Container Use vs Catnip: Sandboxed Agent Environments Compared
Two tools that give coding agents a sandboxed container and a git worktree. How Container Use and Catnip differ in isolation technology, review workflow, and remote access.
Contents
OverviewAt a glanceHead to headFeature matrixPricingPros & consContainer Use and Catnip: the public release record on 2026-08-05What Container Use and Catnip areHow each sandboxes and branchesReviewing and steering agentsSetup, runtimes, and integrationsPricing and licensingWhich one fits your workflowVerdictFAQSourcesContainer Use and Catnip solve the same core problem: an AI coding agent works best when it has its own sandboxed environment where it can edit, run, and test code without stepping on your working tree or on other agents. Both wrap the agent in a container backed by a git worktree, so several agents can run in parallel and you review each one's output through ordinary git.
Where they part ways is workflow. Container Use (container-use.com) leans on Dagger and a terminal-plus-git review loop. Catnip (wandb/catnip on GitHub) leans on remote operation, with a web interface and a native iOS app for steering agents from anywhere. This comparison walks through how each isolates agents, how you review their work, and what setup each expects, using each project's own documentation as observed on 2026-08-05.
At a glance
Both tools give a coding agent a sandboxed container and a git worktree so agents run in parallel and you review through git. Container Use fits a local, git-native loop with full command logs and a terminal you can take over. Catnip fits remote operation, with a web UI, an iOS app, cloud Codespaces, and auto-commits. Both are open source with no paid tier listed as of 2026-08-05 (Catnip under Apache-2.0; Container Use's license was not stated on its introduction page).
Head to head
Key differences side by side; the stronger option is tinted green.
| Feature | Container Use | Catnip |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Sandboxed dev environments so coding agents run in parallel without babysitting (container-use.com, 2026-08-05) | A Go binary + web app that runs Claude Code in a container and manages worktrees for parallel, remote agents (wandb/catnip, 2026-08-05) |
| Isolation technology | Dagger for containerized workflows plus Git worktrees for branching | Docker or Apple's Container SDK, with automated git worktrees |
| Git review model | Each agent runs on its own git branch; review with git checkout <branch> | Auto-commits as the agent works to refs/catnip refs and a named branch; git fetch to the host |
| Installation | Homebrew, shell script, or build from source | Single binary via install.catnip.sh, then catnip run (UI on localhost:6369) |
| Visibility & intervention | Full command history and logs; drop into the agent's terminal to take over | Web UI and native iOS app to review and steer agents remotely |
| Documented agent/editor integrations | Claude Code, Cursor, VSCode and others | Centered on Claude Code; more agents listed as a roadmap item |
| Remote development in an IDE | Not covered on the pages we read (2026-08-05) | SSH host (ssh catnip) for Remote-SSH in Cursor, VS Code and similar |
| Cloud hosting option | Not covered on the pages we read (2026-08-05) | Runs in the cloud via GitHub Codespaces / devcontainers |
| Source & license | Not covered on the pages we read (2026-08-05) | Open source under Apache-2.0; 491 stars as of 2026-08-05 |
Feature matrix
| Feature | Container Use | Catnip |
|---|---|---|
| Containerized sandbox per agentContainer Use uses Dagger; Catnip uses Docker or Apple's Container SDK (2026-08-05). | ✓ | ✓ |
| Git worktree-based branching | ✓ | ✓ |
| Run multiple agents in parallel | ✓ | ✓ |
| Shell into the environmentContainer Use: drop into the agent's terminal; Catnip: SSH via ssh catnip for Remote-SSH (2026-08-05). | ✓ | ✓ |
| Command history / activity visibilityContainer Use: full logs and history; Catnip: web UI and iOS app (2026-08-05). | ✓ | ✓ |
| Broad agent/editor integrations documentedCatnip docs center on Claude Code with more agents listed as roadmap as of 2026-08-05. | ✓ | △ |
✓ full · △ partial/paid · ✗ not supported
Pricing
Confirm current pricing on each vendor's site.
