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Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs QlikView comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

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
5.3
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services enhances usability, saves time, and improves decision-making and efficiency with streamlined reporting processes.
Sentiment score
6.4
QlikView ROI appears through time savings, decision-making improvements, and efficient deployment, despite licensing complexity impacting perception.
Any tool which obviates the need for a lot of coding will definitely save at least 60-70% of effort.
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
The biggest return on investment is the time saving for the customer.
Managing Director at Hurricnae
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
6.7
Technical support receives mixed reviews; some praise its responsiveness, others face challenges, with satisfaction ratings between seven and nine.
Sentiment score
6.1
QlikView's customer support is highly rated, with quick responses, a helpful community, and generally strong availability despite geographic factors.
Reaching out to Microsoft took a prolonged time to the extent that we were wondering why Microsoft was unable to get its own logs to us.
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
I have not reached out to tech support at Microsoft for Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services because it is my job to know how to get this tool to work.
Database Administrator at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
I would rate the customer support a solid 10.
Managing Director at Hurricnae
I am totally satisfied with technical support from Qlik.
Financial Controller with task of Business Intelligence Implementation at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
6.5
SQL Server Reporting Services offers moderate scalability, with challenges in horizontal scaling, preferring smaller deployments over enterprise ones.
Sentiment score
7.0
QlikView scales well with efficient resource management, but superior scalability features are found in Qlik Sense, requiring robust infrastructure.
If you want better performance with a larger volume of data, you can simply add an additional server.
Financial Controller with task of Business Intelligence Implementation at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
7.2
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is highly stable, with minor issues mainly related to upgrades and large datasets.
Sentiment score
7.7
Users rate QlikView's stability highly, with issues mainly due to infrastructure or large data, resolved with hardware tweaks.
 

Room For Improvement

SQL Server Reporting Services needs better visualization, integration, and performance to compete with alternatives, plus improved support and pricing.
QlikView needs a more intuitive interface, better scalability, integration, predictive analytics, and cost-effective licensing for improved user experience.
I am thinking that with all the Copilot integration within the Microsoft environment, that could be integrated as well, so that you could issue a prompt and it generates designs.
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is not difficult to use, but my main issue is troubleshooting whenever there is any problem, as the logs can be unclear.
Database Administrator at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
AI features are already available in Qlik Sense, so you would need to migrate to that platform.
Financial Controller with task of Business Intelligence Implementation at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
In QlikView, I believe the improvement that should be made is to bring the costs down, as you'll have to be competitive with Power BI, aiming for at least a 30% reduction to stop the hemorrhaging to Power BI.
Managing Director at Hurricnae
 

Setup Cost

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services offers moderate pricing and good value, though the licensing model can be complex and costly.
QlikView pricing is variable and can be costly, but strategic planning can maximize ROI for organizations.
Otherwise, you need to write a lot of code or API calls to generate reports if using some other tool outside of the ecosystem, which definitely requires additional effort and therefore additional cost and time.
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
I would rate the pricing for QlikView as not cheap, but it is reasonable.
Financial Controller with task of Business Intelligence Implementation at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
The license cost per user or per year for QlikView is about 500 Euros annually.
Managing Director at Hurricnae
 

Valuable Features

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services provides intuitive usability, robust security, and seamless integration, enhancing report creation, visualization, and deployment.
QlikView offers powerful data analysis with dynamic dashboards, intuitive interface, and rapid visualization for enhanced business performance and insights.
The best features of Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services are that it is easy to get the reports out because it is integrated with SQL and we have many of these tables.
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
I had been trying to develop a solution using SSRS to view some data while allowing me to modify data and update the table in the back end, but it seems SSRS isn't the tool for that.
Database Administrator at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Building metrics using simple language, similar to what you have in Excel, is what I have found most valuable in QlikView.
Financial Controller with task of Business Intelligence Implementation at a wholesaler/distributor with 1,001-5,000 employees
The best features in QlikView are rapid development, the fact that I can do what I want in QlikView, and full control along with ease of use.
Managing Director at Hurricnae
 

Categories and Ranking

Microsoft SQL Server Report...
Ranking in Reporting
4th
Average Rating
7.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
22
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
QlikView
Ranking in Reporting
5th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
163
Ranking in other categories
Embedded BI (4th)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2025, in the Reporting category, the mindshare of Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is 2.9%, down from 3.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of QlikView is 4.4%, up from 3.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Reporting Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services2.9%
QlikView4.4%
Other92.7%
Reporting
 

Featured Reviews

GD
Consulting IT Head at MYKLaticrete
Reports generation is efficient and saves effort, but integrating new features could enhance overall experience
I haven't contacted Microsoft technical support because of this tool, but for some other things I have, and I found them quite lacking. We had trouble with Azure Firewall, where we wanted logs from our VMs, but reaching out to Microsoft took a prolonged time to the extent that we were wondering why Microsoft was unable to get its own logs to us, which occurred a few months back. I would rate Microsoft support around 6.5 to seven, as they don't directly interact with medium-sized MSMEs, always referring to their partners, so it differs based on the partner's level of relationship with Microsoft.
MA
Managing Director at Hurricnae
Rapid development and flexibility transform commercial decision-making processes
In QlikView, I believe the improvement that should be made is to bring the costs down, as you'll have to be competitive with Power BI, aiming for at least a 30% reduction to stop the hemorrhaging to Power BI, considering that you're losing a lot of customers to Power BI. Reducing costs is the main improvement needed, as this is the biggest burden currently faced in the South African market, with Microsoft converting QlikView customers due to the perceived cost reduction. I am aware of several big corporations, such as Sanofi and Aspen Pharmacare, which have left QlikView due to cost issues.
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Reporting solutions are best for your needs.
879,259 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
13%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Government
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Computer Software Company
8%
Performing Arts
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise15
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business73
Midsize Enterprise36
Large Enterprise76
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?
I mainly use the solution for the ease of reporting and for executive dashboards.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?
I would consider it cost effective for our environment, and we don't have to invest in another big tool to generate these reports, making it all integrated and easier. Otherwise, you need to write ...
What needs improvement with Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?
Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is not difficult to use, but my main issue is troubleshooting whenever there is any problem, as the logs can be unclear. Perhaps I don't have enough experien...
What do you like most about QlikView?
If you correctly use the product for your use cases, it provides value for money.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for QlikView?
I would rate the pricing for QlikView as not cheap, but it is reasonable.
What needs improvement with QlikView?
We are not using analytics features and possibly predictive analytics and forecasting features in QlikView, although they are available. QlikView is very flexible, but we are currently using only t...
 

Also Known As

SQL Server Reporting Services, Microsoft SSRS, SSRS, MS SQL Server Reporting Services
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

CMS Wire, The New York Times
Canon, Gatorade, Amcor, Panasonic, Fila, Cambridge University Hospitals, Global Retail Bank, North Yorkshire Police department, Lanoo Group Publishers, and AonGroep Nederland.
Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs. QlikView and other solutions. Updated: December 2025.
879,259 professionals have used our research since 2012.