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

IBM Cognos Dashboard vs Tableau comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 1, 2025

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

IBM Cognos Dashboard
Ranking in Data Visualization
16th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
4
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Tableau
Ranking in Data Visualization
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
306
Ranking in other categories
BI (Business Intelligence) Tools (2nd), Reporting (2nd), Embedded BI (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Data Visualization category, the mindshare of IBM Cognos Dashboard is 0.7%, up from 0.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Tableau is 23.7%, down from 30.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Data Visualization
 

Featured Reviews

Unes Ay - PeerSpot reviewer
Provides efficient data modules, but it could be more user-friendly
We use IBM Cognos Dashboard for data manufacturing, reporting, costing, quality check, etc The product helps us update the KPI automatically. We can access reports and analyze if a particular solution fits the requirements. The product's most valuable is the concept of data modules. IBM Cognos…
Nattawat Choosuwan - PeerSpot reviewer
Real-time data connection enhances workflow and decision-making process
An area for improvement in Tableau is the Explorer license type. It is not as useful, and the product owner should enhance its benefits or clarify its role. Additionally, the frequent updates with many versions available for download can be confusing and could affect stability. They should avoid providing access to older versions on their website.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The main feature that is useful is the on-demand report generation through the dashboard."
"The product helps us update the KPI automatically."
"It is a pretty stable solution."
"The tool's valuable features are that it is easy to use and stable."
"Tableau is easy to use compared to some other solutions, such as Excel."
"You are able to see and follow trends."
"Tableau's most valuable feature is its ability to connect with various data sources and display real-time data on three different dashboards."
"The solution offers very good reporting."
"I love the customization skills that Tableau has, it is not restricted to what is built-in already."
"It allows us to basically understand and evaluate our numbers in an expedient manner."
"It’s good for quick visualization and being able to quickly consume unstructured data to play around with."
"The maps and colors and interface are all fantastic."
 

Cons

"The scalability of the product's on-premises version is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are required."
"Visualization is an area where the product lacks."
"They should include proper documentation to learn more about the product."
"The price point is one of the major areas to be improved."
"Some of our clients are looking for better UI when using Tableau as they often work with this solution directly."
"The cost of owning the solutions from Tableau is much higher compared to any other analytical solutions."
"Implementation requires a technical background."
"Areas for improvement would be visualization and augmented analytics. In the next release, I would like to see automated insights from the data added to the dashboard."
"The solution could use more features in data analytics."
"The development part should be better. We are putting a lot of effort in during development, so if we face any struggles, we have to find workaround solutions on the internet."
"The Hyper Extract functionality is not as strong as that provided by Microsoft SQL."
"The solution could improve the scalability, it is difficult to make changes."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The product is expensive for small businesses compared to other vendors."
"Licensing is based on individual usage, and it is more expensive than other providers."
"It is more expensive than other solutions."
"Deployment of dashboards to viewers and unit supervisors can be prohibitively expensive."
"Tableau's prices are relatively high for our market. I am from Serbia, so many companies in this market don't have the ability to pay for expensive software. My clients are quite satisfied with a lot of Tableau's qualities except for the prices."
"There is a license required, we pay an annual license which is priced fair."
"We are on an annual license which costs us $1,400 which is very expensive. Microsft BI is less expensive."
"In Korea, the tool's pricing depends on the scale of usage. For instance, it's reasonable for a department with fewer than 50 users to adopt Tableau, like sales. However, the pricing becomes an issue when considering an enterprise solution for a larger user base, say 10,000 people."
"Tableau is free."
"At $70 per month, I think the price is a bit scary. I have a small consulting firm in Ghana, working in about 15 different African countries, and when it comes to our part of the world, $70 a month is a lot of money for software."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Data Visualization solutions are best for your needs.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user6330 - PeerSpot reviewer
May 2, 2013
MicroStrategy vs. Tableau
After a recent presentation, several attendees asked me about the applications of Visual Insights and Tableau. Many companies are investing in both tools and are trying to figure out the right tool for specific applications Tableau has found its sweet-spot as an agile discovery tool that analysts…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
No data available
Educational Organization
35%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
7%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for IBM Cognos Dashboard?
The product is expensive for small businesses compared to other vendors. Its pricing is fixed and depends on the number of licenses.
What needs improvement with IBM Cognos Dashboard?
The tool is good enough to serve the purpose of what it is meant in our company. The scalability of the product's on-premises version is an area with certain shortcomings where improvements are req...
Seeking lightweight open source BI software
It depends on the Data architecture and the complexity of your requirement. Some great tools in the market are Qlik Sense, Power BI, OBIEE, Tableau, etc. I have recently started using Cognos Enter...
Tableau vs. Business Objects - Which is a better solution for visualization and analysis?
Both tools have their positives and negatives. First, I should mention that I am relatively new to Tableau. I have been working on and off Tableau for about a year, but getting to work on it consta...
Which would you choose - Tableau or SAP Analytics Cloud?
Tableau is easy to set up and maintain. In about a day it is possible for the entire platform to be deployed for use. This relatively short amount of time can make all the difference for companies ...
 

Also Known As

Cognos Dashboard
Tableau Desktop, Tableau Server, Tableau Online
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Accenture, Adobe, Amazon.com, Bank of America, Charles Schwab Corp, Citigroup, Coca-Cola Company, Cornell University, Dell, Deloitte, Duke University, eBay, Exxon Mobil, Fannie Mae, Ferrari, French Red Cross, Goldman Sachs, Google, Government of Canada, HP, Intel, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Macy's, Merck, The New York Times, PayPal, Pfizer, US Army, US Air Force, Skype, and Walmart.
Find out what your peers are saying about IBM Cognos Dashboard vs. Tableau and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
859,129 professionals have used our research since 2012.