TrustRadius: an HG Insights company

Save this comparison

Save this comparison

Add Product

Recommended Comparisons

    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    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

    Vertex

    Score8.8 out of 10
    N/AVertex is global indirect tax compliance software for enterprise tax and finance teams. Indirect tax covers transaction-based obligations, such as sales and use tax, value-added tax (VAT), and goods and services tax (GST). Vertex supports tax determination, electronic invoicing (e-invoicing), reporting, filing, and audit-readiness workflows. Vertex’s official website Key Capabilities Tax determination: Calculates applicable indirect taxes…N/A
    Pricing
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Editions & Modules
    Power BI Pro
    $14
    per month per user
    Power BI Premium
    $24
    per month per user
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Considered Both Products
    Microsoft
    No answer on this topic
    Vertex Inc.
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    15 Answers
    96%
    Would buy again
    69 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    15 Answers
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    54 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    15 Answers
    96%
    Happy with the feature set
    69 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    13 Answers
    88%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    38 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    86%
    Implementation went as expected
    50 Answers
    Features
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    BI Standard Reporting
    Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    9.0
    53 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Pixel Perfect reports8.546 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable dashboards9.653 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Formatting Templates8.951 Ratings00 Ratings
    Ad-hoc Reporting
    Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    53 Ratings
    6% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Drill-down analysis8.548 Ratings00 Ratings
    Formatting capabilities8.253 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration with R or other statistical packages8.342 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report sharing and collaboration8.953 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Output and Scheduling
    Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    52 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Publish to Web9.348 Ratings00 Ratings
    Publish to PDF9.148 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Versioning7.444 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Delivery Scheduling8.547 Ratings00 Ratings
    Delivery to Remote Servers8.426 Ratings00 Ratings
    Data Discovery and Visualization
    Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.7
    52 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)9.651 Ratings00 Ratings
    Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization8.748 Ratings00 Ratings
    Predictive Analytics7.745 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pattern Recognition and Data Mining8.76 Ratings00 Ratings
    Access Control and Security
    Comparison of Access Control and Security features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    9.3
    53 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Multi-User Support (named login)9.449 Ratings00 Ratings
    Role-Based Security Model9.347 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)8.949 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report-Level Access Control9.36 Ratings00 Ratings
    Single Sign-On (SSO)9.431 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Capabilities
    Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.0
    42 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    Responsive Design for Web Access8.239 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Application8.030 Ratings00 Ratings
    Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile7.839 Ratings00 Ratings
    Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding
    Comparison of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    8.5
    24 Ratings
    9% above category average
    Vertex
    -
    Ratings
    REST API9.221 Ratings00 Ratings
    Javascript API8.821 Ratings00 Ratings
    iFrames8.820 Ratings00 Ratings
    Java API8.718 Ratings00 Ratings
    Themeable User Interface (UI)8.021 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable Platform (Open Source)7.319 Ratings00 Ratings
    Type of tax
    Comparison of Type of tax features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    -
    Ratings
    Vertex
    8.2
    142 Ratings
    7% above category average
    Sales and Use Taxes00 Ratings9.3139 Ratings
    Cross-border Taxes00 Ratings7.945 Ratings
    VAT / GST Taxes00 Ratings8.568 Ratings
    Energy and Fuel Taxes00 Ratings7.311 Ratings
    Tax Reporting & Compliance
    Comparison of Tax Reporting & Compliance features of Microsoft BI (MSBI) and Vertex
    Feature
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)
    -
    Ratings
    Vertex
    8.6
    136 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Geolocation for Tax Assessment00 Ratings8.6103 Ratings
    3rd-Party Software Integrations00 Ratings8.795 Ratings
    Tax Data Reporting00 Ratings8.7122 Ratings
    Compliance Administration Management00 Ratings8.786 Ratings
    Tax Exemption Processing00 Ratings8.7100 Ratings
    Tax Document Management00 Ratings8.783 Ratings
    Complex Tax Scenario Management00 Ratings8.096 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Small Businesses
    Cyfe
    Score4 out of 10
    Intuit Lacerte
    Score9.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Qlik Cloud Analytics (Qlik Sense)
    Score8.1 out of 10
    Lappa
    Score8.8 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Sisense
    Score6.9 out of 10
    ADP SmartCompliance
    Score8.2 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.9
    (77 ratings)
    9.0
    (167 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (25 ratings)
    8.0
    (20 ratings)
    Usability
    8.9
    (19 ratings)
    8.6
    (63 ratings)
    Availability
    9.5
    (2 ratings)
    8.5
    (10 ratings)
    Performance
    7.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.5
    (10 ratings)
    Support Rating
    8.9
    (15 ratings)
    7.5
    (25 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    6.9
    (3 ratings)
    8.7
    (3 ratings)
    Online Training
    8.5
    (2 ratings)
    8.6
    (5 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.6
    (7 ratings)
    9.9
    (17 ratings)
    Configurability
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    9.0
    (80 ratings)
    Data Sharing and Collaboration