- Distributed via GitHub; install with Homebrew, shell script, or from source
- License not stated on the container-use.com introduction page as of 2026-08-05 — confirm in the repository
- Your cost is compute for running the containers
- Install via install.catnip.sh; run locally or in GitHub Codespaces
- iOS app listed on the App Store as W&B Catnip (2026-08-05)
- Your cost is compute, plus any Codespaces/hosting plan for cloud use
Pros & cons
- Dagger containers plus Git worktrees isolate each agent on its own branch
- Full command history and logs, plus the ability to drop into the agent's terminal
- Documents integration with multiple agents and editors (Claude Code, Cursor, VSCode)
- Review is plain git checkout — no separate workflow to learn
- The introduction page we read on 2026-08-05 did not list a cloud-hosted or mobile option
- License and pricing were not stated on the introduction page as of 2026-08-05
- Cloud and remote details, if any, live outside the introduction page
- Runs locally or in the cloud via GitHub Codespaces, plus a native iOS app
- Auto-commits agent changes and runs a git server so you can fetch work to the host
- Preconfigured runtimes (node, python, go, gcc, rust), --dind, SSH remote dev, and auto port forwarding
- Apache-2.0 licensed and installs as a single Go binary
- Documentation centers on Claude Code; broader agent support is a roadmap item as of 2026-08-05
- Several items (more AI agents, native devcontainer support, mobile UI) are marked coming soon — not shipped today
- More moving parts (SSH, dind, port proxy, env vars) means more surface to configure
Container Use and Catnip: the public release record on 2026-08-05
| Measured on 2026-08-05 | Container Use dagger/container-use | Catnip wandb/catnip |
|---|---|---|
| Latest release | v0.4.2, published 2025-08-19 | v0.12.1, published 2026-01-08 |
| Commits, weekly average | 0.1 a week (1 commits in the 12 weeks to 2026-08-05) | 0.2 a week (2 commits in the 12 weeks to 2026-08-05) |
| Most recent commit | 2026-06-12 | 2026-08-04 |
As recorded on 2026-08-05 from the projects' public source repositories on GitHub, Catnip (wandb/catnip) averaged 0.2 commits a week over the preceding twelve weeks while Container Use (dagger/container-use) averaged 0.1 a week, a like-for-like reading of how much code each repository absorbed in that window. The release records from those same repositories tell a similar story: Catnip's latest tagged release, v0.12.1, was published on 2026-01-08, whereas Container Use's most recent, v0.4.2, dates to 2025-08-19. For someone choosing between the two, the figures reasonably suggest that Catnip has seen more recent development activity and a newer release, which may matter if active maintenance is a priority. They do not, however, establish that either tool is more reliable, better supported, or higher in quality, nor do they indicate how many people actually use either product—commit counts and release dates measure repository activity alone, not outcomes or adoption.
Where these numbers come from: on 2026-08-05 (2026-08-05T00:08:01Z) we called the public endpoints listed below and recorded what they returned. Nothing here is taken from either vendor's marketing pages, and anyone can repeat the same calls. Repository figures describe the named repository — for a closed-source platform that is its official CLI or SDK, not the platform itself. What these figures do not tell you: Commit counts include merges, dependency bumps and documentation changes, and a monorepo will always show more commits than a single-purpose repository, so this measures how busy the named repository is — not progress, quality, or how much of it reaches the product. The commit date says the repository is being worked on, nothing about what changed. None of them measures reliability, support or how either product feels to use.
- Container Use — GitHub REST API · GitHub releases API · Dagger's own repository for the project
- Catnip — GitHub REST API · GitHub releases API · the Weights & Biases repository for the project
What Container Use and Catnip are
Both give an agent a containerized workspace tied to a git worktree, so multiple agents can run at once and their changes land on separate branches you can inspect.
Container Use describes itself as sandboxed dev environments for coding agents, so they can run safely in parallel without babysitting. It is built on Dagger for containerized workflows and Git worktrees for branching (container-use.com introduction, observed 2026-08-05). Each agent gets a fresh container on its own git branch, and you review any agent's work with a standard git checkout <branch_name>.
Catnip comes from Weights & Biases (wandb/catnip on GitHub, observed 2026-08-05) and is a Go binary with an embedded web app that automates git worktree creation inside a container. Its stated purpose is to run Claude Code everywhere: keep an agent running as long as possible, manage worktrees for you, and expose APIs and UIs so you can operate agents remotely. As of 2026-08-05 the repository listed 491 stars and an Apache-2.0 license.
These are peers rather than opposites. If you already lean on git for review and want a lightweight local loop, Container Use maps onto that. If you want to start and check on agents from a phone or a cloud environment, Catnip is built around that use case.
How each sandboxes and branches
Container Use pairs Dagger-driven containers with Git worktrees. Each agent gets an isolated container on its own branch, which lets you experiment safely and discard a failed run instantly (container-use.com introduction, 2026-08-05). Because the branch is a normal git branch, the review path is whatever your team already does with git.
Catnip runs code in a containerized environment using either Docker or Apple's Container SDK, which is what lets it use --dangerously-skip-permissions without the usual risk (wandb/catnip, 2026-08-05). When you start a Claude session, Catnip automatically commits changes as the agent makes them. The workspace commits to a custom ref, refs/catnip/$NAME, and Catnip also maintains a friendly branch name kept in sync with it. A git server runs inside the container, so you can clone or run git fetch catnip from your host to pull the agent's work out.
Practically, Container Use expects you to review through branches on your own machine, while Catnip records progress continuously and offers several ways to sync those commits back to you.
Reviewing and steering agents
Container Use focuses on transparency and hands-on control. It surfaces complete command history and logs of what agents actually did, and it lets you drop into any agent's terminal to see their state and take over when they get stuck (container-use.com introduction, 2026-08-05).
