Categories   >   Visual Reporting Tools
Last Reviewed: November 21st, 2024

Best Visual Reporting Tools Of 2024

What are Visual Reporting Tools?

Visual reporting tools are like translators for your data, transforming cold numbers into clear and compelling stories. Imagine a spreadsheet full of sales figures – visual reporting tools turn that into interactive charts, graphs, and maps, making trends and insights instantly clear. This visual approach tackles the problem of information overload, allowing viewers to grasp complex data at a glance. Benefits include improved communication, faster decision-making, and a stronger impact on stakeholders. These tools offer features like drag-and-drop chart creation, customizable dashboards, and data storytelling templates. Emerging features include real-time data integration for dynamic reports and AI-powered data visualization suggestions. Anyone who needs to communicate data benefits, from marketers presenting campaign results to executives summarizing financial performance. Visual reporting tools are useful across all industries. While powerful, they can't replace strong analytical skills – clear visuals need a solid foundation in data. In essence, visual reporting tools bridge the gap between data and understanding, empowering users to communicate insights with impact.

What Are The Key Benefits of Visual Reporting Tools?

  • Clearer Communication
  • Faster Data Comprehension
  • Improved Decision Making
  • Engage Stakeholders with Data
  • Identify Trends & Patterns
  • Simplify Complex Information
  • Highlight Key Insights
  • Create Memorable Reports
  • Boost Audience Engagement
Read more

Overall

Based on the latest available data collected by SelectHub for 62 solutions, we determined the following solutions are the best Visual Reporting Tools overall:

JReport
JReport
Start Price
$10,000
One-Time
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Why We Picked JReport

JReport is an embedded reporting and business intelligence solution that drives self-service analytics, helps users to customize interactive data dashboards and adds value to business applications via report creation and sharing. Mentioning its data connectivity capabilities, both as an embedded and a standalone solution, many users said that it integrated well with a range of data sources and embedded seamlessly into any application on any platform. Many users who discussed its functionality said that the solution was feature-rich, with intuitive capabilities such as drag-and-drop, and that it was highly scalable in implementing domain-specific features with server clustering. All users who discussed support said that they were proactive and responsive in ensuring that feature requests were added to upcoming releases.
Though the platform did not seem to have any tangible limitations at the time of publishing this synopsis, some users said that there is definite room for improvement in regards to clarity of the product roadmap. Reviewing reporting, quite a few users said that the multitude of options was overwhelming and reporting features were not ubiquitous between the two modules - on the web and in the JReport desktop application.
Overall, JReport embeds smoothly into business applications to enable self-service and interactive data analysis via impressive features like visualizations and report scheduling that power decision-making processes.

Pros & Cons

  • Data Integration: All users who mentioned the platform’s data accessibility capabilities said that it connected seamlessly to a wide range of data sources and embedded equally easily into business applications.
  • Functionality: Around 74% of users who reflected on its functionality said that, coupled with rich features, the platform was highly scalable in implementing industry-specific reporting and advanced data analysis.
  • Ease of Use: In terms of ease of use, approximately 74% of users said that the platform was generally intuitive to navigate, with a modern-looking GUI.
  • Reporting: Around 67% of users who mentioned reporting said that the platform offered custom reporting to the desired level of granularity and report scheduling for sharing insights with departments and teams.
  • Service and Support: All users who mentioned support said that they were responsive and proactive, especially in responding to requests for new features.
  • At the time of publishing this synopsis, there were no tangible limitations of this platform as per available user sentiment online.

Key Features

  • Web Reports: Generate visualizations and create dynamic and interactive web-based reports.
  • Data Visualization: Blend data to generate up to 40 types of visualizations, including charts, scattergrams, crosstabs, tables, maps and more. Pull data from a range of different data sources and blend it into a single dashboard.
  • In-Depth Analytics: Gain more in-depth information by applying filters to sort data or drilling down into specific details. Compare visualizations side by side for big-picture analysis.
  • Page Reports: Deliver detailed data on an organization-wide scale by arranging it into pixel-perfect visualizations on paginated reports that are simple to make, share and understand.
  • Ad-Hoc Reports: Improve data literacy by simplifying platform usage. Easily interact with dynamic data via on-screen sliders, drill-downs and filters. Generate custom, on-demand reports with the drag-and-drop interface.
  • Intuitive UI: Quickly drag and drop to create dynamic visualizations by choosing from an extensive library. Dig deeper into data via simple drill-down, filter and sort capabilities.
  • Scalability: Embeds into other software solutions and grows seamlessly with the business.
Tableau
Tableau
Start Price
$15
Per User, Monthly
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Why We Picked Tableau

Tableau Desktop is a BI solution for data visualization, dashboarding and location analysis. In online reviews, users said they found its drag-and-drop charting a boon for creating charts and maps. Regarding customization, many users praised the platform for its various labeling and design options.

I recently tried the Tableau Desktop 2024.1.3 version. The trial is only for 14 days and is enough for a sneak peek into Tableau’s dashboarding and data storytelling capabilities. For more straightforward use cases, Tableau is incredibly user-friendly and fast. Creating a new sheet gives you a canvas to create a visualization. Once you have the required sheets, combining them into a dashboard view is straightforward — select and add.

My dataset included healthcare data, including details of patients, their hospital visits and insurance payer details. One use case was to find the total claim settlement amount. I dragged the Total Claims Cost and Payer fields to the column and row shelves, and Tableau gave me a bar graph. The toolbar had single-click options for sorting data from increasing to decreasing values or the other way around.

To view the number of encounters by payer, I dragged the Payer field to the row shelf and used the SUM(ROW_COUNT()) function on the column shelf. The chart popped up with more visualization and layout options.

I wanted an interactive filter to view the average claim cost by birthdate. I dragged the Birthdate field to the Filters shelf and right-clicked on it to set the end date as October 22, 1961. Selecting Show Filter added a slider conveniently to the right of my visualization. I could see the data for people born before October 22, 1961, and if required, I could change the end date.

Another use case would be viewing the data by the type of hospital visits — how many people were inpatients, outpatients or those who needed emergency care. I dragged and dropped the Total Claims Cost and Payer fields into columns and rows, respectively. Similarly, I dropped Encounterclass into the Filters shelf and clicked on Show Filter to enable a checkbox on the screen. It had all the categories of visits, giving users the option to select the desired views.

One-fourth of the users discussing adoption said there was a steep learning curve. Tableau relies on Python and R scripts for statistics in its visualizations. It's where the named licenses can prove to be a blessing, as you can opt to train upcoming Creators and Explorers. We recommend factoring in training if you want to hit the ground running.

Some reviewers felt discounted packages for business editions should be available, similar to the free student licenses. At $70 per user, the Creator license can seem costly when compared to Power BI ($9.99 per user) and Qlik Sense ($30 per user).

Here's the good news, though. Its built-in user management acts as a permissions layer for your organization - users can only access the relevant content. Plus, an organization will have very few Creators and a greater number of Viewers and Explorers, and the license fee reduces from Creator to Explorer to Viewer.

We recommend opting for a wise license combination to get the most out of the product.

On the upside, the vendor constantly releases new features, the latest one being Einstein CoPilot in beta.

Overall, Tableau is a competitive BI solution, but if the pricing seems inflexible, quite a few other solutions offer live insights and advanced analytics out of the box.

Pros & Cons

  • Data Visualization: Almost 98% of users who reviewed its visual capabilities praised the platform for its dashboards and the freedom to play around with data and modify charts as desired.
  • User-Friendly: According to 93% of users who mentioned ease of use, it makes data accessible with its easy user actions and handy tooltips.
  • Data Connectivity: About 92% of users who discussed data sourcing praised its ability to pull data from disparate systems.
  • Pricing: Around 90% of the users citing cost found it expensive.
  • Speed: About 71% of the users who discussed performance found it slow when processing large data volumes.
  • Onboarding Woes: Approximately 67% of the users who reviewed the platform's adoption said there was a steep learning curve.

