We are a consultant company, so we use BI for project follow-up, sales and pipeline. We are partners with Microsoft and I'm the company's client director.
Client Director, Head of Sales & Marketing, Partner at a tech services company with 11-50 employees
Very smooth, has matured a lot; great scalability
Pros and Cons
- "Implementation is very quick and the solution is very user-friendly."
- "I like that implementation is very quick and that the solution is very user-friendly and easy to work with."
- "Automation could be improved and performance enhanced."
- "Automation could be improved and performance enhanced."
What is our primary use case?
What is most valuable?
I like that implementation is very quick and that the solution is very user-friendly and easy to work with. The solution has provided us with speedy insight and faster effects on the table. It's a smooth product.
What needs improvement?
I think that automation could be improved and performance enhanced. Documentation for developers could also be improved.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable.
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What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Scalability is very good. It can be pricey to move to the P1 licenses for $5,000 a month for smaller companies, but there are workarounds using A1 to A6 licenses which are cheaper and more flexible in the pricing. We have 50 users in the company.
How was the initial setup?
When we deployed five years ago, the setup was very complex. Since then, it's become much easier.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Compared to competitors like Tableau, Microsoft BI is not so expensive.
What other advice do I have?
I recommend this solution. Microsoft BI has matured a lot in the last year.
I rate this solution nine out of 10.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. Partner
Strategy & Advisory - Solutions Architect at a financial services firm with 1,001-5,000 employees
Quality reporting and data migration with strong visibility, functional dashboards and more
Pros and Cons
- "I like having the ability to connect Excel files as data inputs."
- "BI provides us with strong computing power and calculations with quality visibility which helps with the whole pipeline."
- "I would like for the next release to have better desktop performance, especially for big databases. Additionally, I would like to have more integrations with programs like Salesforce in order to get more live data coming in."
- "I would like for the next release to have better desktop performance, especially for big databases. Additionally, I would like to have more integrations with programs like Salesforce in order to get more live data coming in."
What is our primary use case?
We use this solution for reporting around data migration.
How has it helped my organization?
BI provides us with strong computing power and calculations with quality visibility which helps with the whole pipeline.
What is most valuable?
I like having the ability to connect Excel files as data inputs.
BI also allows us to make functional dashboards, perform queries, and display data in various ways. And, there are always new features being released.
What needs improvement?
I would like for the next release to have better desktop performance, especially for big databases. Additionally, I would like to have more integrations with programs like Salesforce in order to get more live data coming in.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using BI on and off for the past two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Stability is very good.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
This solution is scalable.
How are customer service and support?
I have not needed to contact support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Originally, we were only using Excel, trying out different dashboards for the data. This was not powerful enough for us. It was not easy to use or streamline so we made the switch.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup was straightforward and deployment took about a week plus another few weeks to do work within the BI.
What about the implementation team?
Our deployment was performed by our in-house team of one.
What other advice do I have?
There is a free version of the Power BI which may be worth looking into for small teams prior to purchasing a license. I would rate this solution a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
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Microsoft Power BI
April 2026
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Educator at a university with 11-50 employees
Great teaching tool for data transfers
Pros and Cons
- "Being able to transfer data with the Power Query feature is great for teaching with about one to two hundred rows of data. I am also able to see the relationship between multiple tables and create various sheets and dashboards."
- "Being able to transfer data with the Power Query feature is great for teaching with about one to two hundred rows of data, and I am also able to see the relationship between multiple tables and create various sheets and dashboards."
- "The Power Query feature needs to be improved to handle large amounts of data. This feature is also slow for large data transfers making it better to use some kind of script."
- "The Power Query feature needs to be improved to handle large amounts of data. This feature is also slow for large data transfers making it better to use some kind of script."
What is our primary use case?
I have been a professor at a program mastery at UISEK University for the past two years where I teach students how to use these tools.
What is most valuable?
Being able to transfer data with the Power Query feature is great for teaching with about one to two hundred rows of data. I am also able to see the relationship between multiple tables and create various sheets and dashboards.
What needs improvement?
The Power Query feature needs to be improved to handle large amounts of data. This feature is also slow for large data transfers making it better to use some kind of script.
Additionally, in the next release, I would like to be able to export thing, such as charts, as a PDF.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using this solution for two years.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Executive HR- Talent Acquisition at a computer software company with 1,001-5,000 employees
Management reporting and data analytics tool with good stability and scalability, but its serviceability needs improvement
Pros and Cons
- "Management reporting solution that's very stable and scalable."
