MATLAB Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
MATLAB alternatives: GNU Octave, Scilab, Julia, KNIME Analytics Platform and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Analytics & BI
Verdict:Leave MATLAB when the yearly license is the main thing you are paying for, and your code is plain scripts, matrix maths and plots. MathWorks lists an Individual license at USD 940 per year on its pricing page, with taxes extra and maintenance included. The license covers MATLAB, Simulink and add-ons, so check whether you use any of them before you pay. If you only need scripts and plots, GNU Octave is free software under the GPL and runs on Linux, macOS, BSD and Windows, so simple .m files usually move across with light edits. Scilab is also free and open source and is aimed at students and researchers. Julia suits new numerical work, but it is a different language, so older code needs rewriting. KNIME and Orange are free too, though they are visual data tools rather than numerical languages, so use them for analysis pipelines and not for ported MATLAB code. The trade-off is support and depth: you give up MathWorks' toolboxes, Simulink and official help. If your work depends on a specific toolbox or on Simulink models, stay on MATLAB, or first check whether a campus or company license already covers you.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GNU Octave | Free (Free software under the GNU GPL; no price stated on the page) | Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD | Matrix scripts and plots at no cost | Docs only |
| Scilab | Free (Free and open source software, per the homepage ('for students, academics, engineers & scientists')) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Teaching and research on a zero budget | Docs only |
| Julia | Free (Free and open source under the MIT license, per julialang.org) | Windows, macOS, Linux | New numerical projects you can write from scratch | Docs only |
| KNIME Analytics Platform | Free (Analytics Platform is free and open source; Business Hub is a separate paid product) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Visual data prep without writing code | Docs only |
| Orange | Free (Free and open source; donations requested) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Free visual machine learning for students | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
Good fit if
- You only need matrix maths and plots in scripts (GNU Octave is the pick)
- You teach or do research and want a free MATLAB-style environment (Scilab is the pick)
- You are starting new numerical code and can rewrite it (Julia is the pick)
- You analyse data with visual workflows and no code (KNIME Analytics Platform is the pick)
- You want free visual machine learning for coursework (Orange is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on MATLAB features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
MATLAB today: Paid from $940 per per year, Individual license (pricing page lists 'USD 940' with Simulink and add-ons; taxes excluded) (MATLAB pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Why people look for MATLAB alternatives
MATLAB has no free plan. The pricing page lists an Individual License at USD 940 per year that includes MATLAB, Simulink and add-on products, with taxes excluded. Licenses are sold by intended use: Standard, Startups, Academic, Student and Home, and the Home license is for personal use only, not for commercial, government, academic or organizational work. Annual licenses include maintenance only while you keep paying, and a perpetual license includes just the first year of maintenance. Add-on products are sold through the MathWorks Web Store.
GNU Octave
Compared with MATLAB: Free software under the GPL that runs on Linux, macOS, BSD and Windows. Compared with MATLAB's USD 940 a year, you save the license fee and lose the Simulink, toolboxes and MathWorks support.
Price: Free (Free software under the GNU GPL; no price stated on the page) (GNU Octave pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD. GPL-3.0-or-later (open source).
Best for: Matrix scripts and plots at no cost.
Scilab
Compared with MATLAB: Free and open source, described on its homepage as built for students, academics, engineers and scientists. Against MATLAB you keep a numerical environment without a license, but you lose MathWorks' toolboxes and Simulink-level modelling.
Price: Free (Free and open source software, per the homepage ('for students, academics, engineers & scientists')) (Scilab pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. GPL-2.0 (also available under CeCILL v2.1) (open source).
Best for: Teaching and research on a zero budget.
Julia
Compared with MATLAB: MIT-licensed and open source, aimed at fast numerical code. Unlike MATLAB it is a separate language, so existing .m files need rewriting, but you avoid a yearly license entirely.
Price: Free (Free and open source under the MIT license, per julialang.org) (Julia pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 49.2k GitHub stars · latest release v1.13.3 (Oct 26, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: New numerical projects you can write from scratch.
KNIME Analytics Platform
Compared with MATLAB: Analytics Platform is free and open source, with low-code visual workflows for data prep and machine learning. It does not run MATLAB code or matrix maths, so it replaces MATLAB only for data-analysis pipelines.
Price: Free (Analytics Platform is free and open source; Business Hub is a separate paid product) (KNIME Analytics Platform pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. Free and open source (per KNIME) (open source).
Best for: Visual data prep without writing code.
Orange
Compared with MATLAB: Free and open source under GPL-3.0 or later, with a visual interface for data mining and machine learning. Against MATLAB it covers analysis workflows, not numerical programming or Simulink.
Price: Free (Free and open source; donations requested) (Orange pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. GPL-3.0 or later (open source).
Project activity: 5.7k GitHub stars · latest release 3.40.0 (Dec 20, 2025) · last commit Oct 26, 2026
Best for: Free visual machine learning for students.
Worth knowing: Widget-based visual workflows for data visualization and machine learning, no coding required.
Which one to pick
- You only need matrix maths and plots in scripts: GNU Octave
- You teach or do research and want a free MATLAB-style environment: Scilab
- You are starting new numerical code and can rewrite it: Julia
- You analyse data with visual workflows and no code: KNIME Analytics Platform
- You want free visual machine learning for coursework: Orange
Limits of this review
Docs-only for GNU Octave, Scilab, Julia, KNIME Analytics Platform, Orange: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from MATLAB. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
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Sources
Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: MATLAB, GNU Octave, Scilab, Julia, KNIME Analytics Platform, Orange. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.