Key Features

  • Connectors: Combine data from various sources by choosing from a wide range of connectors — no need to spend on expensive third-party data integration tools. Tableau Bridge connects private networks to live data sources via Tableau Cloud.
  • AI: Tableau now offers AI capabilities thanks to Einstein Analytics.
    • Tableau Pulse: Explore data independently and ask questions with AI analytics. Tableau Pulse is available with Tableau Cloud and Embedded Analytics.
    • Explain Data: Understand the displayed insights with natural language explanations of data points.
    • Einstein CoPilot (Beta): Close the gap in understanding data with AI insights. Discover hidden trends by asking follow-up questions without losing context, thanks to generative AI. Einstein CoPilot is available with a Tableau Cloud subscription.
  • Tableau Prep: Clean and transform data of all types, including survey results, feedback data and social media posts. Shape and combine it with Tableau Prep, which is available with the paid edition only.
  • Data Stories: Convey your message with compelling narratives to get stakeholder buy-in. Drag and drop sheets onto the storyboard to show the growth, decline or stability of critical metrics.
  • Animations: Explain how data changes over time with animated charts and customize them to include graphics, labels and colors.
  • Filtering: Focus on the data that matters; it’s as easy as dragging and dropping desired fields to the Filter shelf. Specify a value range, set a condition or choose the top values to display.
  • User-Based Licenses: Explore cost-effective license combinations that work for your team.
    • Creators can build dashboards, permissions, and governance rules, and establish connections to new sources. They’re content authors who transform and analyze data. This license is available at $70 per user monthly, billed annually. However, they can’t control the Tableau Server or Desktop environment.
    • Explorer licenses are suitable for line-of-business users whose role requires independent data exploration. They can author content but within a governed ecosystem. Each Explorer license costs $42 monthly, billed annually. They can’t connect to new sources, modify data, or use the Tableau desktop or custom SQL.
    • Viewers can interact with data, apply filters and follow pre-decided workflows. This license is available for $15 per user monthly, billed annually. Viewers have limited rights and can’t create and edit visualizations and the underlying data.
Power BI
Power BI
Start Price
$10
Per User, Monthly
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Why We Picked Power BI

Our researchers ranked products on a whole bunch of features. They include data management, querying and visualization, advanced and embedded analytics, mobile BI, and IoT and location analytics.

In our rankings, Power BI scores 87 for connectivity, leaving behind Tableau, Oracle Analytics and Dundas BI. Robust Microsoft technology is one reason, for sure. Besides, intelligent techniques like DirectQuery and easy data modeling make it popular among users.

In product reviews, some users mentioned a lag when sharing reports from the desktop to the cloud. For me, the platform was a tad slow to start, but otherwise, it stayed performant for my average-sized dataset.

When dealing with sales data, total sales, the top-performing products, seasonality and period trends are common queries. Creating a sales KPI report in Power BI was an excellent way for me to answer them. My CSV files included sales, calendar, products and store data.

Connecting to sources is straightforward with Get Data on the home screen and toolbar. Once I had pulled in the data, I clicked on Transform Data and opened the Power Query editor. It automatically detects the data type for strings and numbers but can get confused with dates and currency, which it marks as text. It involved some manual wrangling, but I had it sorted in no time. Read my article on KPI Reports to learn how I did it.

But I wouldn’t call it a deal-breaker as it’s not a tedious task. I had the same experience with Qlik Sense, but Tableau was way better as it recognizes seven data types — string, number, date, date and time, boolean, geographic and cluster values.

Tracking sales over periods required a greater level of detail, so I added new columns to the calendar data — start of month and start of week. Column statistics were immensely helpful in identifying unique, distinct and null values and correcting incomplete records. Clicking on the number of products selling at a particular price allowed me to see which toys sold at that price.

Creating a relational data model by defining primary keys is a manual process and seems dated once you’ve used Qlik Sense. Adding calculated measures is where DAX shows its magic. For data workers well-versed with SQL, DAX is a ready-to-go tool they’ll be glad to have in their corner.

Creating visualizations wasn’t as intuitive as Tableau as it involved drag-and-drop onto the canvas, and frankly, I felt like I was flying blind. I didn’t feel that way with Tableau, and it’s slicker.

Power BI offers a paintbrush tool that lets you define the layout, the card arrangement and the maximum number of cards. You can define the canvas settings, background and headers and determine the filter pane settings. It took me longer to create a dashboard from scratch than it took in Tableau.

Some users found the pricing structure too complex. While using Azure data in Power BI for basic queries is free, costs can add up when you go for text and sentiment analysis. With Microsoft Fabric, the pricing complexity is set to rise. Though Power BI is available separately too, you’ll need to rely on Fabric to manage users, licenses and other administrative tasks.

About 31% of the users mentioning cost complained about onboarding difficulties, possibly because DAX introduces the complexity of learning syntax. It can daunt non-technical users initially, but guided formulas can make the task easier. That said, I agree with the majority of user reviews that training will speed up onboarding and help your team maximize the investment.

Overall, Power BI has many powerful features and will give you value for your money. If you’re not a Microsoft user yet, it’s worth checking out for the baked-in vendor technologies like Azure and SSAS. If you are an MS user, Power BI might be a no-brainer, though be prepared to shell out a little extra for advanced functionality and additional modules.

Pros & Cons

  • Integrations: Around 95% of users who mentioned data sources said they were satisfied with its flexibility in connecting to sources.
  • Data Visualization: About 93% of the users who discussed visual analysis said they relied on it for daily reporting.
  • Functionality: Over 75% of the users reviewing features said they were impressed with its live queries, DAX calculations and data modeling.
  • Ease of Use: Approximately 72% of the users who mentioned its UI said it was straightforward to use.
  • Speed: About 95% of recent reviews citing performance said the platform lagged when dealing with large data volumes.
  • Adoption: Around 81.5% of the reviewers mentioning adoption said the learning curve was steep.
  • Cost: Approximately 71% of users discussing pricing complained about the platform being expensive.

Key Features

  • Dataflows: Save time with reusable workflows that lock the logic in. While shared datasets are open to interpretation, dataflows will take your users in one direction only, ensuring consistent results. It’s like a written recipe, just follow the steps to get the taste right.
  • Analyze in Excel: Focus on the end game. Give your teams the freedom to analyze their data in Excel and move the results back to Power BI.
  • DAX: Empower your people to go beyond raw data. Derive calculated columns and measures with Data Analysis Expressions. Watch them update as you apply filters and slicers and interact with data in other ways.
  • Data Alerts: Act in time to keep things running smoothly. Stay informed of changes with alerts. Subscribe to receive notifications via email or the Power BI notification center (available only with Power BI Service). Among visualizations, KPI cards, cards and gauges have the alert option. 
  • Data Refreshes: Stay ahead of trends with the latest insight. Update data on demand in Power BI or schedule refreshes with Power Automate. Power BI Pro and Premium allow up to eight and 48 refreshes daily, respectively.
  • Key Influencers Visual: Decide the next steps by spotting the factors affecting a critical metric. As a transporter, does only the terrain impact how consistently your trucks deliver, or is the average age of the fleet vehicles also a factor?
  • Decomposition Tree: Identify which product category or region contributed most to sales increase or decrease. For instance, you can analyze sales trends by channel with the decomposition tree.

Pricing

License/Subscription Cost
  • Based on the number of users for Power BI Pro and capacity-based pricing for Power BI Premium
Maintenance Cost
  • Included in the subscription cost
Installation/Implementation Cost
  • Included in the subscription cost. Additional charges may apply for data migration during implementation of Power BI, maintaining on-premise data sources and building dashboards and reports
Customization Cost
  • Dependent on functional requirements and specific needs of the organization
Data Migration Cost/Change Management/Upfront Switching Cost
  • Dependent on your current software, amount of data to be migrated, availability of migration tools, complexity of data and gaps between the existing system and the new system.
Recurring/Renewal Costs
  • Renewal cost is included in the fees paid monthly or annually
BusinessObjects
BusinessObjects
Start Price
$5,000
Annual
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Why We Picked BusinessObjects

User reviews for BusinessObjects paint a picture of a powerful BI tool with both strengths and weaknesses. On the positive side, users praise its comprehensive features, enabling them to tackle complex data challenges. "It's like a Swiss Army knife for data analysis," one user says, "from basic reports to advanced modeling, it's got it all." This feature depth is often contrasted with simpler competitors, with users appreciating the ability to handle diverse needs without needing multiple tools. However, the learning curve can be steep, especially for non-technical users. "It's not exactly drag-and-drop for beginners," another user admits. This complexity can lead to frustration and require investment in training, which some users find less intuitive compared to competitors. Despite the learning hurdle, many users highlight BusinessObjects' scalability and integration capabilities as its main differentiators. "It seamlessly connects with our existing systems," one user notes, "saving us time and effort." This smooth integration is often lacking in competitors, making BusinessObjects a preferred choice for organizations with complex data ecosystems. Overall, user reviews suggest BusinessObjects is a powerful and versatile BI tool best suited for organizations with complex data needs and the resources to support its learning curve. Its comprehensive features and integration capabilities set it apart, making it a strong contender for those seeking a robust BI solution despite the initial investment required.

