New Mobilerun VA is now in beta, a hosted 24/7 agent for mobile automation
Comparison

mobilerun vs Sauce Labs: agent workloads vs app testing.

Both give you real iOS and Android in the cloud. They are built for two different jobs: validating your own build, or running agents on accounts that persist.

TL;DR
Sauce Labs is an enterprise test cloud. Real and virtual devices for CI regression runs, with the device wiped and the accounts cleared between every session.
mobilerun is built for production. Persistent, authorized accounts on real Android and iPhone hardware we own and operate in the US and EU. State survives spin-down, your own models drive it over REST API, SDKs or MCP, and it scales to hundreds of devices at $0.03 a minute.
Capability mobilerun Sauce Labs
Built for Production AI agent workloads Testing & validation of your own apps
Device type Stateful hosted Android (EU/US) + physical iPhones on request Real device cloud + virtual devices
iOS Real iPhones we own and operate Real iOS devices
Permitted use Production agents on authorized accounts AUP: legitimate testing or validation only
State between sessions Persists, spin down, resume later Accounts cleared, AppleIDs removed
Social media apps Yes, on your own and clients' authorized accounts AUP: only for software testing or validation
Production data Your real workload ToS 2.4: non-production, non-sensitive data only
Device-level API REST API, Python/TypeScript SDKs, hosted MCP Real Device Access API, per-device add-on
Agent benchmark 91.4% AndroidWorld, reproducible None published
Open source MIT framework, 8,000+ stars Closed
Pricing (July 2026) $0.03/min · rentals from $5/mo · real iPhone $200/mo Real Device Cloud $199/mo annual, $249 monthly, per parallel
Scaling model Hundreds of devices, billed by the minute Parallel-based plans
Fleet size Devices we own in the US & EU "Thousands", no published number

Sauce Labs details from saucelabs.com/pricing, the Acceptable Use Policy, the Terms of Service (section 2.4) and Real Device Cleaning docs, July 2026. Prices and policies change, check both vendors.

Why teams choose mobilerun

  • Accounts and state persist. Spin a device down, resume later with logins intact.
  • Production workloads on your own and your clients' authorized accounts.
  • Our own physical Android and iOS devices in the US and EU, plus stateful hosted Android in EU/US regions.
  • The most human-like behaviour of any provider. Authentic hardware identity is compatible with Play Integrity and App Attest.
  • Social media runs here too, on authorized accounts, and we permit that workload.
  • Your own models drive the phone. REST API, Python/TypeScript SDKs, hosted MCP.
  • Pay as you go at $0.03/minute. Rentals from $5/month, dedicated Android $80/month, real iPhone $200/month.
  • Scales on demand. Hundreds of devices at once, billed by the minute, no parallel seats to buy.
  • Open framework, MIT, 8,000+ GitHub stars, 91.4% AndroidWorld, reproducible.
FAQ

mobilerun vs Sauce Labs, common questions.

What is the main difference between mobilerun and Sauce Labs?+
They are different product categories. Sauce Labs is a CI vendor for testing and validation of your own apps across a real and virtual device matrix, with accounts wiped between sessions. mobilerun is built for production AI agent workloads on persistent, authorized accounts: Android and iOS devices we own and operate in the US and EU, driven by the LLM of your choice over REST API, Python/TypeScript SDKs and a hosted MCP server.
Can I run production agent workloads on Sauce Labs?+
Their Acceptable Use Policy draws that line themselves. It prohibits content or activity that "Is used for any other purpose other than the legitimate testing or validation of web sites, mobile web sites and applications." It also prohibits activity that "Accesses any social media site other than for purposes of software testing or validation" and that "Involves commercial activities and/or sales, other than for legitimate testing purposes", and it prohibits creating "more than a single account per person". Their Terms of Service section 2.4 adds that customers "may only upload non-sensitive, non-production data (for example, synthetic or 'dummy' test data)". That is a testing product working exactly as designed.
Does state persist between sessions on Sauce Labs?+
No, and that is deliberate for a test cloud. Their Real Device Cleaning docs state "AppleID's are removed between sessions" and that "Access is restricted to the test application and webapps through Safari or Chrome." Their Mobile FAQ states they "Clear all accounts whenever allowed by the OS (e.g., Google Play, Twitter, etc.)" after each session. On mobilerun, state persists: spin a device down and resume later with logins and state intact.
Does Sauce Labs have a device-level API for agents?+
Yes. Their Real Device Access API went GA on 2026-02-25 and exposes raw ADB and xcrun over HTTP with live video and logs, sessions up to 24 hours, and what they call an "MCP-Ready architecture". It is priced as a per-device add-on on existing Real Device Cloud contracts. The API is real, but the Acceptable Use Policy still governs what the session may be used for, and that policy scopes it to testing and validation.
Which one should I pick?+
If you are running regression tests of your own build across a device matrix in CI, Sauce Labs covers that. If you are running production agents that log into authorized accounts, keep that state between runs, and need to scale to hundreds of real devices billed by the minute, that is what mobilerun is built for.

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Run your agent on a real phone.

Pay as you go from $0.03/minute, or bring your own phone for $5/month.

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