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

Altair Monarch vs Dataloader.io vs Informatica PowerCenter comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

Review summaries and opinions

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

Mindshare comparison

Data Preparation Tools
Data Integration
Data Integration
 

Featured Reviews

LS
Transformed document processing has become foolproof with seamless data extraction
The primary use case of Altair Monarch was data extraction. I used it to process a lot of documents and data from Notepad and PDFs, converting those into structured data for basic analysis and reporting. It facilitated data preparation and data extraction effectively Altair Monarch is valuable…
Aditi Bhardwaj - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides an ease of access and an automated mapping feature
We need help with large data migrations. It only works well for a few thousand records or less than a million records. Above that, we need to look for alternative solutions. They could provide automated transformation or mapping features around 10 to 15 independent data objects. We could have a default mark or limit of free usage for standard objects. It will be helpful. Additionally, we can have more integrations with large data volumes as we need a lot of exercises to handle the files in case of complex sites.
Deepak Shiv - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides multiple transformations in one toolset and helpful when extracting data from multiple sources
Error handling capability is quite good in Informatica PowerCenter because it provides a very detailed session log, which is really helpful to identify errors. In addition, there are KB articles published by Informatica that are really helpful. So, error handling and the KB articles provided by Informatica are very helpful. Even if you face any issues or errors, we can usually resolve them. If the error cannot be solved with Informatica PowerCenter, we can raise a case with Informatica, and their support team will help us address that issue. If it cannot be solved with that particular version, they will consider it and try to solve it with the next patch or hotfix. AI Initiatives: Our company also has organizational AI or machine learning initiatives. However, Informatica PowerCenter doesn't fit into AI-related things because it's an on-premise tool. It doesn't have a significant role in the field. It is just a small ETL on-premises tool. So basically, in the AI field, Informatica PowerCenter is not going to be that impactful. Informatica has launched IICS and IDMC (Informatica Data Management Cloud and Informatica Cloud), where their AI comes into the picture. But for Informatica PowerCenter, AI does not come into the picture at all.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Altair Monarch is valuable because it allows a one-time setup for data extraction, making the process extremely easy with just a few clicks to get the output."
"Monarch lets you quickly extract in your preferred format."
"I find DataLoader's ability to easily integrate with external keys valuable, which is a bit more challenging with DBM."
"DataLoader is cost-effective since it is free."
"he product’s most valuable feature is ease of access."
"The partitioning and optimization to help enhance our development is a very valuable aspect of Informatica PowerCenter."
"The most valuable feature of Informatica PowerCenter is data transformation and user-friendliness."
"It is very comprehensive in terms of connector and transformation capabilities from both a source and target perspective."
"Can manage a huge quantity of data and provide reliability."
"It provides everything I need. Nothing is missing. PowerCenter is a good tool for on-premise databases."
"It is UI friendly and has all the advantages of an ETL tool."
"Good interface, reasonable documentation."
"It reduces a lot of legacy coding."
 

Cons

"I rate Altair Monarch seven out of 10 for affordability. Recently, the pricing model changed from end-user licensing to a concurrent licensing model."
"DataLoader has limitations, including constraints with file sizes and transactions."
"Dataloader has limitations, including constraints with file sizes and transactions. Additionally, at times it can be slow, and when integrating DBM, we find it more complex than Dataloader."
"We need help with large data migrations. It only works well for a few thousand records or less than a million records."
"Integrating new tools can be tricky and challenging."
"It should be more cloud-centric than on-prem-centric."
"In terms of performance improvement and tuning, there should be a bit more guidance and documentation."
"PowerCenter could be improved by having more big data components. Normally, we prefer Informatica as a relational database, but nowadays, companies are trying to understand and use big data components. I think it would be useful if we had more chances to create a hub ecosystem because customers try to use some data integration tasks by SQL, Spark and Spark codes, and Scala, but at the end of the day, the company will understand that we need to trace all the steps. An ETL tool is a must for that company, if we're talking about the regulated industries like finance, telcos, etc. If Informatica's biggest ecosystems feature were okay, I would prefer to use it."
"The initial setup is not straightforward. You need expertise to do it."
"The performance of Informatica PowerCenter could improve."
"Unstructured data handling is an important area with a shortcoming that needs improvement in the solution."
"What I didn't like about it is that the platform itself is not great at distributed processing. When you need high parallel processing, it has some inherent issues. We had to use Java transformation, and it did not go very well. I have heard that it is going to the cloud, but we haven't tried that."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

Information not available
"The product is inexpensive and economical."
"We have found the pricing very cost-effective. The licensing is CPU and data source-based."
"I am not sure about the most recent price, but I think it should be $100,000 or more."
"The pricing for Informatica PowerCenter is expensive. Some clients have simple needs and only want to integrate and store data. Some clients have small needs, while some clients have bigger needs and focus more on performance and time. The licensing cost for Informatica PowerCenter isn't good. In my project, if I remember correctly, the company pays €20,000 per year for the Informatica PowerCenter license. I'm not aware of additional costs that you need to pay for some features of the solution. On a scale of one to five, I'm rating its price a three."
"The solution is in the middle price range compared to other solutions."
"Cost could be improved."
"We are using an annual license for Informatica PowerCenter."
"We have a site license, but we do pay by the division."
"Since the solution's cost is higher, I rate the pricing as a five out of ten."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Data Preparation Tools solutions are best for your needs.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user90069 - PeerSpot reviewer
Feb 20, 2014
Informatica PowerCenter vs. Microsoft SSIS - each technology has its advantages but also have similarities
Technology has made it easier for businesses to organize and manipulate data to get a clearer picture of what’s going on with their business. Notably, ETL tools have made managing huge amounts of data significantly easier and faster, boosting many organizations’ business intelligence operations…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
24%
Manufacturing Company
13%
Retailer
10%
Government
10%
No data available
Financial Services Firm
18%
Computer Software Company
11%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Insurance Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Altair Monarch?
I was not involved in pricing, but I did not encounter any issues with renewals, and the process was always smooth an...
What is your primary use case for Altair Monarch?
The primary use case of Altair Monarch ( /products/altair-monarch-reviews ) was data extraction. I used it to process...
What advice do you have for others considering Altair Monarch?
The support team is diligent, following up thoroughly and setting up calls promptly when a ticket is raised. It is be...
What do you like most about Dataloader.io?
he product’s most valuable feature is ease of access.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dataloader.io?
Dataloader.io is cost-effective, particularly since it is free.
What needs improvement with Dataloader.io?
DataLoader has limitations, including constraints with file sizes and transactions. Additionally, at times it can be ...
How does Azure Data Factory compare with Informatica PowerCenter?
Azure Data Factory is flexible, modular, and works well. In terms of cost, it is not too pricey. It offers the stabil...
Which is better - SSIS or Informatica PowerCenter?
SSIS PowerPack is a group of drag and drop connectors for Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services, commonly called ...
Which Informatica product would you choose - PowerCenter or Cloud Data Integration?
Complex transformations can easily be achieved using PowerCenter, which has all the features and tools to establish a...
 

Also Known As

Monarch Data Pump
No data available
PowerCenter
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

MasterCard
UCSF, Box, CareFusion, Unilever, Hershey's
University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, LexisNexis, Rabobank
Find out what your peers are saying about Alteryx, Bright Data, SAS and others in Data Preparation Tools. Updated: August 2025.
865,384 professionals have used our research since 2012.