Quest Spotlight vs Toad for Oracle comparison

Quest Spotlight and Toad for Oracle are both solutions in the Database Development and Management category. Quest Spotlight is ranked #5 with an average rating of 9.0, while Toad for Oracle is ranked #7 with an average rating of 9.0. Quest Spotlight holds a 6.8% mindshare in DDM, compared to Toad for Oracle’s 4.9% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Quest Spotlight users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 100% of Toad for Oracle users who would recommend it.

Quest Spotlight

Read 5 Quest Spotlight reviews

1,227 Views
752 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Toad for Oracle

Read 16 Toad for Oracle reviews

1,093 Views
495 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Quest Spotlight

Toad for Oracle

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Jan 23, 2025

Quest Spotlight and Toad for Oracle both compete in the realm of Oracle database optimization. While Quest Spotlight is noted for its user-friendly monitoring, Toad for Oracle dominates with its advanced features and data management capabilities, though it comes at a higher cost.

Features:Quest Spotlight offers real-time diagnostics, easy-to-use dashboard visualizations, and effective alert systems. Toad for Oracle provides powerful database development tools, such as advanced query optimization, remote debugging, and an extensive PL/SQL debugger, making it suitable for comprehensive data management.

Room for Improvement:Quest Spotlight could benefit from enhancing its deep database analysis capabilities, integrating advanced development tools, and simplifying complex alert configurations. Toad for Oracle could improve user interface intuitiveness, reduce the learning curve for new users, and streamline its extensive feature set for more straightforward usability.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service:Quest Spotlight ensures a smooth deployment process, offering ample support resources for an easier start. Toad for Oracle supports more detailed documentation and provides tailored support, accommodating complex administrative tasks but requiring more time to master due to its extensive functionalities.

Pricing and ROI:Quest Spotlight’s pricing strategy offers a cost-effective solution with fast ROI for teams prioritizing straightforward monitoring. Toad for Oracle demands a higher initial investment but promises a significant ROI through enhanced productivity and performance possibilities over time.

To learn more, read our detailed Quest Spotlight vs. Toad for Oracle Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Quest Spotlight vs. Toad for Oracle

June 2025

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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

Quest Spotlight

Ranking in Database Development and Management

5th

Average Rating

8.8

Reviews Sentiment

7.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Toad for Oracle

Ranking in Database Development and Management

7th

Average Rating

9.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Database Development and Management category, the mindshare of Quest Spotlight is 6.8%, down from 8.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Toad for Oracle is 4.9%, down from 5.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Database Development and Management

Featured Reviews

Seha R

Group Product Manager at Uop Ipl

Good tool for the design and development of public APIs

The software does not support webhooks. It doesn't support advanced versions of APIs. The tool also doesn't support advanced versions of specifications. The change that we do in one part of the model is not reflected throughout the specification. There are also some mutations in the clones. I am not able to do a local source control with the product as well.

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Bikramjeet Singh

Senior Reg Reporting Consultant at Bank of America

Advanced query optimization and tuning features

Sometimes when I write a query, it gives an unusual error code. Toad for Oracle does not have a particular resolution within the application. Then, I have to search for the code and find a solution. I would like Oracle to implement error codes so that we don't have to search for solutions on Google. It would be more convenient if the error codes were included within the application.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Spotlight provides valuable features such as the ability to get alerted and drill down to a very granular level to find out where actual problems are coming from."

"Its dashboards are most valuable. The drill-down of the dashboards is useful."

"Spotlight provides valuable features such as the ability to get alerted and drill down to a very granular level to find out where actual problems are coming from."

"I consider the solution very scalable."

"The tool is a SaaS product where I just need to type a URL and start with the design process. I can integrate all elements of source control like GitHub, GitLab, etc. The tool also supports authentication-related provisions like SSH."

"I find Toad easy to use and I love the Workspace feature, which allows me to set up projects so that I can open SQL files applicable to what I am working on at any particular time."

"It is very easy to manage all of the objects."

"The product's most valuable features are UI and monitoring."

"The most valuable feature is the navigation within the UI, where you can right-click on an object in an SQL query and go right to it, versus going through all of the menus to find what you are looking for."

"A quite simple feature that I have not encountered elsewhere is the "Make Code" feature. I can easily export a complex SQL statement to a programming language. This is a great timesaver as I do not have to type in all of the escape/concatenation characters just to create a SQL statement in C# or C++."

"Simply the best GUI software for administration is the most valuable aspect for me."

"The schema browser is the most valuable feature. The way it presents the objects in our database."

"Toad for Oracle has proven to be better than other tools since we have never experienced any crashes."

More Toad for Oracle pros

Cons

"Some customizations of the dashboard, such as having backup reports, would be useful."

