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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    FactSet Workstation

    Score8.5 out of 10
    N/AThe FactSet Workstation is a dynamic platform designed to empower financial professionals with seamless data access, advanced analytics, and technology. Integrating over 800 data sources across asset classes and markets, it consolidates crucial insights and elevates decision-making. Its AI-powered tools include smart search and chat features. The workstation simplifies complex workflows, enabling users to uncover insights quickly and improve collaboration. From research and portfolio…N/A

    Microsoft BI (MSBI)

    Score8.5 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft BI is a business intelligence product used for data analysis and generating reports on server-based data. It features unlimited data analysis capacity with its reporting engine, SQL Server Reporting Services alongside ETL, master data management, and data cleansing.

    $14

    per month per user

    Pricing
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Power BI Pro
    $14
    per month per user
    Power BI Premium
    $24
    per month per user
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeRequiredNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Considered Both Products
    FactSet
    No answer on this topic
    Microsoft
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    16 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    15 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    15 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    15 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    94%
    Happy with the feature set
    15 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    15 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    92%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    12 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    13 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    Features
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Financial Research
    Comparison of Financial Research features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    6.6
    13 Ratings
    11% below category average
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    -
    Ratings
    Private Company Data4.710 Ratings00 Ratings
    Industry-Specific Information6.913 Ratings00 Ratings
    Independent Research Access6.912 Ratings00 Ratings
    M&A Analysis6.210 Ratings00 Ratings
    Supply Chain Data5.98 Ratings00 Ratings
    ESG Data6.29 Ratings00 Ratings
    Macroeconomic News7.813 Ratings00 Ratings
    Search Tools7.813 Ratings00 Ratings
    BI Standard Reporting
    Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    9.0
    53 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Pixel Perfect reports00 Ratings8.546 Ratings
    Customizable dashboards00 Ratings9.653 Ratings
    Report Formatting Templates00 Ratings8.951 Ratings
    Ad-hoc Reporting
    Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    53 Ratings
    6% above category average
    Drill-down analysis00 Ratings8.548 Ratings
    Formatting capabilities00 Ratings8.253 Ratings
    Integration with R or other statistical packages00 Ratings8.342 Ratings
    Report sharing and collaboration00 Ratings8.953 Ratings
    Report Output and Scheduling
    Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    52 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Publish to Web00 Ratings9.348 Ratings
    Publish to PDF00 Ratings9.148 Ratings
    Report Versioning00 Ratings7.444 Ratings
    Report Delivery Scheduling00 Ratings8.547 Ratings
    Delivery to Remote Servers00 Ratings8.426 Ratings
    Data Discovery and Visualization
    Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.7
    52 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)00 Ratings9.651 Ratings
    Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization00 Ratings8.748 Ratings
    Predictive Analytics00 Ratings7.845 Ratings
    Pattern Recognition and Data Mining00 Ratings8.76 Ratings
    Access Control and Security
    Comparison of Access Control and Security features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    9.3
    53 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Multi-User Support (named login)00 Ratings9.449 Ratings
    Role-Based Security Model00 Ratings9.347 Ratings
    Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)00 Ratings8.949 Ratings
    Report-Level Access Control00 Ratings9.36 Ratings
    Single Sign-On (SSO)00 Ratings9.431 Ratings
    Mobile Capabilities
    Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.0
    42 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Responsive Design for Web Access00 Ratings8.239 Ratings
    Mobile Application00 Ratings8.030 Ratings
    Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile00 Ratings7.839 Ratings
    Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding
    Comparison of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding features of FactSet Workstation and Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    Feature
    FactSet Workstation
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    24 Ratings
    9% above category average
    REST API00 Ratings9.221 Ratings
    Javascript API00 Ratings8.821 Ratings
    iFrames00 Ratings8.820 Ratings
    Java API00 Ratings8.718 Ratings
    Themeable User Interface (UI)00 Ratings8.021 Ratings
    Customizable Platform (Open Source)00 Ratings7.319 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Cyfe
    Score4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    S&P Capital IQ
    Score7.5 out of 10
    Qlik Cloud Analytics (Qlik Sense)
    Score8.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    S&P Capital IQ
    Score7.5 out of 10
    Sisense
    Score6.9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (17 ratings)
    8.9
    (77 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.0
    (25 ratings)
    Usability
    7.1
    (13 ratings)
    8.9
    (19 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (2 ratings)
    Support Rating
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.9
    (15 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.9
    (3 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.6
    (7 ratings)
    Configurability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Data Sharing and Collaboration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.5
    (42 ratings)
    Data Sources
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.4
    (41 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    FactSet WorkstationMicrosoft BI (MSBI)
    Likelihood to Recommend
    FactSet
    FactSet works for all my IR needs. I do not see a function for which I use it for that it would be less appropriate. I believe that the tool's efforts towards becoming more integrated with AI are strong and that in time the Mercury offering will be just as competitive as some of the other AI offerings out there today such as AlphaSense
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Microsoft BI has a lot of features and is a very powerful tool, especially if you have folks on your team that know how to utilize all of its capabilities. To truly unlock all that it can do, it does require people to have a deep understanding of its capabilities. That's where the software really shines. If you are looking for a simpler, more basic reporting tool, there are other programs available that do not require such a steep learning curve.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    FactSet
    • Easy/clear UI for navigation
    • Easily find and sort through financial filings to get to the data
    • Document search functionality seems to be improving consistently with more robust features
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Comparatively easy to use compared to other data analytics solutions, collaborating with other colleagues on data work is simple.
    • Using Visual Studio for database, ETL, reporting, and analytics development save time and money.
    • Transfer of data from one application to another via Excel and comparison of data attributes between applications
    • Dashboard functionality, as well as Python support, are available, allowing you to add additional charts and graphs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    FactSet
    • The user interface on stock monitor needs work - sometimes I wish to clone the same fields to another tab/watchlist and it appears the best way to do so is recreate it form scratch
    • transcript to be more timely and more accurate
    • on the consensus financial forecast tab, have more segment breakouts like Visible Alpha
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • MSBI designs can work on increasing data processing capabilities enough to handle the huge datasets etc.
    • It would be a lot better if it is a little low on cost.
    • it needs to create opportunities little more than they do regarding customization of some very unique visualization effects
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    FactSet
    We need the FactSet data and capabilities to complete 75% of the financial analyses that we complete for both internal and external purposes. It is invaluable and I am not aware of any other provider that would be able to fill this gap that FactSet does
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Microsoft BI is fundamental to our suite of BI applications. That being said, Northcraft Analytics is focused on delighting our customers, so if the underlying factors of our decision change, we would choose to re-write our BI applications on a different stack. Luckily, mathematics are the fundamental IP of our technology... and is portable across all BI platforms for the foreseeable future.
    Read full review
    Usability
    FactSet
    It does everything I need. It is pretty user friendly and easy to work with whatever technology interface I am using (desk top, notebook, tablet, or mobile phone). I am able to get work done whether I am in the office, at home, or traveling. The user up time is very good. They are rarely doing maintenance when I need to use the platform
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    The Microsoft BI tools have great usability for both developers and end users alike. For developers familiar with Visual Studio, there is little learning curve. For those not, the single Visual Studio IDE means not having to learn separate tools for each component. For end-users, the web interface for SSRS is simple to navigate with intuitive controls. For ad-hoc analysis, Excel can connect directly to SSAS and provide a pivot table like experience which is familiar to many users. For database development, there is beginning to be some confusion, as there are now three tool choices (VS, SSMS, Azure Data Studio) for developers. I would like to see Azure Data Studio become the superset of SSMS and eventually supplant it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    FactSet
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    The product has been reliable.
    Read full review
    Performance
    FactSet
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) can drag at times. We created two report servers and placed them under an F5 load balancer. This configuration has worked well. We have seen sluggish performance at times due to the Windows Firewall.
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    FactSet
    I think the data delivery could be improved, but it's a good data set.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    MSBI natively has a site that allows you to vote on user enhancements and bug fixes. This allows the largest nagging issues to float to the top and the development team can prioritize accordingly. As mentioned earlier, the large community base of MSBI developers assist technical resources in handling technical questions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    FactSet
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    This training was more directed toward what the product was capable of rather than actual programming.
    Read full review
    Online Training
    FactSet
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    I have used on-line training from Microsoft and from Pragmatic Works. I would recommend Pragmatic Works as the best way to get up to speed quickly, and then use the Microsoft on-line training to deep dive into specific features that you need to get depth with.
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    FactSet
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    We are a consulting firm and as such our best resources are always billing on client projects. Our internal implementation has weaknesses, but that's true for any company like ours. My rating is based on the product's ease of implementation.
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    FactSet
    Product is magnitudes more affordable and provides 80% of the functionality that Bloomberg has and is working to build out the remaining. The workstation is more user friendly than bloomberg but still not perfect. Not as robust as a Bloomberg Terminal and doesn't have the chat/trading features.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    We have used the built in ConnectWise Manager reports and custom reports. The reports provide static data. PowerBI shows us live data we can drill down into and easily adjust parameters. It's much more useful than a static PDF report.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    FactSet
    • hard to quantify, bc i havent brought any new business bc of it, so the ROI would be 0%. I use other systems for proposals.
    • However, I use it for everyday work and equity/fi analysis and portfolio construction research at ticker level, and that part works 100%.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • As a SaaS provider we see being able to provide self-service BI to our client users as a competitive advantage. In fact the MSSQL enabled BI is a contributing factor to many winning RFPs we have done for prospective client organisations.
    • However MSSQL BI requires extensive knowledge and skills to design and develop data warehouses & data models as a foundation to support business analysts and users to interrogate data effectively and efficiently. Often times we find having strong in-house MSSQL expertise is a bless.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    FactSet Workstation Screenshots