- "Management reporting solution that's very stable and scalable."
- "One area for improvement in Microsoft Power BI is serviceability. Compared to one of its competitors: Tableau, there are a lot of things which you cannot do in this tool, that can be done in Tableau."
- "One area for improvement in Microsoft Power BI is serviceability. Compared to one of its competitors, Tableau, there are a lot of things which you cannot do in this tool that can be done in Tableau."
What is our primary use case?
We are using this tool for management reporting.
What needs improvement?
One area for improvement in Microsoft Power BI is serviceability. If I compare this tool with Tableau, there are a lot of things which I cannot do in Microsoft Power BI that I can do in Tableau.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've been using Microsoft Power BI for five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
Microsoft Power BI is a very stable tool.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft Power BI is a scalable tool.
How was the initial setup?
As we are using the cloud service of this tool, the initial setup for it is fine.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
I pay for the Microsoft Power BI license on a yearly basis.
Which other solutions did I evaluate?
I was able to evaluate Tableau.
What other advice do I have?
I've been using these BI (business intelligence) tools: Microsoft Power BI and Tableau.
I'm somewhat satisfied with the performance of Microsoft Power BI.
We've all been using Microsoft Power BI in the company, from the time it was introduced.
For the deployment and maintenance of this tool, we have a team of 20 who are currently in charge of full-time development. These are the users who are the main developers. Scalability will be for the end users, e.g. the business users, and could be increased to more than 2,000.
I've contacted the Microsoft Power BI technical support team a lot of times.
I'm recommending this tool to others who want to start using it.
On a scale of one to ten, I'm rating Microsoft Power BI a seven.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Assistant Manager Databases at a retailer with 10,001+ employees
User-friendly, good customization, and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "Microsoft BI's most valuable features are the user interface, which is easy to use and light."
- "Microsoft BI's most valuable features are the user interface, which is easy to use and light."
- "The integration in Microsoft BI could improve for other solutions, such as Oracle DB and PostgresSQL. Additionally, the reporting from the databases to Microsoft BI should be in real-time and the overall performance could be better."
- "The integration in Microsoft BI could improve for other solutions, such as Oracle DB and PostgresSQL. Additionally, the reporting from the databases to Microsoft BI should be in real-time and the overall performance could be better."
What is our primary use case?
We are using Microsoft BI for data analysis.
What is most valuable?
Microsoft BI's most valuable features are the user interface, which is easy to use and light.
What needs improvement?
The integration in Microsoft BI could improve for other solutions, such as Oracle DB and PostgresSQL. Additionally, the reporting from the databases to Microsoft BI should be in real-time and the overall performance could be better.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft BI for approximately five years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability is okay, but the real-time integration is lacking.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
The scalability of Microsoft BI is fine.
We have approximately 45 people using the solution. We do not use the solution daily, but we use it frequently.
How are customer service and support?
We have not contacted technical support.
Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?
Before we were using Microsoft BI we used Tableau and an open-sourced solution called PHP.
We ended up switching to Microsoft BI because it has proper tools, easy to use, and is user-friendly.
How was the initial setup?
The initial setup of Microsoft BI was not complex. The deployment took a long while with our twin databases.
What about the implementation team?
We did the implementation in-house.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The price of Microsoft BI is expensive. We found the price of Tableau to be less expensive.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend this solution to others because it is easy to use and can be customized.
I rate Microsoft BI an eight out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Public Cloud
If public cloud, private cloud, or hybrid cloud, which cloud provider do you use?
Microsoft Azure
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Business Intelligence Developer at lagozon technologies private limited
Helpful community support, easy for new users, and scalable
Pros and Cons
- "When we are introducing Microsoft BI to our clients, if they're familiar with Excel, the transition phase will be much easier for them. They can easily switch from Microsoft Excel to Microsoft BI. The core foundation or the base technology is the same in both tools. There are a few limitations in Microsoft Excel, and this is where Microsoft BI comes in."
- "We are able to provide the clients with data-driven decisions by the use of the reports that we are creating using Microsoft BI."
- "Microsoft BI can improve some of the visual level filters or visual functionality, that are available in other BI tools, such as Tableau or Qlik Sense."
- "Microsoft BI can improve some of the visual level filters or visual functionality, that are available in other BI tools, such as Tableau or Qlik Sense."
What is our primary use case?
