and queue tag, start it at login with launchd, and run Xcode steps in a pipeline. fastlane on a Mac build server: match, API key and CI lanesInstall fastlane on a Mac build server, sign with match in readonly mode, log in with an App Store Connect API key, and run test and beta lanes from any CI. iOS UI testing automation with XCUITest and xcodebuildRun XCUITest UI tests from the command line with xcodebuild, manage simulators with simctl, run tests in parallel, retry flaky ones, and read result bundles. React Native iOS build without a Mac: a tested workflowWrite and test React Native on Windows or Linux, then build iOS on a cloud Mac. A GitHub Actions workflow we ran on macos-26 with Xcode 26.6, and its output. Publish an iOS app to the App Store without a MacWhich App Store steps need macOS and which work from Windows: enrollment, API keys, signing, building and uploading from a cloud Mac, and TestFlight on iPhone. Develop iOS apps without a Mac: 4 options and real costsApple's tools only run on macOS, but you do not have to own a Mac. Four options ranked, from cloud CI to buying used, with sourced prices and honest tradeoffs. Xcode on Windows: use a remote Mac desktop insteadXcode does not run on Windows. How to use it on a remote Mac from your PC: VNC over a private network or a browser tab, lag, keyboard mapping and the Simulator. Safari for Windows in 2026: how to test in real Safari from a PCApple stopped making Safari for Windows in 2012. What still works from a PC: WebKit in Playwright, cloud testing services, and a real Mac for a day with Safari and the iOS Simulator. iOS Simulator on Windows: what works in 2026, and what does notApple's iOS Simulator only runs on macOS, and so-called iOS emulators for Windows do not run your app. The real options: a phone, a browser simulator service, or a remote Mac. Test your app on iPhone Duo without the phone: Xcode 27.1 simulatoriPhone Duo support arrived in Xcode 27.1, not 27.0. How to get the iPhone Duo simulator, run your tests on it, and take screenshots, with commands we ran on Xcode 27.1. Build an iOS app on Windows: Flutter, React Native, Unity, Godot, MAUIWhat needs a Mac and what does not for Flutter, React Native, Expo, Unity, Godot and .NET MAUI. The exact build and upload steps to run on the Mac. Flutter iOS build without a Mac: a tested 2026 workflowWrite Flutter on Windows or Linux, then build iOS on a rented Mac or a CI runner. The commands we ran with Flutter 3.47.7 and Xcode 26.6, and how to reach TestFlight. Kotlin Multiplatform iOS without a Mac: tested in 2026Shared code and Android build on Windows or Linux, but the iOS framework and the Xcode app need macOS. Commands we ran on JetBrains' KMP template, and one trap. .NET MAUI iOS build without a Mac: tested on .NET 10 2026 Visual Studio on Windows still needs a Mac for MAUI iOS builds. The dotnet commands we ran on macOS, which Xcode each .NET 10 workload needs, and Pair to Mac. Unity iOS build without a Mac: Windows export, Mac archive 2026 Unity on Windows can write the iOS Xcode project but cannot compile it. How to copy the export to a Mac and archive it with xcodebuild, or use Unity Build Automation. Godot iOS export without a Mac: what we tested in 2026Godot 4.7 writes the iOS Xcode project on Windows or Linux in our test. Xcode on a Mac still builds, signs and uploads it. Tested commands and the errors we hit. Capacitor iOS build without a Mac: tested from Windows, 2026Capacitor 8 can add and sync the iOS project on Windows. Xcode still needs a Mac to build, run and sign it. A tested Windows to Mac workflow with real timings. Notarize a Mac app without a Mac: Electron and Tauri, 2026Apple's codesign, notarytool and stapler run only on macOS. How to build, sign and notarize an Electron or Tauri .dmg on a rented Mac, with tested commands. Fix an App Store rejection without a Mac and re-upload todayOld Xcode, missing privacy manifest, usage strings, export compliance, screenshots: which App Store rejections need a rebuild, and the commands to rebuild today. Taking an iOS or Swift course without a Mac 2026 CS193p, 100 Days of SwiftUI and Apple's Develop in Swift all need Xcode. What works on an iPad, what needs a Mac, and how to rent one by the week. Xcode on iPad: rent a Mac and control it from your iPadThere is no Xcode for iPad. When Swift Playground is enough, when you need real Xcode, and three ways to run it on a rented Mac from your iPad. One machine. One flat price. Runner or agent. Lease a Mac today and it is working for you tonight. Cancel anytime and we wipe the box.