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Software · head to head

DVC vs H2O.ai

DVC logo

DVC

Software

Data version control for machine learning projects

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
H2O.ai logo

H2O.ai

Software

AI Cloud for building and deploying AI applications

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: DVC dVC is Apache 2.0 licensed open source with no enterprise tier or paid support offering documented in the project itself; teams needing SLA-backed support get nothing from the DVC project directly.; H2O.ai java is always required to run H2O-3 even when working from R or Python, and only a 64-bit JRE or JDK is supported
  • They diverge on capability: DVC covers Data versioning, H2O.ai covers AutoML.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which DVC and H2O.ai actually diverge.

Attributes where DVC and H2O.ai differ
AttributeDVCH2O.ai
Pricing modelopen-sourcefreemium
PlatformsLinux, Mac, WindowsWeb, Cloud
Founded20182011

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in DVC

  • Data versioning
  • Pipeline management
  • Experiment tracking
  • Remote storage
  • Git integration
  • Git
  • S3
  • Azure Blob

Only in H2O.ai

  • AutoML
  • Distributed computing
  • Feature engineering
  • Model explainability
  • Time series forecasting
  • Spark
  • Hadoop
  • Python

Both cover

  • Linux support
  • Mac support
  • Windows support

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

DVC

  • Machine learningnot H2O.ai
  • Data analysisnot H2O.ai
  • Model trainingnot H2O.ai
  • Predictive analyticsnot H2O.ai

H2O.ai

  • Distributed in-memory machine learning over large datasetsnot DVC
  • Training and productionising models from R or Python against a shared H2O clusternot DVC

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

DVC

  • DVC is Apache 2.0 licensed open source with no enterprise tier or paid support offering documented in the project itself; teams needing SLA-backed support get nothing from the DVC project directly.

H2O.ai

  • Java is always required to run H2O-3 even when working from R or Python, and only a 64-bit JRE or JDK is supported
  • Supported Java versions stop at Java SE 17; newer versions only run by forcing an unsupported version flag and are guaranteed for experiments rather than production
  • H2O-3 only supports numpy below version 2, so a numpy 2 environment must be downgraded
  • Supported Python versions are limited to 3.7 through 3.11
  • The Flow web UI requires an internet browser and is the only graphical interface

Pricing, plan by plan

DVC

Free
  • Open SourceFree
    • Data versioning
    • Pipeline management
    • Experiment tracking
  • DVC StudioFree
    • Web UI
    • Team collaboration
    • Visualizations

H2O.ai

Free
  • H2O-3 Open SourceFree
    • Core algorithms
    • AutoML
    • Community support
  • Driverless AIFree
    • Automatic feature engineering
    • Model explainability
    • Enterprise support

Which should you pick?

Choose DVC if

  • You need data versioning.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Linux, Mac, Windows.
  • You also want pipeline management.
DVC review

Choose H2O.ai if

  • You need automl.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud.
  • You also want distributed computing.
H2O.ai review

Questions people ask

Is DVC or H2O.ai better?
Neither clearly leads. DVC starts at Free and H2O.ai at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, DVC or H2O.ai?
DVC starts at Free and H2O.ai at Free.
Does DVC or H2O.ai run on more platforms?
DVC runs on Linux, Mac, Windows. H2O.ai runs on Web, Cloud.
Can I use DVC for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is DVC best used for?
DVC is most often used for machine learning, data analysis, model training, predictive analytics. Of those, machine learning and data analysis are not what H2O.ai is typically brought in for.
What can DVC do that H2O.ai cannot?
DVC covers Data versioning, Pipeline management, Experiment tracking, Remote storage. H2O.ai covers AutoML, Distributed computing, Feature engineering, Model explainability. Both handle Linux support, Mac support, Windows support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

H2O.ai: Is H2O open source and free?

Yes. H2O-3 OSS is free and Apache-licensed, designed for self-managed and experimental workflows. H2O.ai also offers enterprise cloud solutions with additional features.

Source
H2O.ai: How many companies use H2O's open source platform?

Over 18,000 companies across Finance, Insurance, Healthcare, Retail, Telco, Sales, and Marketing use H2O's open-source machine learning platform.

Source
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Related pages

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