Pros & Cons

  • Ease of Use: It is a straightforward and easy to use platform, as noted by over 65% of reviewers who mention ease of use.
  • Flexible Reporting: Around 84% of the reviewers who specify reporting state that it offers a flexible reporting feature to fit individual needs.
  • Integration: It enables integration with SAP products and third-party software, as observed by 89% of the users referring to integration.
  • Customization: It provides highly customizable tools and options, as noted by 88% of reviewers who specify customization.
  • Learning Curve: It involves a steep learning curve for beginners, as stated by 80% of the users mentioning the learning curve.
  • Implementation: Over 80% of reviewers who discussed implementation report that the process is cumbersome.
  • Pop-ups: Error messages and pop-ups are technical and hard to decipher, as observed by 100% of reviewers who refer to pop-ups.
  • Performance: Around 86% of the users who specify performance report that it becomes slow and crashes at times when multiple prompts are opening.

Key Features

  • Native Mobile Apps: Take visualization features like charts, reports and more on the go with native iOS and Android apps. 
  • Pre-Built Data Connectors: Draw data from over 25 pre-set sources such as SAP HANA, Apache, Hadoop, Hive, Cloudera, Impala, Amazon, IBM and many more. 
  • Integrations: Provides powerful integration capabilities with other applications such as CRM, ERP, web applications and more. Includes SAP tools and others like the Microsoft Suite. 
  • Data Discovery: Collects, cleans and analyzes data from a variety of sources to help users identify trends and patterns. 
  • Data Transformation: Converts data between formats and structures — organizes and structures unstructured data into usable information. 
  • Visualizations: Generates graphical data visualizations such as bar charts, pie graphs, scattergrams, line plots, maps and more. 
  • Secure Collaboration: Users can securely share visualizations with team members, clients and others through email, web embedding and other platforms. 

Pricing

License/Subscription Cost
  • On-Premise: Pricing depends on business size and the CPU/roles/tools required. There is also option of Named User Licenses (a non-shareable license for a single person that provides guaranteed access to the software) and Concurrent User Licenses (a single log-on that can be used by anyone. This is limited by availability of free sessions in the session pool). The Named User license provides access to all desktop software. The Concurrent User Licenses are not supported for most desktop software, except for SAP BusinessObjects Analysis edition for Office.
  • Cloud-based/SaaS: Depends on the number of users
Maintenance Cost
  • On-Premise: Support licenses are charges over and above the license cost
  • Cloud-based/SaaS: Included in license/subscription cost
Installation/Implementation Cost
  • On-Premise: Included in the license cost
  • Cloud-based/SaaS: No installation cost
Customization Cost
  • Will vary depending on the functional requirements such as configurable dashboards, type of data elements required for tracking, complexity of workflows, etc
Data Migration Cost/Change Management/Upfront Switching Cost
  • Dependent on your current software, amount of data to be migrated, availability of migration tools, complexity of data and gaps between the existing system and the new system
Recurring/Renewal Costs
  • On-Premise: Will depend on the type of license purchased – named user or concurrent user, Enterprise or Small Business
  • Cloud-based/SaaS: Renewal cost is equivalent to the fees paid monthly or annually, based on number of users
Funnel
Funnel
Start Price
$149
Monthly, Quote-based
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Key Features

  • Custom Rules: Create rules to segment data based on specific needs, mitigating the need to write code. Leverage a point-and-click data prep toolbox to combine data or define custom metrics to answer business-specific questions. 
  • Currency Conversion: Automate currency conversion to facilitate side-by-side comparison across platforms and markets. 
  • Standard Rules: Use pre-built rules and logic to prepare data for analysis. Define standard naming conventions for dimensions and metrics. Combine traffic sources and segment data by the market or product sold. 
  • Data Explorer: Use the data explorer to explore data, perform ad hoc analysis, create reports and export them. 
  • KPI Reporting: Combine sales with advertising data to report on KPIs, including return on ad spend, revenue, conversion rate and more. Get a complete performance view at a deeper level to ensure profitability. 
Cognos Analytics
Cognos Analytics
Start Price
$50
Per User, Monthly
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Request Pricing Request Demo

Why We Picked Cognos Analytics

IBM Cognos Analytics is an excellent BI tool and rates very highly with users on all major counts. Users are unanimous in their praise of its data management and data analysis capabilities to provide a single source of truth. Having ventured into AI-powered tools with the 11.1.3 version in 2018, IBM is making bold strides to incorporate augmented intelligence into the platform. IBM has astutely combined this solution with the capabilities of one of its other offerings, Watson Analytics, for natural language processing - a game-changer for empowering non-technical users to create a vast range of dashboards. With AI-enabled exploration, users can review key drivers of metrics and identify gaps in data, though some users feel that more tools are needed for content store exploration through its relational database. It also rates excellently with users for its data integration and ad-hoc reporting capabilities, efficient metadata management and extensive data modeling features.

Several strong features of this platform, as noted by reviewers, include Jupyter notebooks, regular updates to the platform and enhancements to data modules, though when it comes to integrating with Online Analytical Processing (OLAP) data sources and IBM Planning Analytics in particular, it comes up short. Version 11 of the platform comes with over-the-top installs for upgrades, which reduces time to set up; though some users feel that integrations built with the current SDK solution can be tedious to implement and maintain. Being part of the IBM software suite, it connects seamlessly to other IBM products under the same umbrella. However, integration with MS-Sharepoint is not supported; this can be managed with workarounds, but only for on-premise setups, not cloud-based deployments. The platform has a rich reporting repertoire with report burst capabilities, pivots and Cognos Event Studio for event-driven reports. However, many users feel that Report Studio should provide the write back capability, which is crucial for business. As for the cost, a majority of users feel that its licensing models are restrictive, especially when compared to other BI solutions; though the vendor seems to address pricing and ease of use with version 11.1.3.

In summary, Cognos Analytics is among the best BI solutions in the market today and IBM, with its ear to the ground, is delivering enhanced data analysis and reporting capabilities at scale.

Pros & Cons

  • Data Analysis and Visualization: All users who mention data analysis and presentation unanimously agree that this solution covers the full spectrum of BI analytics capabilities.
  • Data management: All users who mention data preparation praise its data integrations and effective metadata management, which ensure data consistency and accuracy across multiple reporting systems.
  • Functionality: Of users who mentioned this platform’s features, around 90% were satisfied with regular updates and enhancements which allow them to create faster, more responsive dashboards.
  • Reporting: Around 89% of users who mention reporting are satisfied, appreciating its ad-hoc reporting and report-sharing capabilities.
  • Setup: Excellent vendor support coupled with the ease of establishing data connectivity with data sources make installation of this solution a breeze, as approximately 87% of users have mentioned.
  • Cost: Around 87% of users who mention cost feel that its licensing model is expensive when compared to other BI solutions.
  • Training: Approximately 45% of users who reviewed training say that the learning curve can be quite steep and though self-service training is available, they would prefer a formal learning program.

Key Features

  • Components: Boost the feature set of the core platform with components that enhance data modeling, visualization and analytics capabilities. 
  • Powerful Reporting: Create detailed charts, graphs, maps, voiceovers and repeat functions with the robust, professional reporting suite. Simplify reporting for non-technical users with express mode. 
  • Web-based Interface: Access the platform on any hardware via the web.
  • Natural Language-powered AI: Interrogate data and receive natural, consistent responses with a built-in AI, powered by NLP. 
  • Automated Modeling: Verify and combine data via automated modeling, and assess relationships between separate data points. 

