A WebContainers alternative with a real Linux kernel
Node, Bun and any arm64 Linux program in the tab, with the WebContainer API kept for code you already wrote.
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npm i @uncontained/sdk yarn add @uncontained/sdk pnpm add @uncontained/sdk bun add @uncontained/sdk deno add npm:@uncontained/sdk Uncontained vs WebContainers, side by side
WebContainers, from StackBlitz, is a browser runtime for Node.js applications. StackBlitz does not claim a Linux kernel, and native addons are off.
| Capability | Uncontained | WebContainers |
|---|---|---|
| Real Linux kernel | Yes, Linux 6.18 | No |
| Unmodified native binaries | Yes, any arm64 Linux program | No |
| Native Node addons (N-API) | Yes | No, unless built to WebAssembly |
| Node.js | 26.13.0 on the browser’s JIT | 24.22.2 by default |
| Bun | 1.4.4 | Not supported; request open since 3 June 2025 |
| apt and Debian packages | Yes, Debian 13 | No; npm, pnpm and yarn v1 |
| Raw TCP, UDP and TLS sockets | Yes | No |
| WebAssembly | WASI 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, WASIX and the wasmer CLI | WASI, version not stated |
| Claude Code and other coding agents | Yes, on native JS | Not documented |
WebContainers facts are from StackBlitz’s own pages, read on 10 November 2026.
When WebContainers is the better fit
WebContainers is a hosted runtime with years of use in StackBlitz for Node web tooling. If your app only runs JavaScript tools in Chromium and you want StackBlitz to host the engine, it is the shorter path.
Questions about switching from WebContainers
Can I move WebContainer API code to Uncontained?
- Yes. @uncontained/webcontainer-compat keeps boot, mount, spawn and server-ready. Change the import and keep the rest.
Does Uncontained need COOP and COEP headers too?
- Yes. The page that embeds the machine is cross-origin isolated, the same requirement WebContainers has. Cross-Origin-Embedder-Policy can be require-corp or credentialless.
What runs that WebContainers cannot run?
- Bun, native Node addons, apt packages, raw TCP clients for databases, and any unmodified arm64 Linux program, such as Python 3.13 with pip, Go and gcc.