Microsoft Power BI vs Alteryx

Today, most companies rely on Business Intelligence (BI) tools to make informed decisions and enhance business performance. Power BI and Alteryx are the most widely used data analytic tools by data analysts and engineers worldwide.

This blog compares Power BI and Alteryx based on multiple parameters, including their focus area, user experience, connectivity, AI capabilities, and more. It will help you understand where Power BI and Alteryx shine and where they lag, simplifying your decision-making process.

Let’s jump into the blog!

Table of Contents

• Power BI Vs Alteryx – Summary of Comparison
• Power BI Vs Alteryx – Detailed Comparison
• When to choose Power BI
• When to choose Alteryx
• FAQs
• Conclusion

Power BI Vs Alteryx – Summary of Comparison

Let's quickly look at the summarised comparison between Power BI and Alteryx in the table below. 

Features	Power BI	Alteryx
Primary focus	Data visualisation and reporting	Data preparation, transformation and analysis.
Target Audience	Both technical and non-technical users	Mostly technical users
Learning Curve	Low	Steep
Rankings	Ranked No.1 in Business Intelligence and reporting	Ranked No.1 in data preparation and predictive analytics
Pricing Plans	Free Power BI Pro Power BI Premium Power BI Embedded	Free Alteryx Designer Cloud – Professional/Enterprises Alteryx Designer Desktop
Analytic Capabilities	It leverages R integration and data analysis expressions. It supports descriptive, embedded, and diagnostic data analysis.	It leverages location intelligence, spatial analytics, predictive analysis, AutoML and feature synthesis.
Security	It implements sensitivity labels and Information Protection mechanisms for security.	It implements the information security program and complies with industry standards such as SIRT, NIST CF, etc.
Integrations	Connect with databases and services, including MySQL, SQL Servers, and GitHub.	Connect with over 90+ connectors, including Google, Snowflake, Salesforce, Oracle, and Amazon.
AI capabilities	It offers smart data discovery and visualisation features.	It offers the AI engine AiDIN and the Alteryx Analytics Cloud platform.

Power BI Vs Alteryx – Detailed Comparison

In this section, we will go through a detailed comparison between Power BI and Alteryx.

Let’s begin!

#1. Primary Purpose

Microsoft Power BI is an easy-to-use tool that you can use to perform descriptive and diagnostic data analysis. It transforms business data into visually appealing and easy-to-understand graphics. It is the go-to tool for business intelligence and data visualisation solutions.

Conversely, Alteryx is a versatile tool that efficiently prepares, transforms, and analyses data. It also supports predictive analysis of data. It excels in handling large volumes of data and automating complex workflows.

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#2. Target Audience

Power BI is the best tool for technical and non-technical users because it has a low learning curve. Both business and technical users can effortlessly handle this tool.

On the other hand, some technical expertise is required to handle the Alteryx tool. It is an ideal self-service solution for data scientists, analysts, engineers, etc. The learning curve for Power BI is steep.

#3. Trends

The image below of Google Trends shows people's interest in the tools worldwide in the past five years.

#4. Ranking

According to PeerSpot, Power BI ranks first in business intelligence and reporting. Alteryx ranks first in predictive analytics and data preparation.                                 

The below image shows the mindshare comparison of the two tools based on the PeerSpot report.

#5. User Experience

According to Gartner Peer Insights, both Power BI and Alteryx have gained equal ratings from users.

Power BI provides excellent customisation options. Users can create their own custom visualisations based on their needs. Besides, it offers detailed user stories to help users better understand business processes and trends.

Similarly, Alteryx allows tailoring the user interface according to user needs. It ensures a seamless user experience by resolving bottlenecks in data wrangling and workflow automation. Thus, both tools undeniably provide a better user experience.

#6. Ease of use and setup      

According to the G2 report, Alteryx is easier to use than Power BI, and both are easier to set up. The chart below depicts this. Power BI is a user-friendly tool for business users.

#7. Pricing

The chart below shows the price comparison between Power BI and Alteryx.

The chart below shows the features of the different Power BI and Alteryx pricing plans.