Pricing

License/Subscription Cost
  • Dependent on the type of license – workgroup, standard or enterprise (refer pricing section for more details)
Maintenance Cost
  • Subscription & Support costs are based on a percentage of the license cost (25% of initial license cost)
  • Software Accelerated Value Programs are an incremental charge calculated on a per-case basis, dependent on the specific service that the customer requires. Customers can't purchase Software Accelerated Value Programs without paying standard Subscription & Support cost
Installation/Implementation Cost
  • Included in license/subscription cost
Customization Cost
  • Will vary depending on the functional requirements such as configurable dashboards, complexity of workflows, forms to collect additional data, UI changes, etc.
Data Migration Cost/Change Management/Upfront Switching Cost
  • Dependent on your current software, amount of data to be migrated, availability of migration tools, complexity of data and gaps between the existing system and the new system.
Training Cost
  • Self-service support is available online
  • Native language support consists of live support and unlimited access for all certified IT technical staff within an organization
Recurring/Renewal Costs
  • Renewal fee includes license cost and maintenance fee for the new or next year
BIRT
BIRT
Start Price
$0
Open-Source
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Request Pricing Request Demo

Why We Picked BIRT

Reviews for BIRT paint a picture of a user-friendly report designer with a loyal following, particularly among those new to report building. Its drag-and-drop interface and pre-built templates are praised for streamlining report creation compared to coding-heavy solutions. This is a major advantage for businesses that need reports up and running quickly, without tasking developers.

BIRT shines in its ability to connect to various data sources, eliminating the need for complex data extraction steps. This is a big win for teams working with data scattered across spreadsheets, databases, and even flat files. While BIRT offers strong core functionality, some reviewers mention a steeper learning curve for advanced features. For instance, users who need to wrangle massive datasets or create highly customized data visualizations might find BIRT limiting compared to more feature-rich (and often pricier) competitors. Similarly, BIRT's mobile capabilities are seen as less robust than some competing products. This can be a dealbreaker for teams that prioritize mobile reporting for field staff or remote workers who need real-time access to reports.

In conclusion, BIRT is a solid choice for businesses seeking a cost-effective and user-friendly solution for generating basic to moderately complex reports. Its strength lies in its ease of use, data source flexibility, and affordability. However, those working with exceptionally large datasets or requiring a highly customized mobile reporting experience might be better served by exploring feature-rich alternatives.

Pros & Cons

  • Drag-and-Drop Report Design: BIRT boasts a user-friendly interface that lets you visually design reports using drag-and-drop functionality. No coding required! This streamlines report creation for business users who might not be familiar with programming languages.
  • Flexibility and Customization: BIRT empowers you to tailor reports to your specific needs. From basic tables to complex charts and graphs, BIRT offers a wide range of data visualization options. This ensures your reports effectively communicate insights to a variety of audiences.
  • Integration with Various Data Sources: BIRT seamlessly connects to diverse data sources like databases, spreadsheets, and even flat files. This eliminates the hassle of data extraction and manipulation, allowing you to focus on crafting impactful reports.
  • Scheduling and Automation: BIRT allows you to schedule reports to run automatically at specific intervals. This ensures you always have access to fresh data, saving valuable time and keeping everyone on the same page.
  • Steeper Learning Curve for Advanced Features: While BIRT excels in drag-and-drop simplicity for basic reports, users venturing into complex functionalities like data scripting or advanced data manipulation might find the learning curve steeper. This can be a hurdle for teams without in-house BIRT expertise.
  • Potential Performance Issues with Large Datasets: Some users report performance limitations with exceptionally large datasets. BIRT might not be the ideal choice if you consistently work with massive amounts of data that require real-time report generation.
  • Limited Mobile Capabilities: While BIRT reports can be accessed on mobile devices, the user experience might not be optimal for all report formats. This can be a drawback for teams that heavily rely on mobile reporting for on-the-go decision-making.

Key Features

  • Data Explorer: Build connections to data sources and view them together with business assets and data cubes.
    • Access and blend various datatypes from a range of sources, including POJOs, JDO datastores, SQL Databases, JFire scripting objects, XML and web services. 
    • Pull in more data than before by extending the available sources with Eclipse’s Open Data Access framework. 
    • Accesses Hadoop data using Hive Query Language. Ingests data from distributed databases like Cassandra through APIs. 
    • Pulls data from LDAP, report documents and Java objects. In addition to Salesforce, it can ingest information from LinkedIn, Facebook and GitHub. 
  • Report Designer: Supports a wide range of reports, layouts and formatting, with reuse of designs and elements. Create report layouts, connect to data sources and produce XML-based report designs. 
    • Navigator: Create a new Report Design Project or a new BIRT file within a project through the navigator. View all the projects in the workspace and create multiple file types such as a design file, template file, library file or report document. 
  • Sample Report Viewer: View reports in a sample web application before publishing them online. Generate and export them in HTML, PDF, CSV formats. Print locally or on the server and rerun them when needed with new parameters. 
  • BIRT Report Engine: Query data sources and merge the query results into the report layouts created by the Report Designer. Produce the report output in a wide range of formats that include Microsoft Office, HTML, PDF, postscript and open document formats. This feature is also available in the BIRT Web Viewer. 
  • Data Visualizations: Create data visualizations with task-specific editors, builders and wizards and integrate into web systems. 
    • Charts: Choose from a vast library of pie charts, Gantt charts, pyramid charts, scattergrams and many more, with multiple subtypes, such as a bar chart with options of side-by-side, stacked and percent stacked. Create charts in 2D, 2D with depth and 3D formats. 
    • Crosstabs: Present data in two dimensions (sales or hits) with the cross-tabulation or matrix feature. 
    • Palette: Drag and drop elements from the palette into the visualization layout. Add rich text to the report, including HTML formatting integrated with dynamic data. Aggregate business metrics with more than 30 built-in SQL operators. 
  • Customization: Make report data easy to understand with support for internationalization, including bidirectional text. Easily replace static report elements — report labels, table headers and chart titles — with localized text. 
  • Lists: Present data methodically through simple data lists by grouping related data together. 
Oracle Reports
Oracle Reports
Start Price
$0
Freemium, Per User
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Request Pricing Request Demo

Why We Picked Oracle Reports

User reviews of Oracle Reports paint a mixed picture, highlighting both its strengths and weaknesses. Many users appreciate its tight integration with Oracle databases, which makes accessing and reporting on data a breeze. One user stated, "I love the seamless connection to Oracle databases. No more struggling with data extraction and transformation." Another praised its robust data connectivity, highlighting its ability to connect to diverse data sources, "Oracle Reports connects to everything! It's the only reporting tool I need for all my data sources." However, some users find the learning curve steep, with one user commenting, "It's powerful, but mastering it takes time and effort. It's not as user-friendly as some other reporting tools." Additionally, the outdated user interface can feel clunky compared to newer competitors, as one user noted, "The interface feels a bit old-fashioned. It could definitely use a modern upgrade." When compared to similar products like Microsoft Power BI and Tableau, users find Oracle Reports to be less intuitive and mobile-friendly. However, its strengths lie in its deep integration with Oracle technologies and its ability to handle complex reports and large datasets. One user summarized it well: "It may not be the easiest tool to learn, but it's the best choice for organizations heavily invested in Oracle and needing robust reporting capabilities." Ultimately, the decision to use Oracle Reports depends on individual needs and priorities. Users with specialized reporting needs within the Oracle ecosystem and a tolerance for a steeper learning curve may find it a valuable tool. However, those seeking a user-friendly, mobile-first reporting experience with broader third-party integration might be better served by exploring alternative options.

