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Dolly 2.0
Free PlanBest ValueOpen SourceEditor's Choice

Dolly 2.0

by Databricks

Open-source instruction-following LLM for commercial use.

Reviewed May 2026by CBAI Editorial Team
8.0/10

Score

4.0 out of 5 · our score
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Developer

Our verdict

Dolly 2.0 by Databricks is a significant advancement in open-source, instruction-following large language models. With its open-source nature and commercial-use license, it offers developers and organizations a powerful tool for various AI applications. While it may not match the performance of larger models like GPT-3, its accessibility and scalability make it a valuable resource for many use cases.

Overview

Dolly 2.0 is a 12-billion parameter language model based on the EleutherAI Pythia model family, fine-tuned on a high-quality, human-generated instruction dataset. Developed by Databricks, it is open-sourced under the Apache License 2.0, allowing for commercial use without API access fees or data sharing with third parties. This model is suitable for tasks such as text generation, information extraction, and summarization, and is available in three sizes: 3 billion, 7 billion,…

Score breakdown

Overall score

8.0/10
Output quality7.5/10
Ease of use7.0/10
Value for money9.0/10
Features & tools8.0/10
API & integrations7.5/10
Support & docs7.0/10

Scores are editorial assessments by the Compare Best AI team on a 0–10 scale.

Expert review

C

CBAI Editorial Team

Compare Best AI · Editorial Team

## Overview

How we tested

Days tested

7 days

Tasks evaluated

  • ·Text generation
  • ·Information extraction
  • ·Summarization
  • ·Fine-tuning on custom dataset

Method

Compared against GPT-3 and BERT using identical inputs

Reviewer

CBAI Editorial Team

Plans & pricing

Most Popular

Free

$0/mo

Developers and organizations seeking open-source LLMs for commercial use

  • Full access to model weights
  • Commercial use rights
  • No API access fees

Pricing may vary by region. Always verify on the vendor's website.

Feature comparison

FeatureDolly 2.0GPT-3BERT
Open-source instruction-following LLM
Available in multiple parameter sizes
Fine-tuned on human-generated instruction dataset
Commercial use permitted without API fees
Scalable for various computational needs
Included Partial / add-on Not included

Is it right for you?

Good fit for

AI Developers

Those needing customizable, open-source LLMs for various applications.

Startups

Organizations seeking cost-effective AI solutions without licensing fees.

Researchers

Academics requiring access to large language models for study and experimentation.

Less suited for

Non-technical Users

Individuals without technical expertise in AI model deployment.

Users Seeking Plug-and-Play Solutions

Those preferring ready-to-use AI services without customization.

User reviews

4.0

Editorial score

5
48%
4
28%
3
6%
2
4%
1
0%

Distribution is estimated from our editorial score. Verified user reviews coming soon.

Integrations

Reported connectors

Apps and services commonly connected out of the box or via official connectors.

  • Hugging Face
  • Azure OpenAI
  • Paperspace Gradient Notebook

Details

Category

Developer

Price

  • Free

Free version

Yes

Best for

  • Text generation and summarization
  • Information extraction
  • Customizable AI solutions.

Frequently asked questions

Dolly 2.0

Dolly 2.0

Developer

Ready to get started?

Visit the Dolly 2.0 website to explore plans and start your free trial.

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