We are providing BI services to clients in India who are using Microsoft BI. We are able to provide the clients with data-driven decisions by the use of the reports that we are creating using Microsoft BI. The reports are usually graphical and intuitive.
What is most valuable?
When we are introducing Microsoft BI to our clients, if they're familiar with Excel, the transition phase will be much easier for them. They can easily switch from Microsoft Excel to Microsoft BI. The core foundation or the base technology is the same in both tools. There are a few limitations in Microsoft Excel, and this is where Microsoft BI comes in.
What needs improvement?
Microsoft BI can improve some of the visual level filters or visual functionality, that are available in other BI tools, such as Tableau or Qlik Sense.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have used Microsoft BI within the past 12 months.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability of Microsoft BI is stable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft BI is a scalable solution. Here in India, it is a popular tool for people to implement.
The client that we are working with has approximately 500 to 600 users.
How are customer service and support?
The support from Microsoft is helpful. If you're facing any sort of issue or error, you can raise it to the Microsoft BI community.
How was the initial setup?
We work on a very concise team of three to four members for the deployment. We will be requiring only a data engineer, Microsft BI developer, business analyst, and project manager.
If the user requirement is high, we can increase the number of members in the team. However, if you have a team of four, then you can deploy the project. A minimum of four people is required.
What about the implementation team?
For its maintenance of Microsoft BI, you require only two people. If there are some backend data issues, then you will require a data engineer. However, if the issue is related to the frontend or BI report, then you only need one developer for that.
What other advice do I have?
My advice is for the companies who want to make data-driven decisions or to share the report with the security feature in it, they should opt for Microsoft BI services.
I rate Microsoft BI a nine out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Technical coordinator at a university with 201-500 employees
Reliable, problem-free, and easy to set up
Pros and Cons
- "We have found the product very stable and reliable."
- "We have found the product very stable and reliable."
- "The reporting needs to be improved."
- "We'd like to have the ability to relate different reports by common factors from the user side, including relating different reports directly instead of fetching the data to enter into an external tool like Excel or something like that. The reporting needs to be improved."
What is our primary use case?
We are using it, for instance, to figure out some indicators in regards to our students including the number of students, which are graduating, et cetera.
What is most valuable?
The initial setup was pretty simple.
The solution runs without issues. It's been problem-free.
We have found the product very stable and reliable.
The scalability seems to be fine for us.
What needs improvement?
We'd like to have the ability to relate different reports by common factors from the user side, including relating different reports directly instead of fetching the data to enter into an external tool like Excel or something like that. The reporting needs to be improved.
For how long have I used the solution?
I've used the solution for about three to six months or so.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The stability has been good. There aren't bugs or glitches really. It doesn't crash or freeze. It's pretty reliable.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
For our use case, the solution offers reasonable scalability. We haven't run into issues.
We have 40 to 50 people using the product right now. They are across different roles.
I'm not sure if we have a plan to increase usage at this time. We likely will not.
How are customer service and support?
I haven't had a need to reach out to technical support as it's largely been problem-free. I can't speak to how they would be for support. I do not know if they are helpful or responsive.
How was the initial setup?
We found the initial implementation process to be straightforward and simple. It's not overly complex or difficult.
I cannot recall the exact amount of time it actually took to deploy the product.
What other advice do I have?
I'm an end-user. However, I'm not sure which exact version of the solution we're using.
I would rate the solution at an eight out of ten. We've largely been very satisfied with its capabilities.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
On-premises
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
Data Analyst at a healthcare company with 10,001+ employees
Cost effective, helpful support, but large datasets performance needed
Pros and Cons
- "Microsoft BI's most valuable feature is flexibility."
- "Microsoft BI's most valuable feature is flexibility."
- "The performance of Microsoft BI could improve for large datasets and it would be beneficial to have more visualization features."
- "The performance of Microsoft BI could improve for large datasets and it would be beneficial to have more visualization features."
What is most valuable?
Microsoft BI's most valuable feature is flexibility.
What needs improvement?
The performance of Microsoft BI could improve for large datasets and it would be beneficial to have more visualization features.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have been using Microsoft BI for approximately two years.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
The solution is stable, but not as good as other tools I use.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
Microsoft BI is a scalable solution.
How are customer service and support?
The support of Microsoft BI is good.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
Microsoft BI is very cost-effective and this is why we use it.
What other advice do I have?
I rate Microsoft BI a seven out of ten.
Which deployment model are you using for this solution?
Private Cloud
Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer. partner
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Updated: April 2026
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