Microsoft Power BI vs Phocas Business Intelligence

Likelihood to Recommend

Power BI is well suited for flat file databases, although the pivot column feature can help other types. Particularly great where visualizations can provide better insights than data tables so great for deep insights into trend evolution. Can be challenging to build profit & loss statements with subtotals and percentages based on sales as one single neat statement.

Read full review

Jay Mistry

Business Analyst

Nestle Canada IncFood & Beverages, 1001-5000 employees

View all 98 answers on this topic

If you would like your data in one place with easy access, this is the software for you. You can have data from multiple systems and bring it into one view so that you have a quick and easily visible dashboard for the data you wish to see.

Read full review

Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Wholesale Company, 201-500 employees

View all 4 answers on this topic

Feature Rating Comparison

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Pixel Perfect reports

Customizable dashboards

Report Formatting Templates

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Drill-down analysis

Formatting capabilities

Integration with R or other statistical packages

Report sharing and collaboration

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Publish to Web

Publish to PDF

Report Versioning

Report Delivery Scheduling

Delivery to Remote Servers

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)

Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization

Predictive Analytics

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Multi-User Support (named login)

Role-Based Security Model

Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)

Single Sign-On (SSO)

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Responsive Design for Web Access

Dedicated iOS Application

Dedicated Android Application

Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

REST API

Javascript API

iFrames

Java API

Themeable User Interface (UI)

Customizable Platform (Open Source)

Pros

Reporting, reporting, reporting. Power BI is great for reporting. I can create a number of different charts, views, and dashboards for a number of different audiences. It's very helpful for executives to see the big picture, but dynamic enough to take the same data sources and create detailed reports on very specific elements.
Power BI is easy to use. We went from manual data entry and report creation in Excel to Power BI. There was a learning curve, but I was able to find enough training online to get started.
Automating the report creation is wonderful. It takes all the manual work out of my old daily processes. My supervisors and bosses have been impressed too. They think it's magic, which makes me look good.

Read full review

Richard Crane

Senior Business Analyst

Southwest Gas CorporationUtilities, 1001-5000 employees

View all 98 answers on this topic

Custom reports are simple to create.
The ability to manage users and their dashboards is solid.
Easy to navigate web interface makes the software accessible from anywhere.

Read full review

Kenny McGarrity

IT Infrastructure Manager

Pace SupplyWholesale, 1001-5000 employees

View all 4 answers on this topic

Cons

Initial creation of reports, even from processed data sets is not simple.
The on-premises reporting (crucial for a defense industry company) is extremely expensive, as it is only included in the Power BI Premium package.
User training is usually required to ensure that full functionality of the dashboards and their built in features are utilized.

Read full review

Rick Botha

Senior Engineer: Rocket Motors and Warheads

Rheinmetall Denel MunitionDefense & Space, 1001-5000 employees

View all 98 answers on this topic

Phocas needs to make it easier to connect to different types of databases.
The data in Phocas needs to be updated faster in some cases.
It needs to provide functions to create better charts and graphs.

Read full review

Verified User

Technician in Information Technology

Civil Engineering Company, 201-500 employees

View all 4 answers on this topic

Likelihood to Renew

Microsoft Power BI 10.0

Based on 1 answer

I find it helpful and easy to use

Read full review

jim paroly

Freelance Photographer

j. paroly photoGraphic Design, 1-10 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

No score

No answers yet

No answers on this topic

Usability

Microsoft Power BI 8.0

Based on 10 answers

The languages within Power BI can be quite the learning curve, but the actual dashboard functionality is a breeze. The most difficult aspect for me has been learning different languages to get the most out of Power BI (DAX, M). But the ease of creating great looking and interactive dashboards has been outstanding.

Read full review

Verified User

Analyst in Information Technology

Construction Company, 10,001+ employees

View all 10 answers on this topic

Phocas Business Intelligence 9.0

Based on 1 answer

It is a very user-friendly product and is easy to understand. You can get your data from just a quick click and the dashboard loads. You can take the data and drill down easy to find what you are looking for.

Read full review

Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Wholesale Company, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Support Rating

Microsoft Power BI 8.0

Based on 7 answers

[Microsoft] Power BI support is pretty generic, and it does take time to reach a right resource. Very often their solutions are KB articles not really relevant to my problem. This an area for improvement. I always try to research my issue on PBI message boards/user community sites.

Read full review

Verified User

Administrator in Information Technology

Government Administration Company, 10,001+ employees

View all 7 answers on this topic

Phocas Business Intelligence 9.0

Based on 1 answer

Support is responsive. You log a call and they will respond quickly and resolve your issues. We have only had great experiences with the support team.

Read full review

Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Wholesale Company, 201-500 employees

View all 1 answers on this topic

Alternatives Considered

I am not a data analyst, but as a user, I prefer the UI of Power BI compared to Periscope Data. Periscope Data has some really great functionality and can build some really useful reports, but Power BI seems to have more useful visuals and is easier for non-database admins/non-data analysts to generate some interesting, basic reports that help them in their role. I've also found courses to help you learn how to use Power BI, from the simple functions up to more complex processes (and get a certification for it) for which I was unable to find for Periscope Data.

Read full review

Steffany Winkelmann

Client Success Manager

Jackrabbit Online Class Management SoftwareComputer Software, 51-200 employees

View all 98 answers on this topic

Phocas is easy to use for end users and can be used on desktops, laptops, and phones.

Read full review

Verified User

Technician in Information Technology

Civil Engineering Company, 201-500 employees

View all 4 answers on this topic

Return on Investment

I'm using the free version, so the only investment was the time spent to learn how to use the product (which as an Excel user, was very short).
I use Excel to store every single bit of information about all the projects I do, and being able to see them visualized helped me see some redundant steps I was taking.
No negative impact at all for me.

Read full review

jim paroly

Freelance Photographer

j. paroly photoGraphic Design, 1-10 employees

View all 98 answers on this topic

It has given our business a view on data
We can access it from anywhere
You can have multiple dashboards for different information

Read full review

Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Wholesale Company, 201-500 employees

View all 4 answers on this topic

Pricing Details

General

Free Trial

—

Free/Freemium Version

—

Premium Consulting/Integration Services

—

Entry-level set up fee?

No

Microsoft Power BI Editions & Modules

Edition

Pro	$9.99¹

Per Month

Additional Pricing Details

—

General

Free Trial

Yes

Free/Freemium Version

—

Premium Consulting/Integration Services

Yes

Entry-level set up fee?

No

Phocas Business Intelligence Editions & Modules

—

Additional Pricing Details

Phocas has built its business model on exceeding customer expectations. We’ve operated on a subscription basis from the start and in the words of Phocas Group chairman and co-founder Paul Magee: ‘That puts the onus on us to perform’. And we like that. In fact, our whole company ecosystem is built around that ‘light bulb moment’ when customers achieve a breakthrough by seeing their business through fresh eyes.

Rating Summary

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Microsoft Power BI

Phocas Business Intelligence

Likelihood to Recommend