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IT Specialist at a wholesaler/distributor with 1-10 employees
Real User
There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet
Pros and Cons
  • "There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet, so no special training is needed to use the source code."
  • "The reporting part of Microsoft BI is rather limited compared to other reporting tools."

How has it helped my organization?

  • It is free. 
  • SSAS and SSRS work great together. 
  • There is a lot of help and documentation on the Internet, so no special training is needed to use the source code.

What is most valuable?

It has the most secured database that I have ever used, which is the most important part of Microsoft BI.

What needs improvement?

The reporting part of Microsoft BI is rather limited compared to other reporting tools.

For how long have I used the solution?

Less than one year.
Buyer's Guide
Microsoft Power BI
June 2025
Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Power BI. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
861,524 professionals have used our research since 2012.

What do I think about the stability of the solution?

It works perfectly so far.

What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

The information which we are working on is not that deep.

How are customer service and support?

We use information from the Internet everyday.

Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

We previously used iFrame.

We did long studies about which tool to use in our company. We decided to use Microsoft BI because it was a complete product, and it is easier and cheaper than others.

How was the initial setup?

In the beginning, it was a rather complex because all the documents are in English. If it is in French, it was really complex, so then we would have to read the English documents. That was the most difficult thing here. It made the product difficult to use, because of the language, so Microsoft did provide help.

Which other solutions did I evaluate?

In the beginning, we were about to choose Pentaho because it is an open source suite. The problem is that beyond the enterprise version of Pentaho, it is more expensive than Microsoft. We would always need to rely on an expert of Pentaho, instead of finding solutions on the Internet, and that was the reason why we did not choose it.

What other advice do I have?

Most important criteria when selecting a vendor:

  • Price
  • Ability to go on the Internet and locate support information.
  • Secure product
  • Easy interface to use.
Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
PeerSpot user
Bidirect377 - PeerSpot reviewer
Manager at a logistics company with 501-1,000 employees
Real User
Provides accurate data and easy navigation
Pros and Cons
  • "They should add mobile access."

    What is our primary use case?

    Using it, I receive financial information from the financial department.

    How has it helped my organization?

    It gives us accurate data and an easy way to navigate.

    What is most valuable?

    I get the information I need easily, and it's easy to read.

    What needs improvement?

    They should add mobile access.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    More than five years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    Stability is okay.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    For me it's okay, I don't have any issues with scalability.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    The decision to use Microsoft BI was made by the financial department.

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    I don't have any advice as I am not in a position to recommend it. I am just an end-user, I do not develop, I do not maintain it.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Buyer's Guide
    Microsoft Power BI
    June 2025
    Learn what your peers think about Microsoft Power BI. Get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions. Updated: June 2025.
    861,524 professionals have used our research since 2012.
    Group IT Manager with 10,001+ employees
    Real User
    Provides the user the ability to quickly look at data and focus on relevant information
    Pros and Cons
    • "Its data visualization provides the user the ability to quickly look at data and focus on relevant information, allowing them to make an immediate decision."
    • "It should be easier to use when there are multiple system sources."

    What is our primary use case?

    It is a good solution. We use it for analyzing and visualizing data relating to warehouses and connections from other ERP systems, etc.

    How has it helped my organization?

    It helps the decision-maker to make decisions related to the data. Power BI is easy to use and user friendly. Because of that, we use it as a visualization tool for our data.

    What is most valuable?

    Its data visualization provides the user the ability to quickly look at data and focus on relevant information, allowing them to make an immediate decision.

    It is a good product with great abilities and easy features to use.

    What needs improvement?

    It should be easier to use when there are multiple system sources, and simplify the connections to it.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    Less than one year.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    It is stable.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    It is scalable.

    How is customer service and technical support?

    I watch videos and read training materials. I practice and apply them to circumstances of technical support.

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup is straightforward. 

    What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?

    It is part of our Office 365 license.

    What other advice do I have?

    I would recommend this solution to another user.

    We are not dealing the vendor. We are using it directly from Microsoft as part of Office 365. 

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    Interim Manager Supply Chain / IT at a consultancy with 501-1,000 employees
    Real User
    It is connected to every database: Whatever and wherever it is
    Pros and Cons
    • "It is easy to work with and very chic."
    • "Its connection to every database: Whatever and wherever it is."
    • "The look is simple, and could be a little more professional."

    What is our primary use case?

