Comparison
MacDuty vs MacStadium
Comparing MacDuty and MacStadium for a dedicated Mac mini: prices for the same configurations, billing, generations and what each is best at.
Updated 2026-09-15
MacStadium has hosted Macs since 2011 and serves some of the largest Apple development teams in the world. MacDuty is a smaller host with one focus: a dedicated Mac mini, any generation, at a flat price, ordered in minutes.
If you need one Mac or a few dozen, this page shows how the two compare.
Price for the same Mac
Prices checked in September 2026 from each company's public pricing page. MacDuty prices exclude VAT.
MacStadium bills in US dollars. MacDuty bills in euros or US dollars. The table shows the monthly price for the closest matching configuration.
| Mac mini | MacStadium | MacDuty, monthly | MacDuty, paid yearly |
|---|---|---|---|
| M2, 8 GB, 256 GB | $109 | €75 | €60 |
| M4, 16 GB, 256 GB | $149 | €109 | €87 |
| M4, 24 GB, 512 GB | $249 | €122 | €98 |
| M2 Pro, 16 GB, 1 TB | $249 | €121 | €97 |
| M4 Pro, 48 GB, 1 TB | $349 | €207 | €166 |
On every matching configuration, MacDuty costs less per month, and a year paid up front takes a further fifth off.
At a glance
| MacStadium | MacDuty | |
|---|---|---|
| Hardware | Mac mini, Mac Studio | Mac mini |
| Generations for self-service order | M2, M4 | M1, M2, M4, M5 Pro, M6 |
| Billing | Monthly, paid on the 1st; annual on request | By the day, month or year |
| Currency | USD | EUR or USD |
| Free trial | No | No, but a single day can be rented |
| Data centers | Atlanta, Las Vegas, Dublin | Romania, EU |
| Virtualization platform | Orka | Bare metal only |
| Reinstall and restart | Through the portal and support | From the dashboard, any hour |
When MacStadium is the better choice
We would rather you pick the right host than the wrong one.
- You need Mac Studio or Ultra chips. MacDuty racks Mac mini only.
- You run hundreds of Macs as one fleet. MacStadium's Orka turns them into a macOS virtualization cluster, managed like Kubernetes.
- Your security review requires specific certifications. MacStadium's facilities hold enterprise compliance certifications. Ask us what we can provide before you decide.
- You want a data center in the US.
When MacDuty is the better choice
- You want the Mac today, without a sales call. Pick a build, pay by card and log in over SSH within minutes.
- You need a specific generation. Test on M1 or M2, the chips many of your users still have, or build on M5 Pro and M6 as Apple ships them.
- You want a lower, fixed price. The same Mac costs less each month, and the price at renewal is the price you signed up for.
- You only need it for a day or a week. Daily billing, with a 24-hour minimum.
- You invoice in euros. EU VAT reverse charge for valid VAT numbers, invoices from an EU company.
Moving from MacStadium
A MacStadium Mac mini and a MacDuty Mac mini are the same hardware, so moving is simple:
- 1Order the matching Mac on MacDuty and log in over SSH.
- 2Copy your home folder, keychains and project files with rsync, or set up the machine from your own scripts.
- 3Register your CI runner on the new Mac and run one pipeline on both.
- 4When the new Mac passes, point the rest of your jobs at it and cancel the old one at the end of the billing month.
- Self-hosted GitHub Actions runner on a Mac mini, if you are setting one up from scratch
Questions
- Is MacDuty cheaper than MacStadium?
- For the Mac mini configurations both publish, yes. See the table above for the exact prices.
- Does MacDuty offer Mac Studio?
- No. We rack Mac mini only, every Apple silicon generation from M1 to M6.
- Is MacDuty hardware dedicated, like MacStadium's bare metal Macs?
- Yes. One Mac mini, one customer, no virtual machine in between.
- Where is MacDuty hosted?
- In Romania, inside the European Union. Your data and every backup of it stay in the EU.
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