Exasol Data Warehouse vs SAP IQ comparison

Exasol and SAP are both solutions in the Relational Databases Tools category. Exasol is ranked #33, while SAP is ranked #24 with an average rating of 6.5. Exasol holds a 1.5% mindshare in SQL, compared to SAP’s 2.1% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Exasol users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 80% of SAP users who would recommend it.

Exasol Data Warehouse

Read 8 Exasol Data Warehouse reviews

1,391 Views
1,224 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

SAP IQ

Read 22 SAP IQ reviews

3,097 Views
1,579 Comparison Views

80% willing to recommend

Exasol Data Warehouse

SAP IQ

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

SAP IQ and Exasol Data Warehouse are competitors in the data warehousing market. Exasol appears to hold the advantage due to its superior features and performance capabilities, despite SAP IQ's strong pricing and support.

Features: SAP IQ offers advanced data compression, column storage, and high performance for BI/analytics. Exasol features in-memory technology, rapid query execution, and automatic optimization, emphasizing speed and analytics.

Room for Improvement: SAP IQ could enhance cloud integration, streamline installation processes, and improve analytics capabilities. Exasol may benefit from expanding its customer support options, offering more flexible pricing models, and enhancing its documentation for diverse business needs.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Exasol is praised for its cloud-first deployment model that simplifies scaling, while SAP IQ follows a more traditional setup. SAP IQ receives high marks for responsive customer support, contrasting with Exasol's focus on comprehensive technical documentation and self-service resources.

Pricing and ROI: SAP IQ is attractive for its lower setup costs, offering a budget-friendly solution. Exasol, with higher initial costs, offers advanced capabilities that result in quicker returns on investment. Exasol's premium pricing aligns with its performance benefits, while SAP IQ delivers cost efficiency and value.

To learn more, read our detailed Exasol Data Warehouse vs. SAP IQ Report (Updated: June 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Exasol Data Warehouse vs. SAP IQ

June 2026

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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

Exasol Data Warehouse

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

33rd

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SAP IQ

Ranking in Relational Databases Tools

24th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Data Warehouse (14th)

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2026, in the Relational Databases Tools category, the mindshare of Exasol Data Warehouse is 1.5%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP IQ is 2.1%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Relational Databases Tools Mindshare Distribution
Product	Mindshare (%)
SAP IQ	2.1%
Exasol Data Warehouse	1.5%
Other	96.4%

Relational Databases Tools

Featured Reviews

Shubham-Agarwal

Manager - Projects at Cognizant

Fast query processing and easy-to-store all the data

There are very few companies that are using Exasol, but the majority of companies are using SQL Server, Cloud or IBM Db2 Database, or any other databases. Therefore, the resources are limited, which is my only concern. So if I face any issues, limited resources are available to help me resolve the issue with Exasol. From that perspective, it can be a bit of a struggle for me to find a solution. In the next release, I would like to see better compatibility issues. Currently, Exasol has limited compatibility with other software like Python and R. For example, If I talk about SQL Server, we can connect it to big data or Python, which is also compatible with different servers.

Read full review

Reviewer302462

Tech Director at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees

Works well with existing platform integration but could improve error messaging and technical support

I do not use SAP IQ's machine learning capabilities. I cannot assess the benefit of SAP IQ's distributed query processing for complex queries, as I am a non-technical operator. I am not sure if we use SAP IQ's data compression features. I think the compression we are doing is on the data storage level and not on the database level. I believe we do not use it, but I'm not certain. We do not utilize SAP IQ's support for unstructured data, as we do not have unstructured data. I do not have any strong opinions on SAP IQ's security features such as data encryption. It's not been something that has been much in focus, neither in our choice of the platform, nor in our daily operations. I guess they're satisfactory as they have not been a problem. I am not aware of the pricing and licensing of SAP IQ, as it's part of a bigger agreement, and I'm not the owner of that agreement. My impression is that SAP IQ is a rather expensive tool in terms of value for money. On a scale of 1-10, I rate SAP IQ a 7.

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

"The solution is hands-off; you set it up insert your data and it self tunes queries."

"This solution is extremely fast and very stable; you set it up and put your data on it and as long as it's structured, it self-tunes queries and doesn't require a database administrator."

"We can quickly scale the solution as it works on an MPP system."

"Its speed is great."

"We mainly chose Exasol for its performance reasons."

"The most valuable feature of Exasol is its speed."

"The speed is very good compared to other databases, like SQL Server or Oracle."

"Performance is a top priority, and it excels in this aspect."

More Exasol Data Warehouse pros

"Save for a 100% guarantee, you will get the performance you are looking for with SAP IQ."

"The product is easy to learn."

"But I do not think that other products really have an advantage for warehousing over the SAP IQ solution."

"It’s the central component of our enterprise data warehouse."

"Valuable features for us include the compression, speed, fast response time, and easy object maintenance."

"Unbeatable speed and compression with a colummn-structured relational database."

