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Modal vs Nebius
Modal is a Python-first serverless GPU platform billed by the second. Nebius is a European AI cloud with raw GPUs and a 60+ model token API. Developer experience versus breadth and residency.
By The Subconscious Team · Updated
Modal vs Nebius: key differences
Both sell GPU compute, packaged very differently. Modal hides the infrastructure: decorate a Python function with a GPU type and Modal builds the container, autoscales it and scales it to zero, billing per second with an H100 at $3.95 an hour list. Nebius sells raw NVIDIA compute, from H100s at $2.15 an hour preemptible up to GB300 NVL72 racks, and adds Token Factory, a managed API for 60+ open models starting at $0.06 per million input tokens. One is a developer tool that happens to rent GPUs. The other is a cloud that also sells tokens.
Nebius covers more ground. It offers per-token inference that Modal does not, dedicated endpoints with a 99.9% SLA and EU or US placement, and uploaded fine-tunes served at token pricing. That makes it the stronger pick for European buyers and for steady workloads. Modal wins on developer speed and bursty load, where per-second billing beats reserved GPUs below about 80% utilization. It also has a free Starter plan with $30 of monthly credits, while Nebius requires a $25 minimum first payment and offers no free trial.
What Modal and Nebius do
Modal
Modal is serverless compute with GPUs attached. A developer decorates a Python function with the hardware it needs, such as gpu="H100", and Modal builds the container, schedules it, autoscales it and scales it back to zero. Billing runs per second with no minimum increment, from $0.59 an hour for a T4 to $3.95 for an H100 at list. Containers can hold up to 8 GPUs across T4 through B300.
Example models: none hosted by default; teams deploy their own, such as open LLMs on vLLM or Whisper
Full Modal profileNebius
Nebius is an Amsterdam-headquartered AI cloud and the strongest European alternative to the US hyperscalers. It sells raw NVIDIA GPU compute, from H100s at $2.15 an hour preemptible up to GB300 NVL72 racks, and it has begun adding Vera Rubin. Hyperscale buyers back it: a Microsoft capacity deal worth about $17.4B in September 2025, then a Meta agreement worth up to about $27B in March 2026.
Example models: DeepSeek V3, GPT-OSS
Full Nebius profileShould you choose Modal or Nebius?
Modal
Choose Modal for
- Shipping a Python GPU service in an afternoon.
- Spiky queued jobs that scale to zero.
- Free monthly credits for experiments.
Nebius
Choose Nebius for
- EU data residency for regulated buyers.
- Per-token open-model inference plus raw GPUs on one account.
- Steady workloads on low preemptible GPU rates.
Modal vs Nebius at a glance
| Attribute | Modal | Nebius |
|---|---|---|
| Model access | Bring your own weights | Open weights, 60+ models |
| Flagship models | None hosted | DeepSeek, Qwen, GLM, Kimi, GPT-OSS |
| Speed | ~1s container boot | Among top hosts on throughput |
| Price | Per second; H100 $3.95/hr list | From $0.06 per 1M input |
| Customization | Run any training code | Serve uploaded fine-tunes |
| Deployment | Serverless GPU containers | Token Factory, dedicated, raw GPUs |
| Long context | Depends on the model you deploy | Varies by model |
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between Modal and Nebius?
Modal is a Python-first serverless GPU platform billed by the second. Nebius is a European AI cloud with raw GPUs and a 60+ model token API. Developer experience versus breadth and residency.
When should I choose Modal over Nebius?
Shipping a Python GPU service in an afternoon; Spiky queued jobs that scale to zero; Free monthly credits for experiments.
When should I choose Nebius over Modal?
EU data residency for regulated buyers; Per-token open-model inference plus raw GPUs on one account; Steady workloads on low preemptible GPU rates.
Is Modal or Nebius cheaper?
Modal: Per second; H100 $3.95/hr list. Nebius: From $0.06 per 1M input. The cheaper choice depends on the model and workload.
Which has more context, Modal or Nebius?
Modal: Depends on the model you deploy. Nebius: Varies by model.
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