Pros & Cons

  • Tight Integration with Oracle Databases: Seamlessly access and report on data stored in Oracle databases, eliminating the need for complex data extraction and transformation.
  • Robust Data Connectivity: Connect to diverse data sources beyond Oracle, including spreadsheets, flat files, and other databases, providing a comprehensive reporting solution.
  • Advanced Formatting Capabilities: Create visually appealing and informative reports with rich formatting options, including charts, graphs, and interactive elements.
  • Built-in Scheduling Features: Automate report generation and delivery to stakeholders, ensuring timely access to critical information.
  • Scalability and Performance: Handle large datasets and complex reports efficiently, meeting the demands of growing organizations.
  • Security and Compliance: Leverage Oracle's robust security features to protect sensitive data and comply with industry regulations.
  • Steep Learning Curve: Mastering Oracle Reports requires significant training and experience, making it less accessible to users with limited technical expertise.
  • Limited User Interface: The user interface can be outdated and less intuitive compared to modern reporting tools, potentially hindering user adoption and productivity.
  • Limited Mobile Accessibility: Oracle Reports primarily focuses on desktop environments, offering limited mobile accessibility and functionality.
  • High Cost of Ownership: Licensing and maintenance costs for Oracle Reports can be significant, especially for large organizations.
  • Limited Third-Party Integrations: Compared to other reporting tools, Oracle Reports offers fewer pre-built integrations with third-party applications and services.
  • Limited Community Support: The community of Oracle Reports users and developers is smaller compared to other reporting tools, potentially leading to less readily available support and resources.

Key Features

  • Request Queue: Handles report requests by entering them into a job queue, and when a server becomes available the next job in the queue is run. The solution automatically increases the number of available servers to match demand until the maximum is reached to reduce query times. 
  • Mod_Logic Module: Redirects requests from servlets or JSPs to the Oracle Weblogic server for a faster, easy to use UI using Javascript. 
  • Report Bursting: Allows users to generate, publish and distribute reports to pre-defined subgroups such as regions or departments. This keeps data accessible only to those who need to see it and reduces repetitive menial tasks. 
  • Custom Tag Handler: Processes custom tags provided by the JSP file identified by the prefix rw. Users can also create custom tags. 
  • Report Caching: Stores report output so it can automatically reuse it for similar requests, saving users time. 
  • Pluggable Data Sources: The system can pull data from numerous sources via Java APIs. This allows developers to utilize aggregation, summarization, scheduling and formatting on data both within the data warehouse and at its original source. 
  • Integrations: Integrates with standard web environments, Java, JSPs and Web Services. This allows users to run reports on a range of platforms through a web browser using URL syntax. 
SSRS
SSRS
Start Price
$7,500
Annually
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Request Pricing Request Demo

Why We Picked SSRS

Over the past year, SSRS has garnered a mixed bag of reviews, with some users singing its praises and others hitting a sour note. SSRS shines in its ability to generate a diverse range of reports, from dashboards and charts to graphs, and even allows for custom reports tailored to specific needs. Its level of customization is another high point, enabling users to fine-tune the appearance and data included in reports. However, SSRS has also drawn flak for its complexity, with some users finding it challenging to navigate and master. Compared to similar products like Power BI, SSRS is often seen as less user-friendly and intuitive, especially for those without a strong technical background. This can lead to a steeper learning curve and frustration for users who just want to get the job done. Additionally, while SSRS offers robust reporting capabilities, it may lack some of the advanced analytics and data visualization features found in other modern BI tools.

So, who's the ideal captain for this SSRS ship? It's best suited for organizations with a dedicated IT team or users with a solid understanding of SQL and report design. For those seeking a user-friendly, drag-and-drop experience with advanced analytics, other BI tools might be a smoother sail.

Pros & Cons

  • Easy Report Authoring: The user interface is straightforward, allowing users to quickly create reports without extensive coding knowledge. This ease of use makes it accessible to a wider range of users within an organization.
  • Integration with Microsoft Products: SSRS seamlessly integrates with other Microsoft products, such as Excel and SharePoint, making it a natural choice for organizations already invested in the Microsoft ecosystem. This integration simplifies data sharing and report distribution.
  • Scalability and Performance: SSRS is designed to handle large datasets and complex reports efficiently, making it suitable for enterprise-level reporting needs. Its scalability ensures that it can grow with the organization's data demands.
  • Variety of Export Formats: Reports can be exported to various formats, including PDF, Excel, and Word, providing flexibility for users to consume and share information in their preferred format.
  • Subscription and Automation: SSRS allows users to schedule report generation and delivery, automating the reporting process and ensuring that stakeholders receive timely information.
  • Limited Interactive Features: The platform's page navigation and drill-down capabilities are somewhat rigid, making it challenging to create highly interactive reports that allow users to explore data dynamically.
  • Learning Curve: Mastering the intricacies of SSRS can be time-consuming due to its complex interface and expression language, especially for users without a strong technical background. The learning curve can be a barrier for teams looking for a quick and easy reporting solution.
  • Mobile Rendering Challenges: Rendering reports seamlessly on mobile devices can be problematic, often requiring additional configuration or custom development to ensure optimal viewing experiences on smaller screens.

Key Features

  • Rich Reports: Users can create tabular, graphical, interactive or free-form reports from a range of data types, which the solution displays in rich visualizations.
  • Data Types: This system can incorporate a variety of data types, including multidimensional, relational or XML-based.
  • Viewing Format: The solution offers viewing formats for previews, a range of export formats and a variety of options for publishing reports. Users can access these previews from either a web browser, the SharePoint site or through the associated Microsoft application.
  • Drag-and-Drop UI: Instead of being code-based, this solution lets users drag and drop graphics and icons into the report format.
  • Ad-Hoc Reports: Users can generate on-the-fly reports to answer specific business questions by inputting their query.
  • Automated Reports: The solution allows scheduled reports to be automatically delivered to specified users. This makes sharing those repetitive reports a breeze.
JasperReports
JasperReports
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
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Why We Picked JasperReports

JasperReports is a suite of integrated products that offer solutions for creating, sharing and securely managing KPI-focused reports, dashboards and visualizations. All users who reviewed the platform’s cost-effectiveness said that its being open-source is a major plus. Most of the users who mentioned data connectivity said that, besides seamlessly integrating with a multitude of data sources out-of-the-box, it helps businesses develop custom sources to import as much data as possible. Most of the users who discussed its functionality said that the tool is easily embeddable in host applications, and scales easily to create and display visualizations and reports in-application. Support is responsive and online communities are proactive and helpful, according to a majority of the users who discussed them. Many of the users who reviewed its interface said that they find it easy to start creating reports with the tool. Most of the users who discussed its reporting capabilities said that it helps them customize reports in a variety of formats and schedule sharing with teams via email. A majority of the users who reviewed data visualization said that the tool helps them present data in a wide range of visually appealing formats, such as charts, graphs and cross-tabs.
On the flip side, according to a majority of the users who reviewed performance, the platform is prone to infrequent bugs, and debugging them can be time consuming. Many of the users who discussed ease of adoption said that there is a steep learning curve, possibly due to inadequate documentation. Some users who mentioned ease of reporting said that it is time and effort-intensive to create professional-looking reports.
In summary, JasperReports is a suite of versatile and customizable reporting and analytics solutions that help the end-user find answers to the data questions that are specific to their business, though there might be a significant learning curve for adoption by teams, with Java at its back-end.

Pros & Cons

  • Pricing: All users who reviewed pricing said that the platform, being open-source, is cost-effective.
  • Data Integration: Around 83% of the users who discussed data source connectivity said that the solution pulls data seamlessly from a wide range of data sources.
  • Functionality: Citing versatility and scalability, approximately 77% of the users who reviewed its functionality said that the tool is easily embeddable in proprietary applications.
  • Support and Online Community: Support is responsive and the online community is helpful, according to 69% of the users who mentioned them.
  • Ease of Use: Around 68% of the users who discussed the interface said that it is easy to create reports and data visualizations with the tool.
  • Performance: Around 87% of the users who reviewed performance said that debugging errors can be tricky and the platform needs to improve in this regard.
  • Learning Curve: Approximately 67% of the users who mentioned onboarding said that there is a steep learning curve to using the solution.

Key Features

  • Big Data: Connect to large data sources like Hadoop, Cassandra, MongoDB, etc. through data connectors. Perform data exploration through batch reporting against Hadoop and NoSQL data sources. 
  • Report Snapshots: Enable rapid response time for sharing visualizations. Reduces query impact on underlying source systems. 
  • Centralized Repository: Securely store and manage all reports, dashboards, analytic views, profiles and more in a central repository. Monitor report access and usage through auditing. 
  • Report and Dashboard Scheduler:  Automate sharing of reports and dashboards across the organization through the scheduler, either on a one-off or recurring basis. Integrate interactive reports into web applications or embed them in emails for simplified shareability. 
  • Flexible Design: Modular, scalable, standards-based design offers flexibility in deployment and usability. Deploy anywhere — on-premises, in the cloud or inside containers. 
  • Branding and Theming: Customize the interface — logos, font colors and styles, spacing and graphic elements — to match the organization’s brand and theme. 
  • Data Virtualization:  Keep enterprise data secure by eliminating the need to move it across platforms. View and access data where it is stored through metadata. 