"While queries with previous products could run for hours, with SAP IQ, they run in a matter of minutes or seconds."

"IQ has enabled our company to load data from our data vendors in under one hour and eliminated multiple copies and hours of processing time."

More SAP IQ pros

Cons

"Lacks a cloud-based platform."

"They don't talk very well to with other products when it comes to connectivity. Integration is lacking."

"They should improve the security features for MPP processing."

"The price is quite expensive relative to other similar solutions, it could be more accessible in that sense."

"The only area where we found it could improve was in custom role creation and security, and it was difficult to work with."

"There are limited resources available to help me resolve the issue with Exasol."

"It would be beneficial if the updates would occur more often."

"You have to install Exasol drivers, and it's not easy to find or implement a driver into different systems."

More Exasol Data Warehouse cons

"Multiplex is very problematic. There are consistency problems in the metadata, meaning it is possible to lose metadata consistency. You should make sure you have healthy backups."

"I think the universe should be part of the Sybase IQ tool set."

"The solution works best when combined with other SAP solutions. If the environment has other systems other options might be better."

"Customer Service: It has been good, but more can be done in this area."

"The primary negative aspect is the cost, which can be a challenge due to the economic conditions in Peru."

"The downside I see is that it doesn't allow most integrated backups; many of the marketplace players such as NetBackup or Veritas, those software integrated backups are not available."

"The organization who owns the product does not support it well and appears not to be doing significant development for the future."

"Concurrency and functional error messaging."

More SAP IQ cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution's cost is mid-ranged."

"Negotiate based on the features required."

"The only costs after standard licensing fees are for add-ons and upgrades."

"The cost of implementation is about $3,000."

"Negotiation is very important."

"Evaluate all options; check to see if you need expensive add-ons."

"It's not that costly. So, the pricing is cheap."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Outsourcing Company

Financial Services Firm

Construction Company

Government

Financial Services Firm

28%

Comms Service Provider

Outsourcing Company

Healthcare Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	1
Midsize Enterprise	1
Large Enterprise	6

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	6
Midsize Enterprise	2
Large Enterprise	16

Questions from the Community

Ask a question

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What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP IQ?

IQ implementation costs about three thousand dollars. It's less expensive compared to alternatives like Teradata Base in terms of transactional efficiency.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SAP IQ?

When it comes to SAP IQ, the areas that could be improved or enhanced include the error messaging and the locking capabilities, as that's where we often encounter problems. When there is an issue, ...

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What is your primary use case for SAP IQ?

Our usual use cases for SAP IQ is that we have a Software-as-a-Service architecture where this database is the foundation for our SAP BusinessObjects platform. This is where it's getting its data f...

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Comparisons

SQL Server vs Exasol Data Warehouse

Compared 13% of the time

Teradata vs Exasol Data Warehouse

Compared 10% of the time

Oracle Database In-Memory vs Exasol Data Warehouse

Compared 8% of the time

Oracle Database vs Exasol Data Warehouse

Compared 8% of the time

SAP HANA vs Exasol Data Warehouse

Compared 4% of the time

More Exasol Data Warehouse Competitors

Oracle Database vs SAP IQ

Compared 8% of the time

SQL Server vs SAP IQ

Compared 7% of the time

OpenText Analytics Database (Vertica) vs SAP IQ

Compared 6% of the time

SAP Adaptive Server Enterprise vs SAP IQ

Compared 6% of the time

Snowflake vs SAP IQ

Compared 4% of the time

More SAP IQ Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Exasol Data Warehouse

June 2026

Download Exasol Data Warehouse product report

Buyer's Guide

SAP IQ

May 2026

Download SAP IQ product report

Also Known As

No data available

Sybase IQ

Overview

Exasol Data Warehouse is renowned for its exceptional speed and automatic optimization, making it user-friendly. It enhances data processing on platforms such as Tableau, ensuring efficient dashboards for users across countries.

Exasol Data Warehouse offers an impressive performance by outperforming competitors like SQL Server and Oracle. Its automatic optimization and hands-off setup simplify deployment, while robust SQL support and self-tuning capabilities improve workflows. Users benefit from its high processing speed, supporting efficient data queries and broader workflows, alongside an intuitive interface and comprehensive documentation. Despite its performance strengths, it struggles with global recognition, connectivity, and integration. Challenges include custom role creation and security, with limited row-level security support. Users seek more frequent updates and better compatibility with languages such as Python and R. It requires specific drivers, is not cloud-native, and has a high cost. With limited resources available, security features for MPP processing need enhancement.

What are the key features of Exasol?

Impressive Speed: Outperforms counterparts in data processing, enhancing efficiency.
Automatic Optimization: Boosts performance and ease of use.
Robust SQL Support: Facilitates seamless data handling and queries.
Self-Tuning Capabilities: Reduces manual intervention for users.
Intuitive Interface: Enhances user engagement and accessibility.

What benefits should users look for in Exasol?