Catnip focuses on remote operation. It exposes a web UI, and its iOS app, listed as available on the App Store as W&B Catnip (wandb/catnip, 2026-08-05), lets you fire up Claude Code and review changes on the go. For editor-based review, Catnip's catnip run configures SSH inside the container by default, creating a catnip host so you can run ssh catnip or open the environment through the Remote-SSH extension in Cursor, VS Code, and similar editors. SSH can be turned off with --disable-ssh.
The container-use.com introduction page we read on 2026-08-05 centered on terminal history and git-based review and did not list a mobile or cloud-hosted review option; if that matters to you, check the project's other documentation and repository before deciding.
Setup, runtimes, and integrations
Container Use installs via Homebrew, a shell script, or a build from source, and its documentation covers configuring it with coding agents including Claude Code, Cursor, and VSCode (container-use.com introduction, 2026-08-05).
Catnip installs with a single command, curl -sSfL install.catnip.sh | sh, after which catnip run starts a universal container with Catnip preinstalled and opens the UI at http://localhost:6369 (wandb/catnip, 2026-08-05). That container ships preconfigured with node, python, golang, gcc, and rust, and you can pin versions through environment variables such as CATNIP_NODE_VERSION and CATNIP_PYTHON_VERSION. On workspace creation Catnip runs a setup.sh from your repo root, so dependency installs like pip install -r requirements.txt or pnpm install happen automatically. It also passes host environment variables with -e (for example -e ANTHROPIC_API_KEY), supports Docker-in-Docker with --dind, forwards container ports to the host automatically, and can run in the cloud through GitHub Codespaces and devcontainers.
Catnip's own tagline centers on Claude Code, and its roadmap lists support for more AI coding agents, native devcontainer support, a mobile UI, and other cloud-native environments as items coming soon (wandb/catnip roadmap, 2026-08-05). Treat those as announced plans rather than shipped features today. Container Use's introduction, by contrast, already names several agents and editors it integrates with.
Pricing and licensing
Neither project's page we read listed a paid tier. Catnip is published under an Apache-2.0 license on GitHub as of 2026-08-05, and it installs and runs as a free binary. Container Use is distributed through GitHub with an open invitation to star the repo and contribute code; the container-use.com introduction page we read on 2026-08-05 did not state a license or any price, so confirm the license in its repository before you build on it.
Because both run on your own machine or your own cloud (for Catnip, GitHub Codespaces), your real cost is compute and, for cloud use, whatever your Codespaces or hosting plan charges rather than a license fee from either tool.
Which one fits your workflow
Choose based on where you want to review agents and how much you rely on git. Container Use suits a local, git-native loop: isolated branches, full command logs, and a terminal you can jump into. Catnip suits remote and cloud operation: a web UI, an iOS app, continuous auto-commits, SSH remote development, and one-command cloud setup through Codespaces.
Run each against a real repository before you commit. The strongest differences here are about workflow fit rather than one tool having a capability the other clearly cannot match, and the pages we read on 2026-08-05 leave some details (Container Use's cloud and mobile story, its license) to documentation outside the introduction page. A short trial on your own project will settle those faster than any spec sheet.
Container Use and Catnip are peers built around the same idea: a container plus a git worktree per agent, reviewed through git. The decision comes down to where you want to work.
Pick Container Use if your review loop lives in git and the terminal. Its documentation (container-use.com, 2026-08-05) emphasizes isolated branches, complete command logs, and dropping into an agent's terminal, and it names several agents and editors it integrates with.
Pick Catnip if you want to run and steer agents remotely. Its GitHub README (wandb/catnip, 2026-08-05) centers on cloud Codespaces, a web UI, an iOS app, continuous auto-commits, and one-command setup with preconfigured runtimes. Keep in mind that broader agent support and a mobile UI appear on its roadmap as coming soon, so weigh what ships today.
Both are free to install and open source as of 2026-08-05. Because the strongest differences are about workflow fit, a short trial of each on a real repository will tell you more than any table.
FAQ
Are Container Use and Catnip free?
Both are open source and free to install as of 2026-08-05. Catnip is published under an Apache-2.0 license on GitHub. Container Use is distributed on GitHub with an open invitation to contribute; its introduction page did not state a license, so confirm that in its repository. Your real cost is compute, plus any cloud plan you use to host them.
Do both work with Claude Code?
Yes. Catnip's tagline is to run Claude Code everywhere and its setup is built around Claude sessions. Container Use's documentation lists configuring it with coding agents including Claude Code, Cursor, and VSCode (both observed 2026-08-05).
Can I run agents in the cloud or from my phone?
Catnip supports running in the cloud through GitHub Codespaces and offers an iOS app listed on the App Store, per its README on 2026-08-05. The container-use.com introduction page we read that day centered on local terminal and git review and did not list a cloud or mobile option; check its other documentation if that is a requirement.
How do I review what an agent changed?
Container Use puts each agent on its own git branch, so you review with git checkout and read its command logs. Catnip auto-commits changes as the agent works and runs a git server, so you can git fetch the work to your host or review through its web UI or iOS app.