Crusoe Cloud vs Thunder Compute (December 2025)
Looking for cheap A100s? Here’s how Crusoe Cloud compares to Thunder Compute across pricing, billing, flexibility, and ease of use.
1. A100 80GB Pricing (On-Demand)
| Provider | A100 80GB Price | Billing Granularity | Reserved Pricing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thunder Compute | $0.78/hr | Per second | No commitment |
| Crusoe Cloud (PCIe) | $1.65/hr | Per minute | 6–36 month discounts |
| Crusoe Cloud (SXM) | $1.95/hr | Per minute | 6–36 month discounts |
Sources: Crusoe Cloud pricing
Thunder Compute is over 2× cheaper than Crusoe’s base price, with no lock-in or commitments.
2. Persistent Storage and Egress
| Feature | Thunder Compute | Crusoe Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Persistent storage | $0.15/GB/mo | $0.08–0.09/GB/mo |
| Snapshots | Yes (instant) | Yes |
| Egress within region | Free | Standard egress fees |
Source: Crusoe storage documentation
Crusoe’s block storage is cheaper, but Thunder’s GPU savings typically outweigh storage cost differences.
3. Flexibility and Instance Management
- Thunder Compute: Resize CPU, RAM, and disk live. Persistent storage tied to instance. No contracts, no waitlist, no limits per account.
- Crusoe Cloud: PCIe A100s often limited to one per VM. SXM A100s tied to full-node allocations. Reserved pricing requires advance planning and longer commitments.
Also see Shadeform for current Crusoe capacity.
4. Developer Experience
| Feature | Thunder Compute | Crusoe Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| One‑click VS Code in‑browser | ✓ | ✗ |
| Per‑second billing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Live hardware config changes | ✓ | ✗ |
| CLI + simple browser UI | ✓ | ✓ |
| Green energy story | ● | ✓ (flare gas) |
Thunder prioritizes speed and simplicity—ideal for fast iteration. Crusoe emphasizes sustainability and reserved cluster usage.
5. Verdict: Which to Choose?
If you need flexible, low-cost A100s with no commitment and simple UX, Thunder Compute is the winner.
If you need long-term reservations or are optimizing for carbon offsets, Crusoe Cloud may appeal—but expect to pay more up front.
Quick Summary
| Question | Winner |
|---|---|
| Lowest on‑demand A100 price | Thunder Compute |
| Best for quick prototyping | Thunder Compute |
| Cheapest persistent storage | Crusoe Cloud |
| Best long‑term discounts | Crusoe Cloud |
| Simplest billing + developer interface | Thunder Compute |
Get started on Thunder Compute today for one-click access to GPUs in VS Code