COMPARE THE BEST Visual Reporting Tools

Select up to 2 Products from the list below to compare

 
Product
Score
i
SelectHub’s Analyst Rating is based on data from our 400+ point analysis of Visual Reporting Tools, user reviews, and our own crowd-sourced data from our free software selection platform. Scores are periodically updated via ongoing selection projects and user activity within our platform.
Start Price
Free Trial
Company Size
Deployment
Platform
Logo
JReport
$10,000
One-Time
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
JReport
Tableau
$15
Per User, Monthly
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Tableau
Power BI
$10
Per User, Monthly
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Power BI
BusinessObjects
$5,000
Annual
No
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
BusinessObjects
Funnel
$149
Monthly, Quote-based
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Funnel
Cognos Analytics
$50
Per User, Monthly
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Cognos Analytics
BIRT
$0
Open-Source
No
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
BIRT
Oracle Reports
$0
Freemium, Per User
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
Oracle Reports
SSRS
$7,500
Annually
Yes
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
SSRS
JasperReports
Still gathering data
No
Small Medium Large
Cloud On-Premise
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
JasperReports

All Visual Reporting Tools (62 found)

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Ncontracts

by Ncontracts
Ncontracts
Ncontracts is a well-known software tool that ranks 29 among all Risk Management Software according to our research analysts and 19 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $0, Ncontracts is priced at no cost when starting, commonly offers a free trial and is most suitable for business of all sizes. Ncontracts can be deployed online. Similar alternatives to Ncontracts include ThreatMark, HIPAAtrek and Merlin Project.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 or less
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
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ActiveReports

by GrapeCity
ActiveReports
ActiveReports is a .NET reporting tool from GrapeCity that facilitates the creation of reports to display proprietary data in the form of documents or web-based formats. It is based on C# code and uses the Visual Studio interface, offering easy use by programmers. This reporting solution comes in a standard and professional edition and only operates on the Windows platform. It lets users export reports into a range of formats for collaboration and presentation.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: poor
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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ReportsNow

by ReportsNow® Inc.
ReportsNow
ReportsNow is a JD Edwards reporting solution that helps in real-time reporting of proprietary data for analysis. Pulling data from and integrating with JDE as well as non-JDE sources, it provides a host of intuitive functions to help create a wide range of business reports, allowing for automated scheduling and downloading of these reports. Through advanced reporting via Data Access Studio, enterprises can create and edit any kind of data. Its mobile BI stack enables cloud connectivity, making reports available on any device.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
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CleverAds

by Clever Ads
CleverAds
CleverAds is a well-known software application that ranks 35 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 1 crowd-sourced review from 1 source. Starting from $0, CleverAds is priced initially at no cost and is most advisable for any business. CleverAds can be deployed online. Similar alternatives to CleverAds include Certent Disclosure Management, Reveal BI and Reportei.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 or less
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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WebFOCUS

by Information Builders Inc
WebFOCUS
WebFOCUS is a comprehensive data management and analytics platform that enables organizations to access, transform, visualize, and distribute data across multiple platforms. It's particularly well-suited for enterprises with large, complex datasets and a need for robust reporting and analytics capabilities. Key benefits include its ability to unify disparate data sources, create interactive dashboards and visualizations, and automate data-driven workflows. Popular features include its drag-and-drop report builder, self-service data exploration tools, and integration with various business intelligence applications. User experiences generally praise its ease of use, scalability, and ability to handle diverse data types. Pricing is typically based on the number of users, data sources, and required features, with options for both on-premise and cloud-based deployments. Pros Easy to use interface Handles large datasets Diverse data source integration Customizable reports and dashboards Scalable for enterprise needs Cons Occasional performance issues Limited out-of-the-box visualizations Upgrades can be complex UI may feel outdated to some Learning curve for advanced features
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: great
Cost Breakdown
$10 - $100
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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UMRA

by Tools4ever
UMRA
UMRA is a popular software tool that ranks 38 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 14 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $5, UMRA is priced reasonably, offers a free trial on occasion and is most advisable for companies with hundreds or thousands of employees. UMRA can be deployed online and on-premise and is accessible from a handful of platforms including Windows devices. Similar alternatives to UMRA include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 or less
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Demo Pricing

Improvado

by Improvado
Improvado
Improvado is a promising software solution that ranks 39 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 22 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $0, Improvado is priced initially at no cost, has offered a free trial in the past and is most suitable for all company sizes. Improvado can be deployed in the cloud. Similar alternatives to Improvado include Versa Cloud ERP, i-net Clear Reports and myDBR.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 or less
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Cube Software

by MBM Italia
Cube Software
Cube Software is a notable software application that ranks 43 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 38 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $1250, Cube Software is priced on the costly side, has offered a free trial in the past and is most suitable for all company sizes. Cube Software can be deployed in the cloud and on-premise and is accessible from a limited amount of platforms including Windows devices. Similar alternatives to Cube Software include Entrinsik Informer, JReport and InfoZoom.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$1,000 or more
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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proGrow

by proGrow
proGrow
ProGrow is a noteworthy solution that ranks 44 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 3 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $200, proGrow is priced reasonably, commonly offers a free trial and is most fitting for any company. ProGrow can be deployed online. Similar alternatives to proGrow include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: great
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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caidya

by Clinipace
caidya
Caidya is a unique software system that ranks 45 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts. Starting from $300, caidya is priced reasonably, has offered a free trial in the past and is most applicable for small or medium sized businesses. Caidya can be deployed online and is accessible from a limited number of platforms including Windows and Linux devices. Similar alternatives to caidya include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Swydo

by Swydo
Swydo
Swydo is a notable solution that ranks 47 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 81 crowd-sourced reviews from 2 sources. Starting from $39, Swydo is priced moderately, commonly offers a free trial and is most advisable for small-to-mid-sized businesses with less than 1000 employees. Swydo can be deployed online. Similar alternatives to Swydo include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: great
Cost Breakdown
$10 - $100
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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CloudRadial

by Azurative
CloudRadial
CloudRadial is a notable platform that ranks 73 among all Help Desk Software according to our research analysts and 1 crowd-sourced review from 1 source. Starting from $95, CloudRadial is priced less than most others, has offered a free trial in the past and is most suitable for small-to-mid-sized businesses with less than 1000 employees. CloudRadial can be deployed online and on-premise and is accessible from a limited set of platforms including Windows devices. Similar alternatives to CloudRadial include HelpSpace, Halo Service Desk and ThriveDesk.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 - $100
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Stimulsoft Reports

by Stimulsoft Company
Stimulsoft Reports
Stimulsoft Reports is a suite of report and dashboard products in Java, PHP, .NET and other formats. It allows for enhanced development of multi-tier reports and interactive dashboards through an intuitive designer that can draw from internal and relational sources.It can be packaged or purchased individually depending on the user’s needs. It can be scaled through Stimulsoft Server to enable further functions like analytics and processing. It is deployable via the web or on Linux, Mac or Windows.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Demo Pricing

Panintelligence

by Panintelligence
Panintelligence
Panintelligence is a self-service, easy-to-use solution for company-wide reporting. It can display multiple data sources side by side, and the data shown is always live and up-to-date.It is easy to implement, cloud-based and offers multi-tenancy, load balancing, data mining and predictive analytics. Dashboards make it easy for anyone to visualize and communicate complex data in real time. It’s embeddable, highly customizable and reporting is streamlined. User activity can be restricted and audited, with role-based security.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Demo Pricing

Statbot

by Powerhouse Ventures
Statbot
Statbot is a unique software solution that ranks 51 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts. Starting from $29, Statbot is priced more economically and is most fitting for any company. Statbot can be deployed in the cloud. Similar alternatives to Statbot include Datylon, Stimulsoft Reports and Slemma.
Cost Breakdown
$10 - $100
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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i-net Clear Reports

by Inet Software
i-net Clear Reports
I-net Clear Reports is a Java-based enterprise reporting solution. With its free template designer and access to a template repository, it streamlines the process of compiling data into a presentable form. It is compatible with anything that can run Java and can pull from any Java Database Connectivity data source. It can be embedded or executed stand-alone in a browser. It can export files in a variety of formats, including PDF, SVG, XML and JPEG.
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Demo Pricing

