
Bacalhau
by Bacalhau · Distributed compute that runs jobs where the data already is
75.9 — BenchRank score out of 100
Screenshots of Bacalhau
Homepage
Overview
Bacalhau is an open-source platform for running compute jobs on the machines where data is generated and stored. Jobs are submitted as Docker containers or WebAssembly images, so existing workloads run without rewriting. It schedules work across hardware from large VMs and GPUs to edge and IoT devices, and can keep jobs within chosen geographic and privacy boundaries.
- Best for
- Teams running Docker or WASM jobs on the machines where their data is already generated and stored
- Pricing
- No prices are shown; the software is described as open source, with commercial support available through Expanso and no figures published.
- Runs on
- Web
Strengths and trade-offs
Strengths
- Runs existing Docker and WASM images without code changes
- Open source, with commercial support available from Expanso
- Runs on hardware from large VMs and GPUs to edge and IoT devices
- Jobs can be scheduled so data stays inside its storage boundary
Trade-offs
- Workloads must be packaged as Docker containers or WASM images
- Commercial support comes from a separate company, Expanso
- No pricing published for the software or the commercial support
How this score is made up
Each dimension is scored out of 100 and combined into the headline score using fixed weights.
- MCP support
- 100 out of 100
- API quality
- 20 out of 100
- Documentation
- 90 out of 100
- Agent friendliness
- 85 out of 100
- Pricing transparency
- 85 out of 100
- Changelog
- 100 out of 100
- Marketing site structure
- 95 out of 100
- Operational trust
- 35 out of 100
Measured, but not part of the score
Useful to know, but not a mark for or against the product — so these do not affect the ranking.
- Openness
- 85 out of 100
- Maintenance
- 100 out of 100
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