    Its primary use case is for CIPs from the purchasing department. It performs perfectly. It is very quick and easy to use.

    How has it helped my organization?

    We approve it for use with SAP BI, so it has been more effective for our users and much cheaper. So, the costs are small and the benefits are high.

    What is most valuable?

    Its connection to every database: Whatever and wherever it is. 

    It is easy to work with and very chic.

    What needs improvement?

    The look is simple, and could be a little more professional.

    For how long have I used the solution?

    One to three years.

    What do I think about the stability of the solution?

    The stability is very good. We have no problems.

    We receive an update every month with new functions, so we are not missing anything.

    What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

    The scalability is good. It works for a large community just fine.

    How are customer service and technical support?

    We have not needed to use technical support. We are able to do everything by ourselves. That is one of the main reasons that we like the product.

    Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

    We have SAP BI working. It has cost us more than a million Euro, and it does not work. This was one of the reasons to change.

    Power BI is very easy to use and much sleeker. 

    How was the initial setup?

    The initial setup was straightforward. 30 minutes, and it runs perfectly.

    What other advice do I have?

    I would recommend Power BI as the best working solution.

    Most important criteria when selecting a vendor: Usability of the solution.

    Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
    PeerSpot user
    it_user876765 - PeerSpot reviewer
    Founder with 1-10 employees
    Real User
    Users can access data much more easily than before, and it works with Excel
    Pros and Cons
    • "Other people can access data much more easily than before. Its usability is the main advantage, people in the company are using it."
    • "With Power BI, you're able to store your data within spreadsheets and SharePoints, and then have Power BI pull the data out and report on it. So we actually saved a ton of money not needing to load the data into databases, which is a big prerequisite for many other reporting tools."

      What is our primary use case?

      It's primarily for reporting, and the performance has been very good.

      How has it helped my organization?

      Other people can access data much more easily than before. Its usability is the main advantage, people in the company are using it.

      What is most valuable?

      It works mostly with Excel, and it's a very good price.

      What needs improvement?

      The Report Server is pretty expensive on-premise. But as long companies are happy to use the cloud version, that's very cost effective.

      For how long have I used the solution?

      One to three years.

      What do I think about the stability of the solution?

      The stability is very good now; it was definitely really poor a year ago.

      What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

      Because it's cloud-based, it's very scalable.

      How are customer service and technical support?

      I haven't used tech support specifically for Power BI but, in general, for Office and Office 365, it has been very responsive.

      Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

      Before, we just had a whole bunch of spreadsheets lying around all over the place. So we really needed to get things tightened up but we weren't ready to invest in a database. But with Power BI, you're able to store your data within spreadsheets and SharePoints, and then have Power BI pull the data out and report on it. So we actually saved a ton of money not needing to load the data into databases, which is a big prerequisite for many other reporting tools.

      My most important criteria when selecting a vendor are usability and support.

      How was the initial setup?

      The initial setup was very straightforward.

      Which other solutions did I evaluate?

      The shortlist was, obviously, Tableau because they're in everyone's face and a couple of other smaller tools.

      What other advice do I have?

      I rate it a nine out of 10 because it's very cost-effective, so it's very accessible in that respect, and a lot of folks do use spreadsheets so it helps ease the transition from using just spreadsheets to a more mature reporting environment.

      My advice is, speak to your users because, at the end of the day, if they don't use it, you've failed, which was the case with other reporting tools.

      Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
      PeerSpot user
      Brian  Rowland - PeerSpot reviewer
      Brian RowlandSenior IT Project Manager at a local government with 501-1,000 employees
      User

      The above review is consistent with the findings in my organisation.
      Cloud hosting is the way to go to avoid expensive on premises support costs.

      it_user872265 - PeerSpot reviewer
      Professor of Private International Law with 1,001-5,000 employees
      Real User
      Flawless stability, integrates well with Access, Excel, but needs ETL functionality
      Pros and Cons
      • "It is very well integrated with other Microsoft products, including PowerApps and Excel, as well as Access, so it fits well into our workflow."

        What is our primary use case?

        Visualization and minor analytics. It has performed quite well thus far.

        How has it helped my organization?

        We've not used it enough to be able to speak to organizational improvements.

        What is most valuable?

        • Low cost - it's a free application
        • Ease of use - excellent user interface

        What needs improvement?

        Perhaps the inclusion of ETL functionality would help.

        For how long have I used the solution?

        One to three years.

