BrowserPod is a sandbox API. It provides in-browser runtimes for common backend languages, libraries and frameworks. Instead of provisioning a cloud server, BrowserPod’s API enables a client browser to host full runtimes compiled to WebAssembly (Wasm), running at native speed.

BrowserPod is ephemeral by design. Each pod (see pod) runs inside a browser tab and ends when the tab closes or reloads. Because BrowserPod runs inside the browser, each Pod is constrained by the browser’s security model, isolated from the user’s OS, with limited access (via syscalls) to local files or system resources unless you explicitly provide it.

At a high level, BrowserPod gives you:

• A backend runtime running in the browser (e.g., Node.js, Python, Ruby)
• A Linux‑like virtual filesystem for files and folders
• Portals that can expose local servers at public URLs

Everything runs client‑side within the browser sandbox, so users don’t need to install anything.

What you can do with BrowserPod

• Execute AI code safely: Execute untrusted or user‑provided code in a contained environment for AI agents or automation flows.
• Live product demos: Ship a demo that runs the real backend logic in the browser without backend provisioning.
• Interactive docs and tutorials: Let users run actual servers, seed data, and see real responses while following along.
• Collaborative tools: Build multi‑user apps like whiteboards, editors, or chat that run locally and sync via portals.
• Browser‑based server functions: Run tasks that usually need cloud provisioning—like HTTP APIs, background jobs, or file processing entirely inside the user’s browser.

Why pick the BrowserPod API?

• Full-stack development: BrowserPod runs full instances of backend frameworks enabling full-stack development without cloud provisioning.
• Real filesystem: Create directories and files inside a virtual POSIX‑like tree.
• Portal URLs: BrowserPod Portals allow to share working applications over a temporary, private and secure URL.
• Security: The BrowserPod API boots instances in the browser’s sandbox, inheriting its security.
• Cost: Because BrowserPod runs instances in the browser, it comes at a fraction of the cost of cloud sandboxes, with a generous free tier.

How it works (high level)

• BrowserPod ships a build of Node.js that targets CheerpOS (a runtime that provides a Linux‑like syscall interface to Wasm).
• The browser’s JavaScript engine executes the Node runtime in the page.
• Your project files live in a virtual filesystem inside the pod.
• When your app listens on a port, BrowserPod can open a portal URL that forwards traffic into the pod.

See the hosting guide for details on headers and setup.

Supported runtimes

BrowserPod currently supports Node.js runtime, support for Python and Ruby is coming soon.

Community and support