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Hugging Face vs IBM Watson Studio comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 4, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

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

Categories and Ranking

Hugging Face
Ranking in AI Development Platforms
4th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
IBM Watson Studio
Ranking in AI Development Platforms
10th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
14
Ranking in other categories
Data Science Platforms (12th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of May 2025, in the AI Development Platforms category, the mindshare of Hugging Face is 13.3%, up from 8.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of IBM Watson Studio is 1.5%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
AI Development Platforms
 

Featured Reviews

SwaminathanSubramanian - PeerSpot reviewer
Versatility empowers AI concept development despite the multi-GPU challenge
Regarding scalability, I'm finding the multi-GPU aspect of it challenging. Training the model is another hurdle, although I'm only getting into that aspect currently. Organizations are apprehensive about investing in multi-GPU setups. Additionally, data cleanup is a challenge that needs to be resolved, as data must be mature and pristine.
Abilio Duarte - PeerSpot reviewer
A highly robust and well-documented platform that simplifies the complex world of AI
The main challenge lies in visibility and ease of use. Providing training sessions can be immensely helpful in helping users navigate and understand the tool's potential. This approach would empower users to explore and make the most of the tools and technologies at their disposal. Another area where IBM could enhance its offering is by providing more visibility to end users regarding the vast potential that Watson offers.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I would rate this product nine out of ten."
"The most valuable features are the inference APIs as it takes me a long time to run inferences on my local machine."
"My preferred aspects are natural language processing and question-answering."
"What I find the most valuable about Hugging Face is that I can check all the models on it and see which ones have the best performance without using another platform."
"The tool's most valuable feature is that it shows trending models. All the new models, even Google's demo models, appear at the top. You can find all the open-source models in one place. You can use them directly and easily find their documentation. It's very simple to find documentation and write code. If you want to work with AI and machine learning, Hugging Face is a perfect place to start."
"The tool's most valuable feature is that it's open-source and has hundreds of packages already available. This makes it quite helpful for creating our LLMs."
"The product is reliable."
"There are numerous libraries available, and the documentation is rich and step-by-step, helping us understand which model to use in particular conditions."
"Stability-wise, it is a great tool."
"The most important thing is that it's a multi-faceted solution. It's a kind of specialist, not a generalist. It can produce very specific information for the customer. It's totally different from Google or any search engine that produces generic information. It's specialty is that it's all on video."
"Watson Studio is the most complete tool for AI projects."
"It has a lot of data connectors, which is extremely helpful."
"The system's ability to take a look at data, segment it and then use that data very differently."
"It has greatly improved the performance because it is standardized across the company."
"IBM Watson Studio consistently automates across channels."
"It is a stable, reliable product."
 

Cons

"It can incorporate AI into its services."
"Access to the models and datasets could be improved."
"Regarding scalability, I'm finding the multi-GPU aspect of it challenging. Training the model is another hurdle, although I'm only getting into that aspect currently."
"The initial setup can be rated as a seven out of ten due to occasional issues during model deployment, which might require adjustments."
"I believe Hugging Face has some room for improvement. There are some security issues. They provide code, but API tokens aren't indicated. Also, the documentation for particular models could use more explanation. But I think these things are improving daily. The main change I'd like to see is making the deployment of inference endpoints more customizable for users."
"The solution must provide an efficient LLM."
"Implementing a cloud system to showcase historical data would be beneficial."
"Initially, I faced issues with the solution's configuration."
"I think maybe the support is an area where it lacks."
"So a better user interface could be very helpful"
"It's sometimes easy to get lost given the number of images the solution opens up when you click on the mouse and the amount of different tabs."
"The main challenge lies in visibility and ease of use."
"The initial setup was complex."
"One area that could be improved is the backup and restoration of the database and the overall database configuration."
"Initially, it was quite complex. For us, it was not only a matter of getting it installed, that was just a start. It was also trying to come up with a standard way of implementing it across the entire organization, which had been a challenge."
"More features in data virtualization would be helpful. The solution could use an interactive dashboard that could make exploration easier."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"So, it's requires expensive machines to open services or open LLM models."
"I recall seeing a fee of nine dollars, and there's also an enterprise option priced at twenty dollars per month."
"Hugging Face is an open-source solution."
"The tool is open-source. The cost depends on what task you're doing. If you're using a large language model with around 12 million parameters, it will cost more. On average, Hugging Face is open source so you can download models to your local machine for free. For deployment, you can use any cloud service."
"The solution is open source."
"We do not have to pay for the product."
"IBM Watson Studio is an expensive solution."
"The pricing is generally reasonable and straightforward but can vary significantly depending on the specific workloads in use."
"IBM Watson Studio is a reasonably priced product"
"Watson Studio's pricing is reasonable for what you get."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
University
10%
Financial Services Firm
15%
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Educational Organization
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Hugging Face?
My preferred aspects are natural language processing and question-answering.
What needs improvement with Hugging Face?
Access to the models and datasets could be improved. Many interesting ones are restricted. It would be great if they provided access for students or non-professionals who just want to test things.
What is your primary use case for Hugging Face?
This is a simple personal project, non-commercial. As a student, that's all I do.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Watson Studio?
The pricing of Watson Studio is justified by the benefits and power it offers.
What needs improvement with IBM Watson Studio?
One area that could be improved is the backup and restoration of the database and the overall database configuration. There were also challenges with programming the network extension in the last p...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Watson Studio, IBM Data Science Experience, Data Science Experience, DSx
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
GroupM, Accenture, Fifth Third Bank
Find out what your peers are saying about Hugging Face vs. IBM Watson Studio and other solutions. Updated: April 2025.
850,028 professionals have used our research since 2012.