An agent slot is the unit of parallelism. One slot processes one Task at a time. The number of slots available dictates how many Tasks can be in progress simultaneously.
The common misconception people have initially
Slots do not speed up a Task.
A Task's duration depends on the size of the change and the time required for your build and test suite. Adding a second slot does not cut this time in half. It allows a second task to run alongside the first.
If a Task is slow, examine the test suite and the scope of the change. If your queue is lengthy, consider the number of slots.
How work queues operate
A Task you create enters PENDING and waits for a free slot. Once a slot becomes available,
the Task moves to IN_PROGRESS.
With one slot and five Tasks, they run one after another in order. With five slots and five independent Tasks, all five run simultaneously — provided the work is truly independent. A Plan with interdependent phases will proceed sequentially regardless of how many idle slots exist, as step three cannot commence before step two is finished.
Priority
Tasks have a priority level ranging from P0 (highest) to P3. When more Tasks are awaiting processing
than there are slots, priority determines which one goes first.
Priority arranges the queue. It does not increase capacity — if everything is P0,
nothing gets processed.
The cost of a slot
Slots form the primary basis of the pricing model:
- Free — one low-priority slot, one project, a monthly cap on agent-hours, and a limit on the maximum duration of a single Task.
- Professional — one standard slot included; extra slots are charged monthly derived from the number of slots. Unlimited projects and members.
- Enterprise — slots are provided under contract with a minimum commitment, plus priority processing. In private preview.
Model usage is billed separately from slots — see Model credits. A slot provides a space to run work; the tokens consumed during execution constitute a separate charge.
Determining your required capacity
Begin with one slot and monitor the queue for a week.
Add slots when Tasks consistently remain in PENDING while you wait. Do not
add slots merely because individual Tasks seem slow — that reflects a different issue requiring
a different solution.
Agent-hours
On plans with an agent-hour allowance, time is counted only while an agent is actively
working on a Task — not while the Task sits in PENDING. Queued work is free;
running work is what uses up the allowance.