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Alteryx vs Microsoft Power BI 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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
6.6
Alteryx offers quick ROI through reduced data prep time and increased efficiency, despite high licensing costs.
Sentiment score
6.5
Microsoft Power BI delivers high ROI with cost-effective deployment, enhancing reporting, analytics, and decision-making for businesses.
Tasks that earlier took hours in Excel or SQL are now completed in minutes.
Senior Rpa Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
From a time-saving perspective, we saved 60 to 75 percent of the human workforce needed and eliminated other disparate ETL tools, ultimately saving us over 600,000 dollars.
Senior Staff Cyber Security Cloud Data Architect at GE Healthcare
Alteryx helps familiarize managers with artificial intelligence-driven possibilities.
Chief Information Officer at granistr
In a world surrounded by data, tools that allow navigation of large data volumes ensure decisions are data-driven.
Corporate HR Financial Controller at STMicroelectronics Holding
Because of integration with Microsoft Power BI, its interactive dashboards, and how easily it integrates with other SQL data sources, business decisions from business users have become much faster.
Data engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Power BI is easy to deploy within an hour, providing robust security against data leaks.
Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
7.1
Alteryx offers responsive service; technical support is knowledgeable, but users often rely on community forums for solutions.
Sentiment score
6.6
Microsoft Power BI support is positive, with responsive customer service, though technical support response times and expertise vary.
Customer support from Alteryx has been amazing.
Senior Staff Cyber Security Cloud Data Architect at GE Healthcare
they do have a website for resolving doubts and accessing helpful resources, including various tools and filters.
Senior Analyst at Guardian India Operation
I contacted customer support once or twice, and they were quick to respond.
Experience Technocrat driving IT initiatives at WISDOMBOWL
The significant drawback I notice is that Microsoft's size makes it hard to get specific change requests addressed unless they involve a bug.
Corporate HR Financial Controller at STMicroelectronics Holding
We have a partnership with Microsoft, involving multiple weekly calls with dedicated personnel to ensure our satisfaction.
Executive Director, Decision Support at Community Health Network
The support is good because there is also a community available.
Business Development Director at a tech consulting company with 201-500 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Alteryx is scalable for enterprise analytics, but expanding usage can lead to concerns over costs and server requirements.
Sentiment score
6.9
Microsoft Power BI effectively scales for most users, though large datasets and high-capacity licenses pose challenges and costs.
Alteryx is scalable for most enterprise analytics and data preparation workloads.
Senior Rpa Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
Suggestions for improvements in Alteryx include areas for increasing efficiency, particularly in processing telemetry data, which involves dealing with large volumes of unstructured data.
Senior Staff Cyber Security Cloud Data Architect at GE Healthcare
Alteryx is scalable, and I would give it eight out of ten.
Experience Technocrat driving IT initiatives at WISDOMBOWL
You expect only a small percentage of users concurrently, but beyond a thousand concurrent users, it becomes difficult to manage.
Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
With increasing AI capabilities, architectural developments within Microsoft, and tools like Fabric, I expect Power BI to scale accordingly.
Executive Director, Decision Support at Community Health Network
As more data is processed, performance issues may arise.
Product Owner at ABN AMRO Bank N.V.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.8
Alteryx is highly regarded for its stability, fast data processing, and reliability, despite occasional server or workflow issues.
Sentiment score
7.4
Users find Microsoft Power BI stable and reliable but face performance issues with large datasets and real-time data limitations.
I didn't need to reach out to Alteryx for support because available documents usually provide enough information to resolve issues.
Software Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
I have not encountered any lagging, crashing, or instability in the system during these three months of usage.
Legal Coordinator at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
Alteryx is a reliable tool, but it is also very heavy, requiring good laptop configurations, a minimum of 8GB RAM, and a recent processor such as i10.
Senior Analyst at Guardian India Operation
In terms of stability, there's no data loss or leakage, and precautions are well-managed by Microsoft.
Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
We typically do not have problems with end-user tools like Excel and Power BI.
Executive Director, Decision Support at Community Health Network
It is very stable for small data, but with big data, there are performance challenges.
Business Development Director at a tech consulting company with 201-500 employees
 