        What do I think about the stability of the solution?

        Flawless. Absolutely flawless. The stability is excellent.

        What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

        Integrates really well.

        Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

        We did not have a previous solution. And we did not choose this solution. We actually inherited it. 

        How was the initial setup?

        There was no real set up, just install the application. No complications whatsoever.

        Which other solutions did I evaluate?

        On our short list, for future consideration: Oracle.

        What other advice do I have?

        Our most important criteria when selecting a vendor are cost, cost, and cost.

        I rate Microsoft BI at seven out of 10 and that's because I have not utilized it as much as I would have liked to. However, it is very well integrated with other Microsoft products, including PowerApps and Excel, as well as Access, so it fits well into our workflow.

        Consider very carefully what your requirements are and plan your projects well. This is a wonderful tool but it will not get the work done for you.

        Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
        PeerSpot user
        it_user866316 - PeerSpot reviewer
        Director, Education Management Information Systems with 51-200 employees
        Real User
        Ease of integration with various data sources and the dashboards are key for us
        Pros and Cons
        • "Key features are its dashboard functionality and ease of integration with various data sources."
        • "It is definitely a wonderful analytics tool. However, database ETL, data integration functionality would be absolutely perfect in many cases. Currently, it doesn't get the job done and we need to extract, transform, and load the data from faulty data sets into something more suitable for the deployment of the analytics tool."

        What is our primary use case?

        We use it primarily to create visualizations, along with very light analytics of education performance data.

        How has it helped my organization?

        We cannot truly speak to improvements yet, as we are just exploring it. Potentially, it can provide instant access to a very current state of affairs for school performance.

        What is most valuable?

        • Dashboard functionality
        • Ease of integration with various data sources

        What needs improvement?

        It is definitely a wonderful analytics tool. However, database ETL, data integration functionality would be absolutely perfect in many cases. Currently, it doesn't get the job done and we need to extract, transform, and load the data from faulty data sets into something more suitable for the deployment of the analytics tool.

        What do I think about the stability of the solution?

        No issues with the stability.

        What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

        I can't speak about the scalability, but I can speak more towards the interoperability. There is a very rich capacity for sharing its functionality.

        How was the initial setup?

        It is a very simple application so there was no real setup. Just download it.

        What other advice do I have?

        My most important criteria when selecting a vendor are

        • cost
        • sustainability.

        I would rate it at eight out of 10 because of its ease of use, simple setup, and excellent integration. I would rate it a 10 if they provided free training.

        It's a wonderful application, it meets our needs.

        Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
        PeerSpot user
        PeerSpot user
        CEO at a tech services company
        Real User
        Tool is easy to use, DAX coding language is good for creating formulae
        Pros and Cons
        • "The DAX coding language is good for creating formulae."

          What is our primary use case?

          We use it for visualization, to create presentations and dashboards. It works pretty well.

          How has it helped my organization?

          We are using Power BI because it is one of the best tools. It has been very good for all situations. The DAX coding language is good for creating formulae.

          What is most valuable?

          It is easy to work with. The tool is very complete.

          For how long have I used the solution?

          One to three years.

          What do I think about the stability of the solution?

          The stability is good, no problem. We haven't had any trouble with it.

          What do I think about the scalability of the solution?

          Our solutions are not for very many people, say 25 users. For them, it works very well. I don't know how it works with more users than that.

          Which solution did I use previously and why did I switch?

          The customers we work with didn't have very elegant solutions. They were using traditional ERP and were getting default reports. Now, with programming code, it is fantastic. They are very happy with our solutions with Power BI.

          Which other solutions did I evaluate?

          Qlik Sense and QlikView are very good tools, very close to Power BI. Tableau is also a competitor but we haven't used it.

          What other advice do I have?

          When selecting a vendor we look for expertise, a company that understands the problems and knows the market, solutions, tools; and one that creates successful products. That is the most important criterion. Also, when you are in front of your clients, you need to know who is supporting you from the back.

          I would rate Power BI at eight out of 10 because it enables us to do all the things we want to do. Moving forward, for more than 5,000 users, or for very complex dashboards, we don't know how it works.

          I always recommend Power BI. It's very good.

          Disclosure: My company does not have a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer.
          PeerSpot user
          Buyer's Guide
          Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.
          Updated: June 2025
          Buyer's Guide
          Download our free Microsoft Power BI Report and get advice and tips from experienced pros sharing their opinions.