Comparison of Alteryx with Power BI

[Rahul_Analyst]

Hi all,

I want your suggestions in terms of choosing Alteryx and Power BI for data cleaning. I want to know some of the unique things which can be only done by Alteryx but not by Power BI. 

In data cleaning, how Alteryx is better than Power BI ? 

In terms of cost, obviously Power BI is much cheaper than Alteryx. So, if Alteryx is expensive then, what are the unique things which supports Alteryx over Power BI ?

Thanks!   

[PhilipMannering]

Power BI isn't really a direct competitor to Alteryx. Power BI does data visualization / dashboarding, like Tableau or QlikSense.

The Microsoft tool Power Query does some data preparation. But I haven't used it enough to give a fair comparison with Alteryx. 

Interested in others' thoughts....

[JagdeeshN]

Hi @Rahul_Analyst ,

Even though both the platforms have overlapping functionalities/capabilities, they still serve distinct purposes.

Please refer to the below thread discussing the same:-

https://community.alteryx.com/t5/Alteryx-Designer-Discussions/Alteryx-v-Power-BI/m-p/401999#M73982

[Rahul_Analyst]

@PhilipMannering and @JagdeeshN , thanks for responding.

I have gone through the articles and thread messages. Still if anyone can tell specific feature of Alteryx which makes it unique over Power BI. It will be much better. 

For example-spatial analysis with special tools which is in Alteryx, I do not know whether it is possible in Power BI. Or, some special tool functionality (multi row field/join or union tools) which is possible only in Alteryx, but not in Power BI.

Thanks.

[JagdeeshN · Accepted solution]

Hi @Rahul_Analyst ,

Try to think about Alteryx not just as a toolset but a Platform. As of right now it can be broadly used for the following:-

1. Data Analytics( ETL)

2. Advance Analytics across different sources of data ( This includes spatial, predictive etc)

3. Machine learning capabilities.

4. Process Automation

5. Process Orchestration.

On the other hand Power-BI is specifically for visualization with functionality around data prep to support the visuals. 

Hope that makes sense.

Best,

Jagdeesh Narayanan

[Rahul_Analyst]

@JagdeeshN , thanks! I am able to gain some knowledge. 

I think the more I use both tools, the more I get to know about capabilities and similarities, as per my tasks what I want to do. 

[MattSB]

As a a PowerBi expert that's had to transfer to  Alteryx due to change of jobs here is my thoughts:

• From a data prep perspective there is nothing that Alteryx can do that PowerQuery can't do, and plenty of things Power Query can do that  Alteryx Can't:
  • Cache / Table.Buffer() at any point during the process to improve performance on looping activities (d love to be able to cache the data at any point in the flow in alteryx when creating workflows.
  • Data derived Constants / Variables. Ie you could do a MAX of Date and then reference it in formulas instead of having to do the stupid append pattern. ( if there's is a better way please let me know) 
• However all that capability comes with a collection of big BUT's, the knowledge of coding and syntax is a massive barrier, stuff like R and python is only possible with add ons and in certain environments. You will be writing functions for so many things which take far longer than drag and drop in Alteryx.
• I can currently code faster in PowerQuery than i can configure an Alteryx Workflow, however no one is going to be able to easily understand the script without an equivalent level of knowledge. In Alteryx however most users would understand most workflows.  
• Power Query can be run in Excel so you can decentralise data processing for non technical functions by building data processes that can be run by admin ( Yes this is not an ideal options but sometimes producing some basic operational stats for a small team does not justify a proper production solution / or your IT team deploys at such a glacial pace you can't wait for an enterprise solutions for data capture).
• Power apps + Power Query+ PowerBi + Power Automate makes for an incredible solution for operational data.
• Spatial data: Alteryx wins with no competition. 
• Automation: Alteryx wins because its so integrated, however the MS suite is more powerful on paper  (but again so much more complex, you need a full stack dev or a team to implement, so rarely really realised)  
• Performance: Lots of Smaller data sets Power Query blows Alteryx away in terms of performance if you know how to code it efficiently, however larger data sets Alteryx really shines. 

In summary i'm glad i have access to both, but if I was in charge of the budget I would be moving anyone who did not need Alteryx Analytic capabilities off ASAP. 

If I was in charge of Alteryx Development I would probably focus on adding features that are in PBi and power query rather than improving on their USP because I genuinely don't think PowerBi will ever get close to what Alteryx does best.