"One improvement could be the inclusion of suggestions for missing indexes or better analysis of how indexes are utilized and how execution plans are used, similar to what other products offer."

"The software does not support webhooks. It doesn't support advanced versions of APIs. The tool also doesn't support advanced versions of specifications. The change that we do in one part of the model is not reflected throughout the specification. There are also some mutations in the clones. I am not able to do a local source control with the product as well."

"One improvement could be the inclusion of suggestions for missing indexes or better analysis of how indexes are utilized and how execution plans are used, similar to what other products offer."

"There's no reporting with this tool, and there really should be. They should add that into future releases."

"There should also be a better "cancel query" option as sometimes one cancels a query, but then it still might run for a long time, and then one has to crash Toad in order to cancel the query."

"Toad for Oracle does not have a particular resolution within the application."

"It would be better if they had an online option allowing me to connect from anywhere on any device. Sometimes I face some errors, depending on the network and setup. It's not a big issue."

"Sometimes it works in some areas, but in others, it doesn't. Like when you copy, you find that it's blank and doesn't copy anything. So, there are some objects that do copy, and sometimes they don't."

"In future releases, the product can be more intuitive. It has to be lighter than what it is because sometimes it is not responding quickly. If I do some features at the same time, it's not supporting. I have to wait sometimes to get the action. It's dependent on the resources of the workstation, but it has to be improved in this area. The faster processing is needed."

"An area where the solution could use some improvement is in terms of user-friendliness. During the initial setup phase, the solution was not very intuitive when attempting to establish connections."

"The way the dialog boxes appear can be improved."

"Once in a while, I may encounter a memory exception and have to abort the application. On a few occasions, the file that stores the saved connections for the New Connection window will become corrupt and I will lose all of my saved connections. I am not sure if that is a Windows or TOAD issue, but it has happened to all of my developers at some point or another."

More Toad for Oracle cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool is cloud-based. It is priced well."

"Its cost was somewhere in the middle."

"The professional edition is about $1,000 AUD ($700 USD) and the developer version is about twice that much."

"In my opinion, this solution is a little expensive, but I understand that good programs cost more money."

"The pricing is okay, it's reasonable."

"There are paid and free-for-use versions of the product."

"The product's pricing is just right because if it were slightly higher, it would not have been as widely adopted as it currently is in our organization."

"My advice is to try to use the three-year maintenance agreement if possible."

"I would rate it six, where one is a low price, and ten is a high price."

"Toad for Oracle has a relatively high cost compared to other similar tools."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

15%

Computer Software Company

10%

Healthcare Company

10%

Government

Financial Services Firm

21%

Computer Software Company

12%

Government

11%

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What needs improvement with Quest Spotlight?

One improvement could be the inclusion of suggestions for missing indexes or better analysis of how indexes are utilized and how execution plans are used, similar to what other products offer.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Quest Spotlight?

I primarily use Spotlight for on-the-spot troubleshooting and alerting to see if there are any issues. The drill-down features allow me to pinpoint problems, whether they are indexing, long-running...

See all answers

What advice do you have for others considering Quest Spotlight?

I would rate Spotlight probably an nine out of ten. My advice would be to consider its cost-effectiveness and ease of use in smaller environments.

See all answers

What do you like most about Toad for Oracle?

The product's most valuable features are UI and monitoring.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Toad for Oracle?

The licensing cost for Toad for Oracle is relatively high, with their license and DPA suite totaling around five thousand dollars.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Toad for Oracle?

It would be beneficial if Toad for Oracle could incorporate OEM features, as having monitoring capabilities in the same interface would simplify workload and management tasks.

See all answers

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IDERA SQL Diagnostic Manager for SQL Server vs Quest Spotlight

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Redgate SQL Toolbelt Essentials vs Toad for Oracle

Compared 12% of the time

DbVisualizer vs Toad for Oracle

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Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Database Development and Management

May 2025

Download Quest Spotlight product report

Buyer's Guide

Toad for Oracle

May 2025

Download Toad for Oracle product report

Also Known As

Dell Spotlight

No data available

Overview

Quest Spotlight ensures peak performance around the clock with unmatched monitoring, diagnosis and optimization of SQL Server environments. Spotlight provides access to the details you need for optimal fitness of your SQL Server databases. Get overviews of health and performance, automated alerts and actions, and mobile device support.

Quest Software

With Toad for Oracle, you'll reduce costs and risks by easily ensuring the health and performance of your Oracle Cloud Platform and on-premises databases. ... On the operations side, you can automate administration tasks and proactively manage your databases while embracing performance optimization and risk mitigation.

Quest Software

Sample Customers

Jenkon

intel, ebay, uber, mars, microsoft

Buyer's Guide

Quest Spotlight vs. Toad for Oracle

June 2025

Free Report: Quest Spotlight vs. Toad for Oracle

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