Overall, Power BI is a cost-effective tool that caters to the needs of small, medium, and large organisations to analyse their data. Alteryx is an expensive tool, so it is suitable for large enterprises. Small and medium-sized organisations may face difficulties adopting Alteryx because of budget constraints.

#8. Deployment 

You can deploy Power BI on-premises or in a cloud platform. Alteryx, on the other hand, mainly focuses on on-premises deployments, even though cloud and hybrid deployment options are available. It supports multiple deployment types, including single-node, multi-node, and desktop designer deployments.

#9. Analytic Capabilities

Power BI is a tool that provides robust analytic capabilities, helping to process large volumes of data. It offers advanced analytic capabilities with the help of R integration, Data Analysis Expressions (DAX), and diagnostic analytics. 

Its embedded analytics feature helps embed reports and dashboards on websites. It excels in geographic visualisations with maps and location-based analytics.

Alteryx, on the other hand, stands out with advanced predictive analytics. This tool also offers location intelligence, which enables geospatial analytics. 

Its automated Machine Learning (AutoML) feature empowers users with more in-depth and valuable insights. The deep feature synthesis helps to find the critical relationships between data, enabling users to make accurate decisions.

#10. Data Visualization

Microsoft Power BI stands out in this category because it transforms data into visually appealing graphics. You can share the analytics globally, meeting the compliance or regulation rules.

Alteryx employs embedded data visualisation tools to create analytics. This technique ensures you can see visualisations at all stages of the analysis. You can analyse data in multiple ways, including standard and spatial data modelling. Alteryx allows you to modify and share these visuals seamlessly.

#11. Security and Trust

Microsoft Power BI uses sensitivity labels to help secure data. Its information protection mechanisms allow you to effortlessly frame governance policies. Power BI's Microsoft Cloud App Security portal helps track risky behaviour patterns in data.

Moreover, Power BI adopts BYOK to protect sensitive data and meet privacy and regulatory requirements. It also complies with many industry standards, including HIPAA, DoD IL6, and FINRA.

On the other hand, Alteryx offers an information security program to govern your data securely. This program meets the requirements for industry standards such as NIST CF, SIRT, etc., and it complies with data protection laws, including CCPA, GDPR, etc.

Alteryx's Data Processing Agreement (DPA) helps implement internal data transfer efficiently. You may also use Alteryx's approval asset management to improve data security at different organisational levels.

#12. Integrations

Microsoft Power BI can integrate with MS Excel to automate data refresh, share workbooks, and create visualisations. It can also connect with many file data sources, Azure data sources, online services data sources, and more. It can also connect with database sources, including SQL Servers, MySQL, etc.

Alteryx is no less than Power BI when it comes to integrations. Alteryx provides over 90+ connectors to integrate with Google, Oracle, Tableau, Snowflake, Microsoft, Salesforce, Amazon, etc. It has connectors to publish data to spreadsheets, RPA bots, BI and reporting tools, etc.

Alteryx’s SAP and Oracle connectors help users securely access ERP data. It also has connectors for Hadoop and NoSQL databases.

#13. AI Capabilities

Power BI has excellent AI capabilities, including smart data discovery and visualisation. It leverages R integration, keyphrase extraction, language detection, and image tagging to create advanced visualisations. 

It also supports Natural Language Queries (NLQ), so you will get answers in visual form for your text queries. With AI power, Power BI also performs decomposition tree visualisation, forecasting, sentiment analysis, etc.

Alteryx offers the AI Engine AiDIN with the Alteryx Analytics Cloud platform for analytics. This engine has the combined power of Generative AI and Machine Learning, which helps to perform deeper analytics, such as predictive analytics and improve operational efficiency.

#14. Use cases

Power BI is widely used in finance, healthcare, education, manufacturing, sales and marketing, travel, the public sector, and other vital industries. It transforms complex financial data into easy-to-understand visuals. 

For example, you can visualise sales trends in various areas to improve lead generation. Moreover, you can track multiple operational metrics in production and optimise processes to boost performance.

