Is there a noticeable improvement in durability?

Depends, do your bearing die clean but worn, or muddy and ground away? If it’s the latter, ceramics are not going to help.

Depends on if you are riding a hybreed or not.

On my fat bike, subjected to horrible treatment, yes. Knocked the original bearings out of my bb and fitted ceramic hybrids from local bearing supplier for less than £20. Not been touched again 3.5 years on.

got ceramics in the BB of one of my singlespeeds and has happily coped with horrific cannock abrasive slop, sand, gritstone slurry and is still spinning like a happy little hamster in a wheel. My stainless hope BB in one of the other SS bikes went in at the same time and has got through two sets of bearings so far and the current set are sounding like a coffee grinder.

May be difference in seals, but on the whole the ceramics seem to be harder wearing based on my limited experience

Last time I looked for a Hope ceramic BB it looked like they had stopped doing them.

don’t go for the cheapest ceramic hybrids bearings you can get though, aim mid range at least.
I’ve had a few hybrid bearings go, purely down to poor seals and the races (steel bits) corroding and seizing.

either that or make sure you repack them with decent waterproof grease once you get them.

My uberbike ceramic developed a bit of play after being fitted from new for the Tour Divide (3k miles)

My hope stainless steel is still aok after 12,000 miles on my commuter.

I’d just buy another hope steel next time.