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Machine Learning · head to head

JMP vs Snowplow

JMP logo

JMP

Machine Learning

Desktop statistical and design of experiments software from a SAS subsidiary

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Snowplow logo

Snowplow

Business Intelligence

Behavioural data pipeline you run in your own cloud, relicensed away from Apache 2.0 in 2024

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only JMP has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: JMP it is a desktop application holding the working table in memory, so a data set that outgrows the workstation has no in-place upgrade path, only a move to a different tool and a different skill set.; Snowplow the core pipeline was relicensed from Apache 2.0 on 8 January 2024 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement and a Confluent-derived community licence, so organisations that adopted it as permissively licensed software must now review their entitlement, buy a licence, or migrate.
  • They diverge on capability: JMP covers Custom design of experiments, Snowplow covers Own-cloud deployment.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which JMP and Snowplow actually diverge.

Attributes where JMP and Snowplow differ
AttributeJMPSnowplow
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsMac, WindowsLinux, Web, Docker
CategoryMachine LearningBusiness Intelligence
Founded1976Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 JMP

  • Custom design of experiments
  • Linked interactive graphics
  • Analysis platforms
  • Quality and process tools
  • Graph Builder
  • JSL scripting
  • Scoring code export
  • Predictive modelling in JMP Pro

Only in Snowplow

  • Own-cloud deployment
  • Schema enforcement
  • Warehouse loading
  • Enrichment
  • Trackers
  • Streaming output
  • Data models
  • Snowplow BDP

What people use each for

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

JMP

  • Planning a physical experiment where each run is expensive, and the question is which twelve runs to perform rather than how to model data you already havenot Snowplow
  • Process capability and control chart work in a manufacturing quality function that has to produce evidence for a customer or regulatornot Snowplow
  • Exploratory analysis by an engineer or scientist who will not write code but needs more than a spreadsheetnot Snowplow
  • Semiconductor, chemical and pharmaceutical development groups where JMP is already the shared language for reporting resultsnot Snowplow

Snowplow

  • A data team that needs full-fidelity event data in its own warehouse to build attribution or machine learning features rather than to populate dashboardsnot JMP
  • A regulated business that cannot send behavioural data to a third-party analytics vendor and must keep collection inside its own cloud accountnot JMP
  • A product organisation tired of silently malformed events, which wants a schema contract enforced at collection timenot JMP
  • A company modelling customer behaviour across web, mobile and server events that needs them in one consistent structurenot JMP

Where each one falls short

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

JMP

  • It is a desktop application holding the working table in memory, so a data set that outgrows the workstation has no in-place upgrade path, only a move to a different tool and a different skill set.
  • There is no Linux build and no server edition for running analyses, so JMP cannot sit in a scheduled pipeline the way an R or Python script can, and recurring reports depend on a named person running them on a laptop.
  • The predictive modelling capability most buyers mean when they call this machine learning software is in JMP Pro, a separate and more expensive licence, so the base product's price is not the price of the thing being evaluated.
  • JSL is proprietary to JMP, so the scripts, add-ins and automation a group accumulates over a decade do not port anywhere and become sunk cost the moment anyone questions the renewal.
  • Deployment ends at exported scoring code with no registry, monitoring or retraining, so a model that runs in production is maintained by another team in another language and steadily diverges from the version the analyst still has open.

Snowplow

  • The core pipeline was relicensed from Apache 2.0 on 8 January 2024 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement and a Confluent-derived community licence, so organisations that adopted it as permissively licensed software must now review their entitlement, buy a licence, or migrate.
  • You run the pipeline in your own cloud, which means the infrastructure bill, the on-call rota and the upgrade work are yours, and at high event volume that operational cost frequently exceeds what a hosted product would have charged.
  • Schema enforcement is the main benefit and the main friction, because every new event requires a schema to be authored and versioned, and teams without discipline around that end up blocked on their own governance process.
  • There is no analysis layer: Snowplow delivers data to your warehouse and nothing else, so you still need modelling, a BI tool and the people to run them before anyone sees a number.
  • The licence change fractured the community, spawning an Apache 2.0 fork, which means community contributions and third-party tooling are now split across two codebases with uncertain long-term maintenance.

