Shadow PC vs Vagon (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Vagon grades higher than Shadow PC: 2.2 against 1.8 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 13, 2026 · graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Shadow PC grades higher on platforms. Vagon grades higher on value for money, the free plan and features. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Shadow PC
A full Windows PC in the cloud for gaming and creative work
Vagon
Cloud workstations with GPUs, billed by the minute
Which one is for you
Pick Shadow PC if
- Fits if you want a Windows gaming PC on a laptop or phone
- Works for monthly use with no long commitment
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you play often, since the cheapest plan is $29.99 and Lite caps at 120 hours a month
- Skip it if you want a trial first, as none is listed
- Watch out: peak-hour queue priority depends on your tier, from Lite to Premium
- Watch out: the vendor notes that not every game or app will run
- Watch out: businesses use a separate Cloud Workstations line with its own pricing
Pick Vagon if
- Fits if you need a high-spec machine for a few hours at a time
- Works for people who like paying only for minutes used
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a flat monthly bill, as usage and storage are charged separately
- Watch out: data sent out is free for the first 10 GB a month, then $1.5 for each extra 10 GB
- Watch out: usage is paid from a prepaid balance, and rates can vary by region
- Tight if you want a free trial, as the trial starts from $0.99
How we grade them
| 1.8GPAShadow PCWeak | 2.2GPAVagonFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | D$29.99 a month for the cheapest plan, just under the $30 line where the category's dearest tenth begins. Neo Pro is $44.99 and Power Pro $59.99. | CStorage is $7.99 a month, with usage from $0.25 an hour on top, so a month's cost depends on hours used. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial is listed anywhere on the vendor pages. | DThe pricing page offers a trial from $0.99, so there is a payment up front, and no free plan. |
| Features | CA full Windows PC streamed to many devices, with team management on Pro. Monthly playtime and resolution limits apply, with 120 hours on Lite. | BPay-per-minute use, GPU and CPU machines, preinstalled apps, AI agents and team workspaces are listed. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. You install the client, sign in and stream, with nothing to set up. | BNo store rating on record. It opens in a browser with apps already installed, so there is little to set up. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android clients, with Steam, Epic and Battle.net. No API is listed. | CWeb only. No desktop or phone apps are listed, though Blender, Unreal, Unity and Premiere Pro are named. |
| Best for | a full Windows gaming PC streamed to your devices | pay-per-minute cloud computers in a browser |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Shadow PC and Vagon. How we grade
Price against what you get
Shadow PC starts at $29.99 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Vagon starts at $7.99 a month and scores 2.7.
They score the same, and Vagon starts $22 a month lower. Of the other remote desktop apps on the chart, 5 score higher than Shadow PC for less, and 2 score higher than Vagon for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Vagon also covers file sharing.
At a glance
| Shadow PC | Vagon | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | $29.99 per month, no commitment | $7.99 per month for storage, plus usage from $0.25 per hour |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Trial offered from $0.99, per the pricing page |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Shadow | Vagon |
| Price read from | shadow.tech | vagon.io |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Shadow PC
- Playtime is a fair-use cap that resets on the 1st of each month; Lite allows 120 hours.
- Peak-hour queue priority depends on the tier, from Lite to Premium.
- The vendor notes that not every game or app will run, flagged with an asterisk on its page.
- A separate Cloud Workstations line for businesses has its own pricing page.
Vagon
- Costs are split between a monthly storage fee and minute-based usage, so a monthly bill depends on hours used.
- Data sent out of Vagon is free for the first 10 GB a month, then $1.5 for each extra 10 GB.
- Usage is paid from a prepaid account balance, and rates can vary by region.
- Only a browser client is described; no separate desktop or mobile apps were found.
Key features
Shadow PC
- A full Windows PC
- Install games from Steam, Epic or Battle.net, plus mods and your own software, instead of picking from a fixed library.
- Stream to many devices
- The download page lists apps for Windows, macOS, iOS and Android, and the site also offers a browser version and Android TV and Apple TV.
- Monthly playtime and session caps
- Lite plans allow 120 hours a month in sessions of up to 4 hours. Other plans list 210 hours, sessions of 6 to 8 hours and an Always On option.
- Resolution and monitor limits
- The comparison table shows 1440p at 60 Hz on the lightest tier and up to 5K at 240 Hz on the others, with 1 to 3 monitors.
- Team management on Pro
- Pro plans include a subscriptions and users manager, and a team suite adds roles, fleet management, IAM and centralized billing.
Vagon
- Pay per minute
- Each performance option has its own hourly rate, charged by the minute, and you can switch between options as you like.
- GPU and CPU machines
- Options include RTX-enabled A10G machines from $1.67 per hour, Tesla T4 machines from $0.99 per hour and CPU machines from $0.25 per hour.
- Works in the browser
- The vendor says Vagon runs on PC, Mac, Linux, tablets and phones with only a browser and internet connection.
- Preinstalled apps
- You pick applications from a catalog when creating a computer, and they come preinstalled, with drag-and-drop file transfer.
- AI agents and team workspaces
- The homepage describes running Claude Code, Codex or OpenCode on a dedicated GPU computer, and team workspaces for companies.
Plans
Shadow PC
Neo Lite$29.99
per month, no commitment
Up to 120 hours of playtime a month, sessions up to 4 hours, streaming in 1440p, 256 GB storage.
Neo$37.99
per month, no commitment
Streaming up to 1440p, multi-screen and ultrawide support, RTX and DLSS. The comparison table lists 210 hours a month.
Power Lite$43.99
per month, no commitment
Up to 50% more GPU power than Neo, 28 GB RAM and 20 GB VRAM, 120 hours a month, 4-hour sessions.
Neo Pro$44.99
per month, no commitment
For 3D and rendering: priority access, longer sessions and a subscriptions and users manager.
Power$54.99
per month, no commitment
Up to 50% more GPU power, 28 GB RAM and 20 GB VRAM, streaming up to 5K.
Power Pro$59.99
per month, no commitment
Power hardware with priority access, longer sessions, a users manager and installs of CUDA and RTX workflows.
Vagon
Personal storage$7.99
per month, plus usage charged by the minute
75 GB disk and 5 GB of Vagon Files storage. Usage runs from $0.25 per hour (Sand CPU) to $11.97 per hour (Lava GPU).
Premium storage$19.99
per month, plus usage charged by the minute
75 GB disk and 25 GB of Vagon Files storage. The pricing page marks a tier as available soon, so check this one.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Shadow PC or Vagon?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Vagon is cheaper to start with: $7.99 a month, against $29.99 a month for Shadow PC. Shadow PC starts at $29.99 per month, no commitment, and Vagon starts at $7.99 per month for storage, plus usage from $0.25 per hour.
Which has a free plan, Shadow PC or Vagon?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Shadow PC nor Vagon has a free plan. Vagon has a free trial.
Which platforms do Shadow PC and Vagon run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Shadow PC lists macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.