Factory Droid 1.0 explained: tool workflows, pricing and permissions
Factory’s October 29 Droid 1.0 announcement changes its coding-agent harness, not the underlying model. This documentation-based overview covers practical evaluation, prices and permissions; it is not a hands-on review.
What programmatic tool calling changes
Factory describes JavaScript coordinating tools and returning condensed results. Its sandbox lacks direct filesystem, network and system access, but invoked tools can act. The original article includes interactive illustrations.
Factory’s comparisons include moderation-stopped Opus 5.5 trials rerun with Opus 5 and estimated Cursor token data. These vendor evaluations do not guarantee universal savings.
Droid 1.0 is the announcement, not the latest version number
As checked on November 1, Factory’s changelog lists CLI 1.1.0 and Desktop 1.1.0, both dated October 30. That release adds a doctor check that lists Droid installations on PATH and their versions, among other changes. The October 29 architecture announcement should not be read as a recommendation to install an older binary.
Current prices and the limits behind them
The public pricing page lists these individual plans. Prices were checked on November 1; the higher allowances are not unlimited usage or a speed guarantee.
| Plan | Monthly price | Listed usage allowance |
|---|---|---|
| Pro | $20 | Base allowance |
| Plus | $100 | Approximately 5× Pro |
| Max | $200 | Approximately 10× Pro |
Factory’s individual-plan documentation describes independent rolling limits over five hours, seven days and thirty days. Standard usage is consumed first; Droid Core has separate limits. Optional prepaid Extra Usage has a $10 minimum, and Missions require Extra Usage enabled. Check the account’s usage screen before committing to a long run rather than treating the subscription price as a fixed budget for any task.
Planning mode and permission to act are different settings
The autonomy documentation separates interaction mode from approval level. Spec Mode investigates and proposes a plan before implementation. Low autonomy permits file edits and low-risk tools; Medium adds reversible workspace commands; High can allow higher-risk work. Command policy, sandbox checks and organization restrictions still apply. Permission rules are not operating-system isolation.
For a first evaluation, our recommendation is to use a disposable branch and a small task with explicit acceptance checks. Inspect the plan, then review the diff and test output before merging. For example, ask for a proposed fix to one failing test, with the intended files and verification steps identified before editing. That is an illustrative evaluation approach, not a task we ran or a guarantee that the agent will succeed.
When the SDK is the relevant option
The TypeScript SDK exposes the harness through one-shot runs and persistent sessions. Its documentation requires Node.js 18 or newer and normally starts the Droid CLI from PATH. It also offers model discovery: use that to check actual account availability rather than assuming a particular model is included. Applications should close sessions they create when finished.
The practical question is not whether a vendor chart names a winner. It is whether the workflow produces a correct, reviewable result within your permissions and usage budget. Keep those checks separate from the October 29 release claims when deciding whether to try Droid.
AI-generated editorial illustration by ByteForward with the official Factory logo. Not a product interface or device. Logo source: Factory.
