Try our new research platform with insights from 80,000+ expert users

Alation Data Catalog vs Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Alation Data Catalog
Ranking in Data Governance
7th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
Metadata Management (2nd)
Microsoft Purview Complianc...
Ranking in Data Governance
14th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.1
Number of Reviews
9
Ranking in other categories
Microsoft Security Suite (24th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of August 2025, in the Data Governance category, the mindshare of Alation Data Catalog is 5.6%, down from 9.5% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager is 1.0%, down from 1.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Governance
 

Featured Reviews

Brahma Lam - PeerSpot reviewer
Has metadata cataloging features but needs changes in domain model
The tool's metadata cataloging is the most valuable feature.  The tool's domain model needs to be changed.  Alation Data Catalog is stable.  The solution is scalable.  Alation Data Catalog's deployment is easy. I rate it a nine out of ten. Deployment takes only two to three hours to complete.…
Peter-Murphy - PeerSpot reviewer
Streamlined data management and improved compliance with efficient document classification
The most valuable feature is data classification retention since I deal with terabytes of data, and managing and monitoring it simplifies the process. Additionally, the system provides a dashboard showing our compliance status, which aids in managing compliance tasks. The compliance score feature allows me to assess and compare our compliance across organizations. I've also noticed efficiency gains, especially in handling subject access requests. Previously, these tasks were manual and time-consuming, but now they are streamlined, reducing the process from weeks to just a day.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution's most valuable feature is the ALLIE AI feature."
"The platform's most valuable features are workflow automation, automated business metadata tagging, technical metadata tagging, and data integration with data quality tools or platforms."
"Alation Data Catalog's best feature is the SQL query publication."
"The most valuable features of Alation Data Catalog are the simplicity in onboarding data sources, the security in securing the data sources, and the way the various users of Alation Data Catalog communicate with each other through a messenger."
"Alation Data Catalog was very useful for sharing SQL queries easily in a platform."
"We can customize templates based on our use cases."
"The most valuable feature is cloud integration."
"The solution is used to query MySQL clients and store data and documentation."
"Microsoft Purview eDiscovery is necessary when using Outlook."
"One of the valuable features of the tool is that it works effectively."
"The best aspect is that it requires little to no time for implementation if I am using all of Microsoft's tools."
"Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager's eDiscovery is essential for organizations using Outlook as their email service."
"The setup complexity depends on what features you want to implement in Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager."
"We have more visibility of data and how it is being shared."
"The stability is a ten out of ten."
"Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager is tightly integrated with email solutions like Office 365."
 

Cons

"It would be good if the tool could show the output from the records while querying."
"Although the solution performs far better in terms of data cataloging, its data governance capabilities need improvement."
"We have had issues setting up the connectors and getting Alation's support team to resolve issues."
"Alation Data Catalog needs to develop a lot in terms of data governance and would be improved with a built-in interactive data quality solution."
"The interface is not user-friendly."
"The tool's domain model needs to be changed."
"I know that this has been on their roadmap and they're working on it, but as a whole, there's an untapped reservoir of capabilities within their article features that could be used and built upon."
"Alation Data Catalog is not user-friendly for business users. Its user experience is comparable to a Wikipedia page, lacking good visualization."
"There could be improved automation for handling tasks in bulk or in an automated way."
"One area for improvement is the technical support for Purview. With all the other solutions from Microsoft we get really good technical support, but with Purview we had a compliance error and we couldn't find the solution. Purview would not point us to the correct solution, it just indicated the error. We had to troubleshoot it and find out what led to this error. We contacted technical support but it took them one week to identify the root cause of the error."
"Integrating add-on licenses, which currently offer additional features at a cost, into the base product would be beneficial, especially for a charity organization to avoid incurring extra costs."
"Microsoft Purview has moved its portal from classic to premium with some display improvements, yet not much in options and functionalities."
"The speed and accessibility, particularly in the user interface, require significant work."
"We've had issues with data connectors for Teams."
"We'd like to see the solution expanded to include firewalls and endpoints."
"When I tried to set up Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager for my organization to ensure people are not sending PII documents, especially payment cards, using keywords for flagging, it disrupted our services, so we had to deactivate it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I don't have all the details on the pricing side, but the solution was more expensive than originally expected."
"A three-year agreement is better than a one-year rolling 12-month agreement from a price point of view. I'd recommend looking at a three-year deal because you can't stand up a catalog and produce value in 12 months."
"The platform is moderately expensive compared to the other competitors in the market."
"The solution is a little expensive."
"The pricing and licensing are moderate because we have other licenses for Microsoft services. The pricing is in line with that."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Data Governance solutions are best for your needs.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
17%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
7%
Computer Software Company
13%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Healthcare Company
8%
Government
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Alation Data Catalog?
The platform's most valuable features are workflow automation, automated business metadata tagging, technical metadata tagging, and data integration with data quality tools or platforms.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alation Data Catalog?
The price difference between Alation Data Catalog and Collibra was not significant. Collibra is a little bit expensive than Alation, but I presented the benefits of having that platform, so that li...
What needs improvement with Alation Data Catalog?
Alation Data Catalog is not user-friendly for business users. Its user experience is comparable to a Wikipedia page, lacking good visualization. In a fast-paced world, we need to grasp information ...
What do you like most about Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager?
We have more visibility of data and how it is being shared.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager?
While not cheap, Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager is priced at 60% to 70% compared to some competitors. Additional costs may involve OCR page scanning.
What is your primary use case for Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager?
When I tried to set up Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager for my organization to ensure people are not sending PII documents, especially payment cards, using keywords for flagging, it disrupted o...
 

Also Known As

Alation
Microsoft Compliance Manager
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Salesforce, Snowflake, Citrix, eBay, TripAdvisor, Albertsons, Nasdaq, Pfizer, LinkedIn, Finnair.
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Alation Data Catalog vs. Microsoft Purview Compliance Manager and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.