kitio.aiClearML vs Kubeflow
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. Kubeflow is completely free, while ClearML is freemium.
At a glance
Best for
Category
Pricing model
Starting price
Free plan
Made by
Based in
Rating
Key features
- Experiment management
- Dataset versioning
- Pipeline automation
- Hyperparameter optimization
- GPU job scheduling
- Model repository
- Kubeflow Pipelines
- Distributed training
- Hyperparameter tuning
- Hosted notebooks
- Model registry
- Spark Operator
| Feature | ClearML | Kubeflow |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Open-source MLOps and AI infrastructure platform for GPU clusters | Open-source Kubernetes stack for training and serving AI models |
| Category | Models & APIs | Models & APIs |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Free |
| Starting price | $15/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes, fully free |
| Made by | ClearML | Kubeflow community (CNCF) |
| Based in | – | – |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
|
|
Pricing compared
Kubeflow is completely free, while ClearML is freemium.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
4 plans
Community
Free
- Up to 3 users
- Experiment management
- Dataset versioning
Pro
$15/mo
- Per user, plus usage
- Up to 10 users
- Cloud autoscaling
- Hyperparameter optimization
Scale
Custom quote
- For 8-48 GPUs
- VPC deployment
- Dynamic job scheduling
Enterprise
Contact sales
- On-prem or air-gapped
- Multi-tenant security
Prices in USD, checked Nov 5, 2026 or later. Plans change often, so confirm on each tool's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
ClearML
- Free hosted tier for small teams
- Can run fully air-gapped
- Covers training through GPU scheduling
- Pro adds usage fees on top of seats
- Scale plans need a custom quote
- Many components to learn
Kubeflow
- Free and open source
- Runs on any Kubernetes cluster
- Modular, use only the parts you need
- Requires Kubernetes knowledge to operate
- Setup and upgrades take real effort
- No official managed version from the project
Which one should you choose?
Choose ClearML if you want:
- Free hosted tier for small teams
- Can run fully air-gapped
- Covers training through GPU scheduling
Watch out: pro adds usage fees on top of seats.
Choose Kubeflow if you want:
- Free and open source
- Runs on any Kubernetes cluster
- Modular, use only the parts you need
Watch out: requires kubernetes knowledge to operate.
ClearML vs Kubeflow FAQ
What is the difference between ClearML and Kubeflow?
ClearML: Open-source MLOps and AI infrastructure platform for GPU clusters. Kubeflow: Open-source Kubernetes stack for training and serving AI models. Both are models & apis tools.
Is ClearML or Kubeflow cheaper?
Kubeflow is completely free, while ClearML is freemium.
Do ClearML and Kubeflow have free plans?
ClearML: Yes. Kubeflow: Yes, fully free.
Who makes ClearML?
ClearML is made by ClearML.
Who makes Kubeflow?
Kubeflow is made by Kubeflow community (CNCF).
Which should I choose, ClearML or Kubeflow?
Choose ClearML if you value free hosted tier for small teams and can run fully air-gapped. Choose Kubeflow if you value free and open source and runs on any kubernetes cluster.