AVA Credit

by Autocorp.ai
AVA Credit
AVA Credit is a unique application that ranks 52 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts. AVA Credit is most applicable for any business. AVA Credit can be deployed online. Similar alternatives to AVA Credit include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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BridgeWorks

by BridgeWorks
BridgeWorks
BridgeWorks is a notable software product that ranks 53 among all Enterprise Reporting Software according to our research analysts and 7 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $150, BridgeWorks is priced within reason, has offered a free trial in the past and is most fitting for any company. BridgeWorks can be deployed on-premise and is accessible from a limited number of platforms including Windows devices. Similar alternatives to BridgeWorks include i-net Clear Reports, myDBR and Style Report.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$100 - $500
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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Power My Analytics

by Power My Analytics
Power My Analytics
Power My Analytics is a promising application that ranks 34 among all ETL Tools according to our research analysts and 88 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $9.95, Power My Analytics is priced within reason, commonly offers a free trial and is most applicable for small or medium sized businesses. Power My Analytics can be deployed in the cloud and on-premise and is accessible from a fewer number of platforms including Windows and Linux devices. Similar alternatives to Power My Analytics include Zuar Runner, TIBCO Cloud Integration and Qlik Talend Data Integration.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: excellent
Cost Breakdown
$10 or less
Company Size
Small Medium Large
Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
Mac Windows Linux Chromebook Android
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IsoMetrix

by Metrix Software Solutions
IsoMetrix
IsoMetrix is a unique platform that ranks 76 among all Risk Management Software according to our research analysts and 15 crowd-sourced reviews from 1 source. Starting from $34000, IsoMetrix is priced fairly and is most suitable for any sized business. Similar alternatives to IsoMetrix include OpenPages, ReliaQuest and KPA Risk Management Center.
User Sentiment User satisfaction level icon: good
Cost Breakdown
$1,000 or more
Company Size
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Deployment
Cloud On-Premise
Platform
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Buyer's Guide

Visual Reporting Tools Are All About Uncovering Insights That Speak to You

By Ritinder Kaur, Market Analyst at SelectHub

Visual Reporting Tools BG Intro

The faster, the better — that adage seems to work in a competitive market. When it comes to making sense of data quickly, visual reporting tools are just what you need. But, deciding on which enterprise reporting solution to buy is challenging.

An enterprise expects to work like a well-oiled machine, and consistently accurate data is its lifeline. Acquiring top-of-the-line data management tools is only half the battle won. The actual work starts with generating insights for benchmarking your company's performance with enterprise reporting.

This buyer’s guide breaks down visual reporting tools, their benefits, features and buying considerations. We included a brief overview of the top platforms on the market so you know what to expect when seeking a visual insights system.

Executive Summary

  • Visual reporting tools are software programs supporting business intelligence and analytics with graphical representations of enterprise data.
  • Key features include wide source connectivity, templates, integrations, interactivity and data security.
  • Prepare questions before vendor discussions to clarify what the product can accomplish for your business.
What This Guide Covers:

What Are Visual Reporting Tools?

Visual reporting tools are software applications that enable the creation of charts, graphs, maps and other visualizations for displaying information. These tools help businesses and organizations track and analyze data, identify trends and make informed decisions.

With software, what it can do is as important as what’s under the hood. A difficult–to-navigate interface can deter new users, while a simplistic one can have the same effect.

Data visualization helps communicate complex data in an easily understandable format. One popular example of a visual insight tool is Google Analytics, which presents website traffic data graphically. It helps you understand visitor behavior and identify areas of improvement.

Most reporting software solutions offer ad hoc reporting, scheduling, independent data exploration and predictive analytics. Some software providers offer pixel-perfect reporting, multi-language support and a flexible reporting engine.

Data management, connectivity and platform integration are features to look for when considering visual insight software. As for advanced analytics capabilities, not every reporting system will have them, but robust security is something you can’t do without.

Use Cases

Visual reporting tools are useful in any industry or application where data analysis is important. Custom reports and dashboards with interactivity options are just what you need to gauge performance and identify which areas need work.

  • Business Intelligence: Visual insight tools support business intelligence (BI) and data analytics applications. They help analyze and present data related to key performance indicators (KPIs) like revenue, sales, customer satisfaction and more.
  • Healthcare: When life-critical decisions are at stake, graphical reports convey information faster. Physicians and healthcare workers can determine the most viable treatment protocols by visually combining and analyzing patient data with historical information. It helps manage unforeseen issues in outpatient departments and during surgeries.
  • Financial Reporting: Visual balance sheets, income statements and cash flow statements help monitor financial performance. This information is the driving force behind investment, budgeting and resource management decisions.
Diagram Software Categories
  • Marketing Analytics: Line and bar charts, scatter and histogram plots help analyze customer data and track marketing campaign effectiveness. Marketing automation will only work if you have the correct business intelligence and customer metrics.
  • Operations Management: Managers use visual reports to monitor production, supply chain management and logistics. It helps identify bottlenecks and inefficiencies in the production process, gain visibility into inventory and monitor delivery times.

Primary Benefits

As a vendor, offering extensible, feature-rich software is good for business. As a buyer, you get the benefits of instant visual insights.

Visual Reporting Tools Benefits

Gain a Competitive Advantage

Increased demand in industry verticals opened up a whole new market for vendors willing to go the extra mile — it’s the demand-and-supply principle at work. As a result, there’s a surge in visual software offerings from large and mid-sized software vendors.

Differentiate your offerings as a vendor — provide customization options and integrations with visual reporting software. Offering an extensible architecture can reap rich dividends if you’re willing to invest in the technology.

Unique features like personalization can set you apart from competitors that offer less flexibility. Branding options like logos, font sizes and color schemes are in demand for companies seeking to establish their market equity.

Improve Decision-making

Fast insights are a life-saver when your business generates information at lightning speed, whether you’re generating reports or interpreting them.

Visual reporting software provides accessible insights to users of all skill levels. You don’t have to be a data expert or need special training for interpreting reports. Eye-catching metrics encourage meaningful discussions.

Increased user engagement and interactivity promote collaboration, improving turnaround for insight sharing and decision support. A common understanding of business performance and status helps achieve consensus on how to work together.

Automation in visual reporting tools gives you more time for analysis by delegating routine tasks to configurable workflows. Pre-formatted templates take the drudgery out of report building.

Track Operations

Automation streamlines KPI monitoring so you don’t have to be on alert 24/7. Period-over-period reports help track sales revenue, website traffic and other critical metrics to monitor business progress. When KPIs exceed preset values, automated alerts prompt you to take timely action.

Besides uncovering lucrative opportunities, drilling down into data supports root cause analysis. Once you know what’s wrong, you can develop targeted strategies to address those issues.

Key Features & Functionality

Not all visual reporting software systems are the same, though their primary features might be common. Here’s a list of attributes to consider before choosing a visual insight system. As for advanced features, consider adding them to your requirements checklist only after assessing your current and future business needs.

Source Connectivity

Check if the solution connects to different database types, cloud sources and flat files. Ask the vendor if the system can draw data from SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and Microsoft Azure.

Web services — RESTful APIs, SOAP APIs and oData — enable publishing and viewing reports online. Big data platforms like Hadoop and Spark allow for analyzing large volumes of data.
Dashboard and Report Types

Assess which dashboards and reports you need. Sales, cost-profit analysis and consolidation reports are examples.

Dashboard widgets and templates are excellent time-savers. Which daily, weekly and monthly reports will you need? And for which departments?

Reports should be embeddable into dashboards, websites and applications, and downloadable if necessary. You should be able to share them via links and email and provide access to users who aren’t logged in.
Automation

Besides automated alerts and report distribution, your developers should be able to configure automated workflows for your business processes.

These workflows cover the span of the data lifecycle — from aggregation to reporting to archiving.

