Overview
- Effective January 1, 2026, GitHub-hosted runner prices drop by up to 39% depending on machine type, with free minute quotas unchanged.
- Starting March 1, 2026, self-hosted runner usage will incur a $0.002 per-minute platform charge that counts toward plan minutes.
- Public repository runner usage remains free, while self-hosted minutes on private repositories will be billable under the new fee.
- GitHub claims 96% of customers will see no change to their bill; among the affected 4%, most will pay less and a small share face a median $13 monthly increase.
- To help customers plan, GitHub released updated billing docs and a pricing calculator and committed to self-hosted enhancements like autoscaling, broader platform coverage, and Windows support over the next 12 months.