On the other hand, Alteryx is extensively leveraged in automotive, retail, healthcare, market analysis, and many other industries where workflow automation and predictive analysis are crucial. 

It is also used in travel, logistics, retail, and urban planning industries, where location-based insights are essential. It plays a vital role in supply chain optimisation and clinical data analysis.

It pulls data from Salesforce and analyses it to measure sales professionals' performance and sales pipelines. It accelerates service and support operations with actionable insights.

#15. Community Support

Power BI provides an active Power BI forum where BI experts and peers interact with each other, discuss the latest trends, and share knowledge. You can get information about technical events from the forum. You can join the forum and accelerate your learning journey with expert support.

Like Power BI, Alteryx also provides extensive community support. You can enrol in the Alteryx community and engage with Alteryx experts. You can access the learning resources, join groups and get information about the latest events. It will help you polish your skills and stay ahead of the curve.

Great! We hope this head-to-head comparison provided crucial information about Power BI and Alteryx in the best way.

When to choose Power BI

It is ideal to choose Power BI if you want:

• A cost-effective solution for your data analytic needs.
• connect with external systems and access data quickly
• create highly engaging and easy-to-understand visualisations.
• a high level of real-time collaboration and sharing of data
• analyse any data without much technical expertise

Related Article - Power BI Desktop Tutorial

When to choose Alteryx

Alteryx is a good choice if you want to:

• Collect, prepare data and transform data effectively
• analyse large volumes of data, and solve complex business problems
• extract data from cloud databases seamlessly
• perform high-quality geospatial and predictive analyses
• automate data workflows and business processes
• You have an expert technical team of data scientists,engineers, and analysts.

Related Article - Alteryx Tutorial

Power BI Vs Alteryx FAQs

1. Is Power BI hard to learn?

No, learning Power BI is easy. You must have a keen focus and practice a lot to learn Power BI quickly. MindMajix delivers industry-specific Power BI training with certified trainers. We have crafted the course curriculum with renowned data analysts, including the learning modules for beginners and experienced learners.

2. Is Alteryx worth learning?

Yes, learning Alteryx is highly appreciated. According to Payscale, Alteryx analysts can get an average base salary of over 6 LPA in India. In the USA, Alteryx data analysts can earn an average base salary of over 56k USD per annum, according to Comparably.

3. What are the alternatives to Alteryx?

Tableau, Qlik, and Informatica are some of the alternatives to Alteryx.

4. What is the difference between the Power Query and Power BI tools?

Power Query is essentially a data extraction and transformation tool, whereas Power BI is a data analytic and visualization tool. We can gather, clean, and model data with the Power Query tool. On the other hand, with the Power BI tool, we can analyze the processed data and create reports and visualizations.

5. Is Power BI certification worth it?

Power BI provides the following certifications.

• Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst
• Microsoft Certified Power BI Data Analyst Associate

The above certifications will help you get jobs in top companies, including HCLTech, TCS, Cognizant, Wipro, etc., for lucrative salary packages.

6. Is there any certification for Alteryx?

Alteryx offers many certifications for learners. Here are a few of them.

• Alteryx Foundation Micro-credential
• Alteryx Designer Core Micro-credential – General Knowledge
• Alteryx Designer Core Micro-credential – Data Preparation

7. Can I use Power BI and Alteryx together?

You can use Power BI and Alteryx together to derive stellar results. You can leverage Alteryx for data collection, cleaning and blending. Then, you can use Power BI to analyse data and create valuable visualisations and insightful reports.

Conclusion

In short, Power BI excels in cost-effectiveness, business intelligence, data visualization, ease of use, quick insights, and more. On the other hand, Alteryx shines in automation capabilities, data preparation, predictive analyses, extensive cloud support, and more. 

Choosing the right tool depends on the data analytic requirements. Some companies use both tools for enhanced results. If you are clear about your requirements, selecting the right tool will be a breeze.

If you want more clarity on the tools, you can undergo professional training. MindMajix offers top-class training in Power BI and Alteryx tools, which you can use to understand them better. It will help you find the right tool for your needs and stay competitive.