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Altair RapidMiner vs IBM SPSS Modeler vs KNIME comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Data Science Platforms category, the mindshare of Altair RapidMiner is 7.7%, up from 7.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM SPSS Modeler is 2.5%, up from 2.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of KNIME is 11.9%, up from 10.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Science Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

Rathnam Makam - PeerSpot reviewer
A no-code tool that helps to build machine learning models
One challenge I encountered while implementing RapidMiner was the lack of documentation. Since there aren't as many users, finding resources to learn the tool was initially difficult. To overcome this hurdle, I believe RapidMiner could improve by providing more tutorials tailored for new users. I haven't explored the tool's latest version, so I'm unaware of the current features. However, I think it would be beneficial if they could enhance capabilities related to deep neural networks, provide better support for generating UI, and allow for importing and utilizing large language models.
PeterHuo - PeerSpot reviewer
Good tool for extracting data from data warehouses, creating streams, and manipulating logic to extract final data
There are performance issues. Extracting data from many combined tables can take hours and occasionally crash the server due to memory leaks. This performance problem bothers people. The performance issue seems to be related to the server. We design streams on the client and submit them to the server, which generates a large SQL statement. There are two potential bottlenecks: one in the server and another in data extraction. I'm unsure about the exact mechanics of data splitting when fetching from the database. When streams become larger, performance bottlenecks may occur in the IBM SPSS Modeler server or the database. Sometimes the server crashes and needs to be restarted to release memory on both sides. I'm not sure exactly where the problem is caused, as I focus on stream design rather than server issues. The problem could be on the IBM SPSS Modeler server and database.
Laurence Moseley - PeerSpot reviewer
Has a drag-and-drop interface and AI capabilities
It's difficult to pinpoint one single feature because KNIME has so many. For starters, it's very easy to learn. You can get started with just a one-hour video. The drag-and-drop interface makes it user-friendly. For example, if you want to read an Excel file, drag the "read Excel file" node from the repository, configure it by specifying the file location, and run it. This gives you a table with all your data. Next, you can clean the data by handling missing values, selecting specific columns you want to analyze, and then proceeding with your analysis, such as regression or correlation. KNIME has over 4,500 nodes available for download. In addition, KNIME offers various extensions. For instance, the text processing extension allows you to process text data efficiently. It's more powerful than other tools like NVivo and Palantir. KNIME also has AI capabilities. If you're unsure about the next step, the AI assistant can suggest the most frequently used nodes based on your previous work. Another valuable feature is the integration with Python. If you need to perform a task that requires Python, you can simply add a Python node, write the necessary code,

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"RapidMiner is very easy to use."
"The best part of RapidMiner is efficiency."
"RapidMiner is a no-code machine learning tool. I can install it on my local machine and work with smaller datasets. It can also connect to databases, allowing me to build models directly on the data stored there. RapidMiner offers a wider range of operators than other tools like Dataiku, making it a better option for my needs."
"What I like about RapidMiner is its all-in-one nature, which allows me to prepare, extract, transform, and load data within the same tool."
"It is easy to use and has a huge community that I can rely on for help. Moreover, it is interactive."
"The most valuable feature of RapidMiner is that it is code free. It is similar to playing with Lego pieces and executing after you are finished to see the results. Additionally, it is easy to use and has interesting utilities when preparing the data. It has a utility to automatically launch a series of models and show the comparisons. When finished with the comparisons you can select the best one, and deploy it automatically."
"The solution is very intuitive and powerful."
"I've been using a lot of components from the Strategic Extension and Python Extension."
"Stability is good."
"​It works fine. I have not had any stability issues; it is always up.​"
"We have full control of the data handling process."
"A lot of jobs that are stuck in Excel due to the huge numbers of rows are tackled pretty quickly."
"Automation is great and this product is very organized."
"It will scale up to anything we need."
"I think the code modeling features are the most valuable and without the need to write a code back with many different possibilities to choose from. And the second one is linked to the activity of the data preparation."
"IBM was chosen because of usability. It's point and click, whereas the other out-of-the box-solution, or open-source solutions, require full-on programming and a much higher skill level."
"Usability, and organising workflows in very neat manner. Controlling workflow through variables is something amazing."
"It's a coding-less opportunity to use AI. This is the major value for me."
"What I like the most is that it works almost out of the box with Random Forest and other Forest nodes."
"Valuable features include visual workflow creation, workflow variables (parameterisation), automatic caching of all intermediate data sets in the workflow, scheduling with the server."
"This solution is easy to use and it can be used to create any kind of model."
"All of the features related to the ETL are fantastic. That includes the connectors to other programs, databases, and the meta node function."
"The most valuable features of KNIME are its ability to convert your sub-workflow into a node. For example, the workflow has many individual native nodes that can be converted into a single node. This representation has simplified my workflow to a great extent. I can present my workflow in a very compact way."
"KNIME is easy to learn."
 

