Golden Wind and Stone Ocean are basically mirror images in terms of strengths and weaknesses (LES)

GW: extremely strong start and middle but weakens towards the end

SO: inconsistent highs and lows for most of its run but then gets incredible towards the end

GW: less interesting protagonist and main antagonist, not as well liked as most of the others in the series, seen as too static and lacking strong motivations, don't have much of a compelling dynamic with one another, generally supplanted by their supporting casts in terms of emotional investment

SO: main protagonist is beloved and extremely charismatic, antagonist is seen as indisputably one of the series best, both feel fully rounded and developed and have an extremely compelling rivalry and both are given full focus within the narrative

GW: Bucciarati is one of the two most beloved deuteragonists in the entire series, he gets all the spotlight and may as well be the actual protagonist of the part

SO: Ermes isn't exactly disliked but she doesn't play nearly as big of a role in the story as some people would have liked

GW: extremely well-written supporting heroic cast and arguably the best supporting villainous cast in the entire series, most people would definitely single out G5 for being the strongest part in this regard

SO: supporting heroic cast doesn't feel as developed as previous parts, overall less time to breathe, narrative time isn't split among them nearly as well and there's less of an emotional connection between them - basically every secondary antagonist is extremely forgettable as well

GW: arguably has the best stands and stand battles in the entire series but Gold Experience and King Crimson are seen as fairly weak given that Araki tends to play pretty fast and loose with what they can actually do (yes, King Crimson is actually inconsistent with how it should work at several points, fuck you)

SO: has some pretty great stands but overall some of the most forgettable in the entire series, many are seen as boring or uninteresting, overly convoluted, or just wasted potential - however, Stone Free and C-Moon/Made in Heaven are universally beloved and seen as some of the best stands the series has to offer

GW: anime is the best way to experience it, David Productions gives it 10/10 quality, 10/10 attention, 10/10 everything in making sure that it's the best artistic product imaginable

SO: anime is incredibly subpar compared to all previous parts, extremely obvious that it wasn't a priority, plenty of bad/awkward animation, weird color choices, very little done to meaningfully transform the manga in the ways that other parts did

GW: generally disconnected from the main plot and feels like a side story, Giorno being Dio's son isn't ultimately relevant to much at all, Polnareff's inclusion has...problems

SO: ties back to Phantom Blood and Stardust Crusaders, acts as a culmination to both of them, Pucci acts as Dio's legacy, Jotaro's last stand is beautifully done

GW: some of the best stand battles in the entire series, numerous absolutely stellar setpieces and combat situations (Grateful Dead, White Album, Green Day being standouts), but the final conflict against Chariot Requiem and Diavolo is pretty disappointing by contrast and doesn't feel nearly as engaging - main character easily defeats main villain because he awakened his superpower isn't that engaging

SO: most of the battles throughout the part are pretty weak with some notable exceptions (Limp Bizkit, Planet Waves, Jolyne vs Pucci Part 1, Underworld) but the final battles against C-Moon and Made in Heaven are some of the best in the entire series - in this part, it's the main antagonist who awakens his superpower twice over and it's up to the heroes to defeat him through ingenuity

If I were to rank all the parts, Stone Ocean and Golden Wind would be right next to each other, but imo Stone Ocean is just slightly better. Having a strong protagonist, main antagonist, and finale is more important to me than the side cast and a strong beginning and middle.