    8.5
    (42 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Data Sources
    8.4
    (41 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.9
    (7 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.7
    (57 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.9
    (20 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (13 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Microsoft BI (MSBI)Vertex
    Likelihood to Recommend
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    I have used Vertex since the very beginning of my career. I have always found the information clear, and easy to use. The documentation to use the product was thorough. We file returns in all 45 states that have sales / use taxes and having the ability to import data, key additional data in and print out a signature ready return has made life easy. I've never wanted to look at any other return preparation software as none of them come close to the product that Vertex created.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    • Vertex does a great job of building in-house industry expertise (leasing in our case) so they truly understand the tax technical and compliance obstacles we face day to day.
    • Vertex actively solicits for and responds to customer feedback on development and product roadmap suggestions. The Leasing users group is an example where Vertex takes an active role in communicating with and taking feedback from our industry.
    • Vertex tax updates are very timely and thorough, which makes the compliance process less stressful for our team.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    • Reporting: Vertex VAT Compliance is not fully ready to support all EU country's requirements.
    • Data storage.
    • Online reporting in VVC: many countries require to report VAT Declaration in an electronic way. This function is still missing for some of the countries from VVC.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    We are satisfied with the overall performance of Vertex. The software has provided my company with many efficiencies. We have shorted our audits and found that many audits are happy that we are using Vertex to calculate our taxes. We no longer need to worry about updating our rates each month since Vertex sends us a file to upload
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    Vertex itself is very good software. Its tax calculation is very accurate, and there should be no doubt whether Vertex is calculating the tax. Customer support is also good, and the response is quick. The updates are also good and easy to understand, making this an excellent application.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Microsoft
    The product has been reliable.
    Read full review
    Vertex Inc.
    I have always felt VERTEX support was available when needed, and I have felt comfortable calling in some heavy hitters when needed
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    Our Vertex performance is good, although we are now experiencing Error 502 when adding additional data points to our transaction tester single tests. At Exchange, I was told to reach out to support....that most likely the On Demand system needed some additional CPU resource added. I have a currently open ticket, that has not yet been fixed on this matter
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    Level 1 support has always been kind and understanding but times they do not always provided the technical help sometimes their response or protocol is not related. I feel that I have to beg for a developer to look over my issue. On the other hand, there have been times a Level 1 support person has taken the time to research my issue and provide valid feedback & solution
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Microsoft
    This training was more directed toward what the product was capable of rather than actual programming.
    Read full review
    Vertex Inc.
    By training I'm referring to our engagement with Vertex Consulting's professional services group. Each person on the engagement had prior leasing industry tax experience and most if not all used O Series before joining Vertex. Consultants with industry specific tax experience provide so much more than just "training". They are able to engage in deep tax technical discussions with actual experience while in private practice. This coupled with having visibility to how numerous other leasing peers approach similar tax issues is a huge plus on top of the standard training.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    Vertex has offered multiple webinars for the products we have purchased that are informative and helpful. I've also attended a few of the Vertex annual conferences where I was able to strength my knowledge of Vertex. I also found that their online library and videos can be helpful in resolving issues and answering questions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    The implementation is challenging, make no mistake but will provide much value over time. Make sure you have full support of IT and your major stakeholders in your company. I found that while many people claimed to understand tax was important, they had no idea how deep tax in entrenched throughout the lease life cycle.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    In comparison specifically with Avalara, Vertex is better in every way. It is much more customizable and allows us to change the way our tax software is set up for our business needs. Avalara is much more constricted, and is using the SST system which can allow for simplified returns, but in our case was causing more problems. Avalara is also much more expensive than Vertex, for less capabilities. Vertex' customer support is much stronger than Avalara's, as they are focused on obtaining and retaining customers whereas Avalara was continually trying to find ways to get money from us
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Vertex Inc.
    There needs to be a time-consuming setup both in the Enterprise Resource Platform and in Vertex and the related tools as well but once this is all established, Vertex is very proficient at calculating Sales and Use Tax in the USA and in Canada with GST/HST, as well as several of the provinces where we are located. As we added plants in different jurisdictions via greenfield expansion and aquisition, Vertex was able to integrate those as long as the tax department is fully informed of the system.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    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
    Vertex Inc.
    • We use Vertex on a monthly basis to see if tax has been over-accrued or over-charged on invoices. We do save tax every month using the tool. Not at liberty to share too much more - the technology does assist the human efforts.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Vertex Screenshots

    Screenshot of Vertex dashboard