kitio.aiGoogle Colab vs marimo
A side-by-side look at pricing plans, free tiers, features, pros and cons, updated for 2026. marimo is completely free, while Google Colab is freemium.
At a glance
Best for
Category
Pricing model
Starting price
Free plan
Made by
Based in
Rating
Key features
- Hosted Jupyter notebooks
- Free GPU access
- Gemini code assistance
- Data Science Agent
- Google Drive sharing
- Reactive execution
- Pure Python file format
- AI code generation
- SQL cells
- Deploy as web apps
| Feature | Google Colab | marimo |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Free hosted Jupyter notebooks with GPUs and Gemini built in | Reactive Python notebook stored as plain Python, with AI help |
| Category | Data & analytics | Data & analytics |
| Pricing model | Freemium | Free |
| Starting price | $9.99/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes, fully free |
| Made by | CoreWeave | |
| Based in | United States | United States |
| Rating | No ratings yet | No ratings yet |
| Key features |
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Pricing compared
marimo is completely free, while Google Colab is freemium.
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan
Top plan
Free trial
4 plans
Free
Free
- Free notebooks
- Limited GPU access
Pay As You Go
$9.99 / 100 compute units
- No subscription
- Faster GPUs
Colab Pro
$9.99/mo
- 100 compute units/month
- Faster GPUs
- More memory
Colab Pro+
$49.99/mo
- 500 compute units/month
- Background execution
Prices in USD, checked Oct 28, 2026 or later. Plans change often, so confirm on each tool's site before you buy.
Pros and cons
Google Colab
- Free GPUs for learning
- No setup needed
- Easy sharing via Drive
- Sessions disconnect when idle
- Free GPU access is not guaranteed
marimo
- No hidden notebook state
- Git-friendly files
- Turns notebooks into apps
- Different habits than Jupyter
- Smaller extension ecosystem
Which one should you choose?
Choose Google Colab if you want:
- Free GPUs for learning
- No setup needed
- Easy sharing via Drive
Watch out: sessions disconnect when idle.
Choose marimo if you want:
- No hidden notebook state
- Git-friendly files
- Turns notebooks into apps
Watch out: different habits than jupyter.
Google Colab vs marimo FAQ
What is the difference between Google Colab and marimo?
Google Colab: Free hosted Jupyter notebooks with GPUs and Gemini built in. marimo: Reactive Python notebook stored as plain Python, with AI help. Both are data & analytics tools.
Is Google Colab or marimo cheaper?
marimo is completely free, while Google Colab is freemium.
Do Google Colab and marimo have free plans?
Google Colab: Yes. marimo: Yes, fully free.
Who makes Google Colab?
Google Colab is made by Google, based in United States.
Who makes marimo?
marimo is made by CoreWeave, based in United States.
Which should I choose, Google Colab or marimo?
Choose Google Colab if you value free gpus for learning and no setup needed. Choose marimo if you value no hidden notebook state and git-friendly files.