Room For Improvement

Alteryx needs improved visualization, performance, and integration, with users frustrated by pricing, learning curve, and limited collaboration features.
Microsoft Power BI needs performance improvements, better mobile accessibility, non-Microsoft database support, and simplified interface for non-technical users.
The tool could include more native connectors, such as for global ERPs, instead of requiring additional fees for these connections.
Legal Coordinator at a transportation company with 10,001+ employees
The support structure changed; initially, we received great support, however, it later became less reliable due to licensing issues and a tiered support system.
Senior Capacity Planner at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees
The additional features that Alteryx needs to work on to make it more competitive include better collaboration and easier integration through API.
Senior Consultant at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
This makes Power BI difficult to manage as loading times can reach one or two minutes, which is problematic today.
Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
Access was more logical in how it distinguished between data and its formatting.
Corporate HR Financial Controller at STMicroelectronics Holding
Microsoft updates Power BI monthly based on user community feedback.
Executive Director, Decision Support at Community Health Network
 

Setup Cost

Enterprise buyers find Alteryx offers robust analytics but at high costs, weighed against potential efficiency and productivity benefits.
Microsoft Power BI offers competitive pricing, with discounts available and appreciated features, despite higher Premium costs.
The price is very high, with licensing typically starting around five thousand dollars plus user per year.
Senior Rpa Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
We found excellent use cases for automation through Alteryx, which provided the means to reduce operational costs and streamline the build of ETL pipelines without extensive coding.
Senior Staff Cyber Security Cloud Data Architect at GE Healthcare
Alteryx is more cost-effective compared to Informatica licenses, offering savings.
Software Engineer at a computer software company with 10,001+ employees
I found the setup cost to be expensive
Responsable du département Projets et Applications at CHD Vendée
Power BI isn't very cheap, however, it is economical compared to other solutions available.
Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd
The pricing for Microsoft Power BI is low, which is a good selling point.
Business Development Director at a tech consulting company with 201-500 employees
 

Valuable Features

Alteryx simplifies data workflows with a user-friendly interface, offering integration, automation, and advanced analytics without coding.
Microsoft Power BI offers user-friendly interfaces, powerful data visualization, and seamless integration for efficient data analytics solutions.
Alteryx not only represents data but also supports decision-making by suggesting the next steps.
Chief Information Officer at granistr
Analysts who do not have any coding experience can still work on the transformation and preparation of data, which is quite useful.
Senior Consultant at a consultancy with 201-500 employees
Alteryx includes built-in tools such as drive time analysis and linear regression, which are much harder to achieve in standard BI tools such as Power BI or Tableau.
Senior Rpa Consultant at a computer software company with 51-200 employees
In today's data-driven environment, these tools are of substantial value, particularly for large enterprises with numerous processes that require extensive data analysis.
Corporate HR Financial Controller at STMicroelectronics Holding
Within the organization, Microsoft Power BI is used to create dashboards and gain insights into data, enhancing data-driven decision-making.
Product Owner at ABN AMRO Bank N.V.
To reduce the need for highly skilled personnel, we can engage someone who is just familiar and has a basic understanding of Microsoft Power BI, while AI can handle the major tasks through either agent AI or requirement analysis.
Senior Technical Service Engineer Expert at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
 

Categories and Ranking

Alteryx
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
87
Ranking in other categories
Predictive Analytics (1st), Data Science Platforms (5th), Data Preparation Tools (1st)
Microsoft Power BI
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
331
Ranking in other categories
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools (1st), Reporting (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

While both are Business Intelligence solutions, they serve different purposes. Alteryx is designed for Predictive Analytics and holds a mindshare of 7.6%, down 19.6% compared to last year.
Microsoft Power BI, on the other hand, focuses on BI (Business Intelligence) Tools, holds 7.5% mindshare, down 21.0% since last year.
Predictive Analytics Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Alteryx7.6%
Red Hat Lightspeed5.8%
Altair RapidMiner5.7%
Other80.9%
Predictive Analytics
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Power BI7.5%
Tableau Enterprise5.8%
Amazon QuickSight3.2%
Other83.5%
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools
 