    Screenshot of PM Hub, which simplifies portfolio management with tools for building, analyzing, and simulating trades for multi-asset class portfolios and exposures. Users can monitor positions in real time with customizable views, ensure compliance, and execute trades through its integration. Link IRN data to foster deeper collaboration between research analysts and portfolio managers.Screenshot of FactSet Internal Research Notes (IRN), which streamlines research with one connected platform. These can be used to organize, share, and analyze everything from market trends to individual securities. Its AI tools help to boost collaboration, enhance workflows, and drive smarter investment decisions.Screenshot of some of the available information which can used to analyze performance, risk, and attribution across multi-asset portfolios. This integrates portfolio, market, and proprietary data into a single platform to streamline workflows, adapt to market changes, and make confident decisions. From stress testing and scenario analysis to AI-driven insights, FactSet provides tools to strengthen portfolio resilience, uncover drivers of performance, and foster collaboration with customizable reports and data sharing.Screenshot of a display of all accounts in one personalized dashboard. Viewers can analyze top positions, spot trends with proprietary signals, and track market-moving events. Access summary stats like total market value and asset allocation across an entire book or by household and strategy.Screenshot of FactSet’s proprietary news, which delivers real-time, focused market insights across regions like the U.S., Canada, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. From stocks to sectors to broad markets, StreetAccount simplifies updates to cut through the clutter. This critical news is available anytime via the Workstation, web, email, app, or API.Screenshot of one of FactSet's unique datasets, Geographic Revenue (GeoRev), used to quickly understand a company's revenue exposure in countries impacted by geopolitical, macroeconomic, and market risk through a highly structured and normalized display of companies' revenues by geography.