BORIS vs Label Studio
BORIS
boris.unito.it
Label Studio
labelstud.ioSide by side
| Figure | BORIS | Label Studio |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $99/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | Yes |
| Web | — | Yes |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| API | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 3 |
| Spec score · Video Annotation Software | 8.4 (#9) | 9.0 (#3) |
| Data handling | BORIS uses JSON, described as an open format for storing data to support further analysis. | Input media can remain in external storage and be delivered through presigned URLs, while project settings and annotations are stored in the internal database or configured external stores. |
| Purpose | BORIS is event-logging software for video and audio coding and live observations. | Label Studio is an open source data labeling tool for labeling multiple data types and connecting machine learning models for predictions or active learning. |
| Support | The site provides a user guide, video tutorials and workshops, an FAQ, a user forum, and channels for bug reports and feature requests. | Community users are directed to Slack and GitHub issues, Starter Cloud includes a dedicated support portal, and Enterprise offers priority support with response time SLAs. |
Plans
Label Studio
- Community EditionFree
- Starter Cloud$99 a month
- EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
BORIS
BORIS is free and open-source software for coding video and audio and recording live observations. Media tools include frame-by-frame navigation, playback speeds from 0.1× to 100×, and synchronized playback of up to eight files. Users can define unlimited behaviors, subjects, modifiers, and independent variables, with behaviors recorded as state or point events. Analysis options include Cohen’s Kappa inter-rater reliability, transition matrices, flow diagrams, time-budget analysis, and graphical views of coded data. Coded events can be exported in formats including TSV, CSV, HTML, ODS, XLSX, SQL, Pandas and R dataframes, SDIS, Praat TextGrid, and JWatcher formats. BORIS also imports JWatcher Global Definition Files and Noldus The Observer XT templates. Live event logging is available in the desktop program and Android app. The Android app is version 0.13 and marked beta for testing only. Data is stored in JSON; download files are GPG-signed, with a public key available for integrity checks. The project warns that backward compatibility of project files is not guaranteed and recommends regular backups.
Label Studio
Label Studio is an open-source data labeling tool for text, images, audio, video, time series, and multimodal data. It provides a configurable labeling interface, project templates, data management, and annotation import and export. Custom machine-learning backends can provide predictions, while Enterprise adds automated active-learning loops. Its integrations directory spans cloud storage, foundation-model APIs, computer vision, speech and audio, machine-learning frameworks, and infrastructure. Listed storage options include Amazon S3, Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob Storage, Databricks, Redis, and local storage. APIs, a Python SDK, and webhooks support programmatic management and integration. Deployment options include on-premises or cloud installation using pip, Docker, Ubuntu, source, or Anaconda. Security documentation describes TLS for application-component interactions, HTTPS, and secured cookies. Enterprise is described as SOC 2 and HIPAA compliant and can be deployed in the cloud or on premises, with SSO and SCIM 2.0 support. Community Edition is free. Starter Cloud costs $99 a month, with each additional user at $49 a month; Enterprise pricing is custom.