Pricing, plan by plan

JMP

Free
  • TrialFree
    • 30-day trial
    • Full features
  • JMP$1785/year
    • Core JMP
    • Standard features

Snowplow

On request
  • Snowplow BDP$undefined/year
    • Commercial pricing quoted by event volume and deployment
    • Core pipeline components under the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement, not Apache 2.0
    • Trackers, analytics SDKs and Iglu SDKs remain Apache 2.0

Which should you pick?

Choose JMP if

  • You need custom design of experiments.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Mac, Windows.
  • You also want linked interactive graphics.
JMP review

Choose Snowplow if

  • You need own-cloud deployment.
  • You work on Linux, Web, Docker.
  • You also want schema enforcement.
Snowplow review

Questions people ask

Is JMP or Snowplow better?
Neither clearly leads. JMP starts at Free and Snowplow at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, JMP or Snowplow?
JMP has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for JMP and On request for Snowplow.
Does JMP or Snowplow run on more platforms?
JMP runs on Mac, Windows. Snowplow runs on Linux, Web, Docker.
Can I use JMP for free?
Yes. JMP has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Snowplow starts at On request.
What is JMP best used for?
JMP is most often used for planning a physical experiment where each run is expensive, and the question is which twelve runs to perform rather than how to model data you already have, process capability and control chart work in a manufacturing quality function that has to produce evidence for a customer or regulator, exploratory analysis by an engineer or scientist who will not write code but needs more than a spreadsheet, semiconductor, chemical and pharmaceutical development groups where jmp is already the shared language for reporting results. Of those, planning a physical experiment where each run is expensive, and the question is which twelve runs to perform rather than how to model data you already have and process capability and control chart work in a manufacturing quality function that has to produce evidence for a customer or regulator are not what Snowplow is typically brought in for.
What can JMP do that Snowplow cannot?
JMP covers Custom design of experiments, Linked interactive graphics, Analysis platforms, Quality and process tools. Snowplow covers Own-cloud deployment, Schema enforcement, Warehouse loading, Enrichment.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

JMP: Is JMP the same thing as SAS?

No. JMP is a separate desktop product from a SAS subsidiary, with its own interface, its own scripting language and its own licence. Knowing SAS does not transfer to it beyond the statistics.

Snowplow: Is Snowplow still open source?

Not in the permissive sense. On 8 January 2024 the core pipeline moved from Apache 2.0 to the Snowplow Limited Use Licence Agreement, with version 1.1 following in December 2024, alongside a community licence based on the Confluent Community Licence. Trackers and analytics SDKs remain Apache 2.0.

JMP: Do I need JMP Pro?

If you want cross validation, penalised regression, boosted trees or neural networks, yes. The base edition covers classical statistics, graphics and design of experiments well and stops short of predictive modelling.

Snowplow: Can we still run it for free in production?

Free use of the relicensed core components is materially constrained and commercial use generally requires an agreement. Read the current licence text against your intended use rather than relying on older documentation.

JMP: Does it run on Linux?

No. Windows and macOS only, as an installed application.

Snowplow: Is there an Apache 2.0 alternative?

Yes, a fork called OpenSnowcat was created in response to the relicensing and continues under Apache 2.0.

JMP: Can I put a JMP model into production?

Only by exporting the scoring formula as SQL, C, Python or similar and running it in another system. JMP itself does not serve, monitor or retrain models.

Snowplow: What does Snowplow BDP cost?

Not published. It is quoted by event volume and deployment, and your own cloud infrastructure costs are separate and additional.

JMP: Who actually uses it?

Process and quality engineers, and scientists in R&D, particularly in semiconductor, chemicals, pharmaceutical and medical device work. It is not usually chosen by data engineering or platform teams.

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