Featured Reviews

ManojBehera - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Staff Cyber Security Cloud Data Architect at GE Healthcare
Automated complex ETL workflows have reduced coding effort and improved data integration
One area for improvement is in integrating mostly the data which comes from telemetry, where I can see some sort of improvisations can be made. It is a massive amount of unstructured data, and I believe Alteryx is able to handle it, but there can be some improvements. Suggestions for improvements in Alteryx include areas for increasing efficiency, particularly in processing telemetry data, which involves dealing with large volumes of unstructured data. Additionally, I believe when we use filter tools immediately after the input source, there can be slowdowns when handling massive data. The user experience of Alteryx is generally good, but there are areas for improvement from a user's perspective, particularly regarding user interface enhancements. I think there's always room for improvement, but otherwise, Alteryx has been a great tool for me. We haven't experienced significant disruptions while increasing data volumes, though I sense there could be performance issues as data grows exponentially. This is an area that could use improvement in Alteryx.
Hemanthreddy Vakiti - PeerSpot reviewer
Data engineer at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Interactive dashboards have transformed restaurant data into faster daily business decisions
Microsoft Power BI has many features and there is not a lot to improve. However, the licensing can be confusing. When deciding between Pro and Premium, I find it difficult to distinguish what features are offered by Pro and what features are offered by Premium, including the particular differences to choose between both licensing models. Additionally, some features such as DAX, which I mentioned previously, involve DAX calculations and complex data modeling, which are somewhat advanced and not easily understandable. Prior knowledge is required or you need to go through the documentation. If the documentation is made comprehensive so that anyone with no knowledge on DAX can easily use it by going through the documentation, it would be really helpful. Additionally, if the integration with non-Microsoft tools is improved and performance is optimized, then Microsoft Power BI can become a top-ranked visualization tool. The user experience with Microsoft Power BI is quite good. The intuitive user interface makes it easy for both technical and non-technical users to create reports. However, only the advanced features are somewhat complex, and if the documentation is improved, it can be easily accessible.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Predictive Analytics solutions are best for your needs.
896,692 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user79932 - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager - BI Head with 5,001-10,000 employees
Feb 4, 2015
Comparison of SAP BO, Tableau, QlikView, Cognos, Microsoft, OBIEE and Pentaho
1. SAP BO/BI Enterprise scalability Security Ease of use Semantic layer 2. Tableau Visualization Data discovery Turnaround time 3. IBM Cognos Enterprise scalability Security In-memory feature 4. MS BI - Flexibility 5. Pentaho - Open source but still enterprise grade 6. QlikView Data…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Financial Services Firm
20%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Computer Software Company
7%
Retailer
5%
Financial Services Firm
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business33
Midsize Enterprise16
Large Enterprise57
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business136
Midsize Enterprise59
Large Enterprise171
 

Questions from the Community

What is the Biggest Difference Between Alteryx and IBM SPSS Modeler?
One of the differences is that with Alteryx you can use it as an ETL and analytics tool. Please connect with me directly if you want to know more.
What is the Biggest Difference Between Alteryx and IBM SPSS Modeler?
Alteryx is an extremely easy and flexible data tool, flexible in terms of drag and drop toolset and also has python, R integrations if your team requires this. It can handle over 2 billion rows of...
What is the Biggest Difference Between Alteryx and IBM SPSS Modeler?
I am not familiar with IBM SPSS Modeler, therefore, I cannot compare these two products. Regarding Alteryx I can say the following: - An excellent desktop tool for Data Prep and analytics. - Featu...
Seeking lightweight open source BI software
There are many...It would rather depend what System BI architecture or Enterprise legacy you have at your end...I would recommend as follows: 1) If you have legacies of SAP, Oracle - look for SAP...
Is Power BI a complete platform or only a visualization tool?
Power BI is an advanced visualization tool oriented to big data with a very complete set of widgets to visualize information, control users accessing information, the configuration of governance po...
How does Oracle OBIEE compare with Microsoft BI?
Oracle OBIEE is great in allowing design and creativity per the individual needs of the organization. Dashboards are fully customizable and very user-friendly. This solution is very stable. Oracle ...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

No data available
SSRS, SSAS, MSBI, MS Reporting Services, Microsoft BI Tools, Microsoft Big Data, Power BI Pro, MS BI
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

AnalyticsIq Inc., belk, BloominBrands Inc., Cardinalhealth, Cineplex, Dairy Queen
Accenture Adidas Aetna AIG Airbus Alibaba Allstate Amazon American Express Aon AT&T Audi Bank of America BASF Bayer Berkshire Hathaway Boeing Coca-Cola Comcast Cisco Coca-Cola Dell Disney Emirates Equinix FedEx Ford GE Google H&M Home Depot Honda IBM Intel JPMorgan Chase Kellogg's Kroger L'Oréal McDonald's Merck MetLife Microsoft Nike Oracle P&G PepsiCo Procter & Gamble Prudential Financial SAP Siemens Snapchat Spotify Starbucks Target Toyota T-Mobile Unilever Visa Walmart WeWork World Bank Xerox
Find out what your peers are saying about Alteryx vs. Microsoft Power BI and other solutions. Updated: March 2023.
896,692 professionals have used our research since 2012.