Automatic data aggregation saves time and gives you more accurate data than doing it manually. Many reporting systems provide point-and-click visualization options — simply specify the datasets to include.
Integrations

Common integrations include HR, workforce management systems and business intelligence (BI) platforms. Payroll, time and attendance and staffing systems are others.

If you are a consumer goods vendor, the reporting platform must integrate with eCommerce, social media, inventory management, supply chain and transportation platforms. Others include sales, marketing, POS and retail systems.

Check with the vendor if your preferred integrations are available.
Advanced analytics

Beyond conventional reporting lies analytics with advanced capabilities covering predictive modeling, data mining and natural language processing (NLP).

Data mining is a common feature of all data-related software and enables extracting insights from business information, irrespective of the volume.

Forecasting helps you prepare and plan — check if the reporting system has machine-learning capabilities to assist in predictive modeling.

Text and voice searches and commands aren’t available ubiquitously and don’t come cheap. Assess your requirements before adding NLP to your list.
Interactivity and Independent Exploration

You need wide source connectivity, especially when your users generate insights without technical help. Sketchy internet connections and limited sources can be deal-breakers.

Look beyond standard visualization options — which other graphics does the tool offer besides charts, graphs and maps?

User autonomy should extend beyond creating tables and charts to advanced analytics, machine learning and predictive analytics.

Ask if team collaboration with governance is available. What kind of support and training does the vendor offer? Poor support can limit your users' ability to effectively use the tool and cause costly downtime.
Security and Compliance

Shared insight demands data security, and role-based access control is an excellent way to make relevant data accessible to users. Besides governance, data security protocols are business-critical.

Ask the vendor which data encryption algorithm the vendor provides — AES, SSL or TLS?

Authentication and authorization protocols, audit trails and activity logs promote accountability and responsible data access.

How often does the vendor issue updates and fixes for security vulnerabilities?

Software Comparison Strategy

Procuring software for your organization is no easy task. Different visual insight software may have varying features, complicating the comparison process and making it time-consuming.

Our comparison scorecards lay it out for you using a feature-ranking methodology; get them here.

Fast adoption depends on whether the software's interface is intuitive for users of all technical skills. Consider which source formats it supports. Are they your preferred sources as well? Can you add custom sources?

Some software may have limited customization options, which can be an issue if your reporting requirements are unique. Consider how well the platform is likely to integrate with your existing systems — it can be a deal-breaker.

Consider the technical support, training and documentation available. Does the system meet your data encryption and access control requirements?

Conducting thorough research on potential vendors is crucial before partnering with them. Explore their online reviews and seek recommendations from industry peers. Signing up for a free trial is an excellent way to test-run the software.

Refer to our piece on Lean Selection Methodology for tips on approaching your software search.

Cost & Pricing Considerations

The cost of visual insight software can range from a few hundred to several thousand dollars per year, depending on the vendor and pricing model. Find the best value for your organization by comparing pricing for the same features across software solutions. Keep your organization's needs and budget front and center.

Some vendors offer a one-time purchase option where you pay a flat fee to purchase the software license outright. It’s a good option for organizations with the budget to make a large upfront investment.

A subscription model involves a recurring monthly or annual fee for accessing the software, which may include updates and support.

Usage-based pricing is a pay-as-you-go model where the vendor charges you for the resources used. It can be a good option for organizations with variable data usage or the need to scale up or down quickly.

Opting for a freemium solution involves using a limited version of the software for free and paying for more advanced functionality. It can be a good option for organizations just starting out or with limited budgets.

The Most Popular Visual Reporting Tools

How do you decide which product is the best choice? We’ve curated some of the top visual reporting tools on the market. Check out our picks below.

JasperReports

It’s an open-source reporting engine that allows you to design reports in JasperSoft Studio. The JasperReports Library is available on Eclipse IDE (integrated development environment). The platform generates real-time, interactive reports by integrating with JDBC sources, XML and CSV files, and mapping tools like Hibernate.

JasperReports

JasperSoft Studio provides a report development interface for JasperReports users. Source

You get customizable report templates exportable in industry-standard formats. Charts, tables, images and subreports engage users, prompting meaningful discussions. You can use JasperReports freely on commercial programs without buying expensive licenses.

Crystal Reports

SAP Crystal Reports is a market leader in the small and mid-sized business segment for pixel-perfect reports that are highly customizable and interactive. Its seamless integration with other data analytics tools, such as SAP BusinessObjects, makes it a popular choice for Windows users.

The solution isn’t available on Mac and Linux systems.

Crystal Reports

Pixel-perfect reports scale with large volumes and multiple file formats. Source

Crystal Reports allows secure data access to one or multiple users within an organization for building and sharing an unlimited number of scheduled reports with personalization. The vendor offers a 30-day free trial with the option to upgrade to the paid model after, with one license per user.

MicroStrategy

The solution enables effective visual reporting through its report template and object placement features, such as attributes, metrics, filters and prompts. The platform gives a comprehensive view of your business by blending data from multiple sources.

MicroStrategy

A break-even analysis report in MicroStrategy. Source

MicroStrategy has many analytics functions and an extensible visualization library for real-time dashboarding and easy integration with other platforms. A free-form SQL canvas enables writing custom queries. Live report interactivity is available in the solution’s Workstation and Library.

 

Questions To Ask

While capturing requirements, it’s an excellent idea to make a list of questions to ask during vendor discussions.

  • What are the pain points we hope to address with the new solution?
  • Which features do we need for it?
  • Which other features are absolute must-haves?
  • How many employees will use the software?
  • Do we have the technical resources for deployment support and maintenance, or will we need to rely on the vendor?

Visual Reporting Tools Key Questions

Prepare your list of product-related queries in advance to have a meaningful discussion. It’ll help you learn about the software and vendor and give you a fair idea of what it would be like to work with them.

  • How many years of expertise do you have working with businesses in my industry?
  • What customer support and training do you offer?
  • Is the software customizable?
  • How do you ensure data security?
  • How does your software integrate with other platforms?

Next Steps

Visual reporting software provides clear and concise insights, hiding routine queries behind intuitive user actions. They take the tedium out of reading millions of rows and columns of data, pushing the results to you as eye-catching graphics. Fast and efficient insights keep you competitive in a market landscape where time is money.

Ready for the next step? Quickly evaluate top products with our free comparison report to select a visual reporting tool that best meets your needs.

Additional Resources

About The Contributors

The following expert team members are responsible for creating, reviewing, and fact checking the accuracy of this content.

Ritinder
By Ritinder Kaur
Technical Content Writer
Ritinder Kaur is a Senior Technical Content Writer at SelectHub and has eight years of experience writing about B2B software and quality assurance. She has a Masters degree in English language and literature and writes about Business Intelligence and Data Science. Her articles on software testing have been published on Stickyminds.
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Sagardeep
Technical Research By Sagardeep Roy
Senior Analyst
Sagardeep is a Senior Research Analyst at SelectHub, specializing in diverse technical categories. His expertise spans Business Intelligence, Analytics, Big Data, ETL, Cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and machine learning, with additional proficiency in EHR and Medical Billing. Holding a Master of Technology in Data Science from Amity University, Noida, and a Bachelor of Technology in Computer Science from West Bengal University of Technology, his experience across technology, healthcare, and market research extends back to 2016. As a certified Data Science and Business Analytics professional, he approaches complex projects with a results-oriented mindset, prioritizing individual excellence and collaborative success.
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Manan
Technical Review By Manan Roy
Principal Analyst
Manan is a native of Tezpur, Assam (India), who currently lives in Kolkata, West Bengal (India). At SelectHub, he works on categories like CRM, HR, PPM, BI, and EHR. He has a Bachelor of Technology in CSE from The Gandhi Institute of Engineering and Technology, a Master of Technology from The Institute of Engineering and Management IT, and an MBA in Finance from St. Xavier's College. He's published two research papers, one in a conference and the other in a journal, during his Master of Technology.
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Hunter
Edited By Hunter Lowe
Content Editor
Hunter Lowe is a Content Editor, Writer and Market Analyst at SelectHub. His team covers categories that range from ERP and business intelligence to transportation and supply chain management. Hunter is an avid reader and Dungeons and Dragons addict who studied English and Creative Writing through college. In his free time, you'll likely find him devising new dungeons for his players to explore, checking out the latest video games, writing his next horror story or running around with his daughter.
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