Enhanced Performance: Streamlines and accelerates BI functions.
Improved Dashboard Efficiency: Increases effectiveness on platforms like Tableau.
Ease of Use: Simplifies set-up with hands-off setup and self-tuning.
Broad Integration: Acts as backend for tools like MicroStrategy.
Central Data Repository: Supports critical data management across regions.

Exasol Data Warehouse is implemented to enhance performance in reporting systems and development processes, serving teams in Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. It acts as a backend for reporting tools such as MicroStrategy while accelerating BI functions. It supports the resolutions of data issues from tools like Tableau, provides ad-hoc analysis, and manages critical data points efficiently.

Exasol

SAP IQ, with its columnar architecture, provides high-performance data solutions. It excels at data warehousing and business intelligence, managing vast data efficiently, and supports fast query execution along with easy maintenance.

SAP IQ offers a powerful platform for scalable data warehousing, handling petabyte-scale workloads with ease. Its columnar architecture ensures high performance, leveraging compression to optimize storage and speed up queries. Designed for concurrent access, it enables rapid data loading, crucial for insights in business intelligence and analytics. While acknowledged for its data handling prowess, areas such as backup solutions, metadata consistency, and integration with Hadoop require enhancements. Users also anticipate improvements in stability, error messaging, and documentation to maximize SAP IQ's potential.

What are the key features of SAP IQ?

Columnar architecture: Enhances performance and compression, optimizing both storage and queries.
Data warehousing: Allows efficient management of petabyte-scale data for easy access and analysis.
Concurrency support: Handles multiple users seamlessly, ensuring uninterrupted data processing.
Rapid data loading: Facilitates quick integration of data from flat files into the system.
Patented indices: Offers fast response times, vital for timely business insights and analytics.

What benefits and ROI can be expected from SAP IQ?

High performance: Fast query execution results in quicker decision-making processes.
Scalability: Supports growth, handling larger datasets as business needs evolve.
Data efficiency: Compression reduces storage costs while maintaining data accessibility.
Business intelligence: Enables comprehensive data analysis, crucial for informed strategic planning.

SAP IQ is implemented across many industries for secondary storage in SAP systems and as a core component in data warehousing and business intelligence solutions. It supports large-scale reporting, data migration, and serves as a backbone for SAP BusinessObjects platforms, proving essential in environments like military collaborations and enterprise transactions.

SAP

Sample Customers

1&1 Internet SE 11880 Internet Services AG AB Svenska Spel Accarda AG Aera Technology Inc. AGRAVIS Raiffeisen AG Apotheken-Rechen-Zentrum GmbH AQR Capital Management, LLC arvato distribution GmbH ARZ Allgemeines Rechenzentrum GmbH Badoo Limited Baur Versand (GmbH & Co. KG) BIScience Ltd Blocket Blue Yonder GmbH Codilink UK Ltd T/A Coniq crealytics GmbH dailyme TV GmbH Dailymotion S.A. Dataforce Verlagsgesellschaft für Business Information mbH Deutsche Postbank AG Digitales Rezept Zentrum GmbH DIKW Groep direct services Gütersloh GmbH DR Technologies Ltd. dress-for-less GmbH econda GmbH emetriq GmbH empiriecom GmbH & Co. KG Flaconi GmbH Fresenius Netcare GmbH Fyber GmbH GfK SE Grant Street Group, Inc. Gruner + Jahr GmbH Gymshark UK Hahn Air Lines GmbH Hermes Einrichtungs Service GmbH & Co. KG INNOVATIVE SCHEDULING, LLC internetstores GmbH INTERSPORT Deutschland eG IQVIA Commercial GmbH & Co. OHG IQVIA Commercial Sp. z o.o. IQVIA Incorporated iVantage Health Analytics K - Mail Order GmbH & Co. KG LIQ CORP SA Manor AG Basel Match2Lists Limited MEDION AG Midasplayer AB Monsoon Accessorize Limited m-pathy GmbH msales Ltd. MTG Modern Services AB MW Aviation GmbH & Co. KG Myntra Designs Pvt Ltd Netzeffekt GmbH New Company Services Ltd. NOVENTI HealthCare GmbH Olympus Europa SE & Co. KG Operation Fistula OpsDataStore OTTO (GmbH & Co KG) Panda Retail Co. PAPSTAR GmbH Piedmont Healthcare, Inc. Questback GmbH RatePAY GmbH Revolut Ltd. Saarland-Sporttoto GmbH Sagarmatha Ltd. SIA Damara Technologies Supermärkte Nord Vertriebs GmbH & Co. KG The National Research Center for College & University Admissions, Inc. United Utilities Water Ltd. Verlag C.H. Beck oHG Vocal Planet Ltd. Vodafone Group Services GmbH Webtrekk GmbH wer liefert was? GmbH Windeln.de SE Wooga GmbH XING SE Zalando SE

ASR Group, Citrix, State of Indiana, PocketCard Co. Ltd.

Buyer's Guide

Exasol Data Warehouse vs. SAP IQ

June 2026

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