Cons

"Improve the online data services."
"RapidMiner isn't cheap. It's a complete solution, but it's costly."
"I would like to see more integration capabilities."
"In terms of the UI and SaaS, the user interface with KNIME is more appealing than RapidMiner."
"The biggest problem, not from a platform process, but from an avoidance process, is when you work in a heavily regulated environment, like banking and finance. Whenever you make a decision or there is an output, you need to bill it as an avoidance to the investigator or to the bank audit team. If you made decisions within this machine learning model, you need to explain why you did so. It would better if you could explain your decision in terms of delivery. However, this is an issue with all ML platforms. Many companies are working heavily in this area to help figure out how to make it more explainable to the business team or the regulator."
"The price of this solution should be improved."
"Currently, I am unsure of all the AI features available in Altair RapidMiner, particularly advanced AI capabilities like neural networks and deep learning."
"A great product but confusing in some way with regard to the user interface and integration with other tools."
"Formula writing is not straightforward for an Excel user. Totally new set of functions, which takes time to learn and teach."
"C&DS will not meet our scalability needs."
"The time series should be improved."
"I would not rate the technical support very well. The technicians have accents. When you do find someone, it is very hard to get somebody able to answer the technical questions."
"The integration with sources and visualisation needs some improvement. The scalability needs improvement."
"We would like to see better visualizations and easier integration with Cognos Analytics for reporting."
"Time Series or forecasting needs to be easier. It is a very important feature, and it should be made easier and more automated to use. For instance, for logistic regression, binary or multinomial is used automatically based on the type of the target variable. I wish they can make Time Series easier to use in a similar way."
"There are performance issues. Extracting data from many combined tables can take hours and occasionally crash the server due to memory leaks. This performance problem bothers people. The performance issue seems to be related to the server. We design streams on the client and submit them to the server, which generates a large SQL statement. There are two potential bottlenecks: one in the server and another in data extraction. I'm unsure about the exact mechanics of data splitting when fetching from the database."
"The visualization functionalities are not good (cannot be compared to, for instance, the possibilities in R)."
"The solution is inconvenient when it comes to wrangling data that includes multiple steps or features because each step or feature requires its own icon."
"It could input more data acquisitions from other sources and it is difficult to combine with Python."
"KNIME needs to provide more documentation and training materials, including webinars or online seminars."
"It could be easier to use."
"I'd like something that would make it easier to connect/parse websites, although I will fully admit that I'm not as proficient in KNIME as I would like to be, so it could be I'm just missing something."
"I would like it to have data visualitation capabilities. Today I'm still creating my own data visualtions tools to present my reports."
"​The data visualization part is the area most in need of improvement."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I'm not fully aware of RapidMiner's price because we had licenses provided, but from my analysis, it's moderately priced, not too high or too low. It's worth the investment."
"I used an educational license for this solution, which is available free of charge."
"For the university, the cost of the solution is free for the students and teachers."
"Although we don't pay licensing fees because it is being used within the university, my understanding is that the cost is between $5,000 and $10,000 USD per year."
"The client only has to pay the licensing costs. There are not any maintenance or hidden costs in addition to the license."
"Having in mind all four tools from Garner’s top quadrant, the pricing of this tool is competitive and it reflects the quality that it offers."
"Its price is okay for a company, but for personal use, it is considered somewhat expensive."
"It is a huge increase to time savings."
"The scalability was kind of limited by our ability to get other people licenses, and that was usually more of a financial constraint. It's expensive, but it's a good tool."
"The government has funds and a budget, it's hard to say if it's expensive or cheap. In Canada, they have a yearly budget. They used to encourage people to use the modeler for development. If ten users use the server with ten licenses, it runs faster. But if forty users use the same appliance, everything slows down. People then think it's not easy to do things and prefer using remote tools like Python to extract data from the database. It's not about being expensive or cheap, but about people's knowledge and experience in how to do the work."
"When you are close to end of quarter, IBM and its partners can get you 60% to 70% discounts, so literally wait for the last day of the quarter for the best prices. You may feel like you are getting robbed if you can't receive a good discount."
"I am using the free version of IBM SPSS Modeler, it is the educational edition version."
"$5,000 annually."
"We're using the free academic license just locally. I went for KNIME because they have a free academic license."
"This is a free open-source solution."
"KNIME Business Hub is expensive for small companies."
"It is expensive to procure the license."
"KNIME is free and open source."
"I use the tool's free version."
"KNIME is a cheap product. I currently use KNIME's open-source version."
"The client versions are mostly free, and we pay only for the KNIME server version. It's not a cheap solution."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
University
10%
Educational Organization
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Educational Organization
11%
Government
9%
University
9%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
8%
University
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about RapidMiner?
RapidMiner is a no-code machine learning tool. I can install it on my local machine and work with smaller datasets. I...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for RapidMiner?
I started with a trial version. We are likely to purchase a license, which may offer additional features.
What needs improvement with RapidMiner?
Currently, I am unsure of all the AI features available in Altair RapidMiner, particularly advanced AI capabilities l...
What do you like most about IBM SPSS Modeler?
Compared to other tools, the product works much easier to analyze data without coding.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM SPSS Modeler?
The government has funds and a budget, it's hard to say if it's expensive or cheap. In Canada, they have a yearly bud...
What needs improvement with IBM SPSS Modeler?
There are performance issues. Extracting data from many combined tables can take hours and occasionally crash the ser...
What do you like most about KNIME?
Since KNIME is a no-code platform, it is easy to work with.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for KNIME?
I rate the product’s pricing a seven out of ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive.
What needs improvement with KNIME?
I have seen the potential to interact with Python, which is currently a bit limited. I am interested in the newer ver...
 

Also Known As

No data available
SPSS Modeler
KNIME Analytics Platform
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

PayPal, Deloitte, eBay, Cisco, Miele, Volkswagen
Reisebªro Idealtours GmbH, MedeAnalytics, Afni, Israel Electric Corporation, Nedbank Ltd., DigitalGlobe, Vodafone Hungary, Aegon Hungary, Bureau Veritas, Brammer Group, Florida Department of Juvenile Justice, InSites Consulting, Fortis Turkey
Infocom Corporation, Dymatrix Consulting Group, Soluzione Informatiche, MMI Agency, Estanislao Training and Solutions, Vialis AG
Find out what your peers are saying about Databricks, Knime, Amazon Web Services (AWS) and others in Data Science Platforms. Updated: July 2025.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.