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Microsoft Power BI vs. SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Microsoft Power BI

    Score8.5 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft Power BI is a visualization and data discovery tool from Microsoft. It allows users to convert data into visuals and graphics, visually explore and analyze data, collaborate on interactive dashboards and reports, and scale across their organization with built-in governance and security.

    $168

    per year per user

    SSIS

    Score8 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft's SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) is a data integration solution.N/A
    Pricing
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    Editions & Modules
    Power BI Pro
    $14
    per month (billed annually) per user
    Power BI Premium
    $24
    per month (billed annually) per user
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsPower BI Desktop is the data exploration and report authoring experience for Power BI, and is available as a free download.—
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    Considered Both Products
    Microsoft
    Chose Microsoft Power BI
    Both do a good job from a presentation layer. I feel that PowerBI has better data modeling capabilities, and Tableau has a slight edge on the visualizations and end-user experience. Power BI is more attractive to most of our B2B clients, and Tableau is more attractive for B2C …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Power BI
    The primary reason why we selected Power BI is cost. Most enterprises have some sort of Microsoft or SQL Server licensing in place. Adding Power BI and the Microsoft infrastructure is a low-cost barrier to an existing license. Most other products came at a much higher price …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Power BI
    As mentioned earlier it is free of cost and easy to learn as it is part of the Microsoft suite product. It blends well with ETL package tools such as SSRS and SSIS. It is also easy to distribute the dashboard to users of Office 365. It is a a complete Microsoft product which …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Power BI

    From a user perspective, Power BI appears to be more intuitive than Birst. You don't need a training class to learn or use Power BI.

    Power BI Desktop is free, other vendors are charging for desktop licenses.

    Incentivized
    Microsoft
    Chose SSIS
    Datastage
    Incentivized
    Chose SSIS
    I personally prefer SSIS. There are items that each do better than the others, but the ease of use of SSIS, along with its extensibility to 3rd party, ability to write any code required in the tool, and uses the same IDE for the MS BI suite (more of an issue if you're not a …
    Incentivized
    Chose SSIS
    When looking to evaluate different options, we looked first to the experience and software we had in-house that would accomplish the job. When assessing alternatives outside we were looking for the tool that would offer the most flexibility.

    SSIS provided the most robust set of …
    Incentivized
    Chose SSIS
    SSIS and Denodo differ in their approaches to ETL and Data integrations. SSIS is more affordable from a cost and licensing perspective (if you have Microsoft licensing), but Denodo is no slouch. If you go with Denodo, you are not creating data, there are pros and cons to …
    Incentivized
    Chose SSIS
    SAP Data Services is a very good tool and overall its easier to use than SSIS, but SAP is at a much higher price point than Microsoft. Microsoft can be a good fit for businesses of any size, but SAP tends to be a better fit for larger businesses.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    96%
    Would buy again
    110 Answers
    84%
    Would buy again
    21 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    97%
    Delivers good value for the price
    103 Answers
    96%
    Delivers good value for the price
    24 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    112 Answers
    88%
    Happy with the feature set
    22 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    99%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    69 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    10 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    73 Answers
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    19 Answers
    Features
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    BI Standard Reporting
    Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    8.1
    198 Ratings
    1% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Pixel Perfect reports8.1169 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable dashboards8.6197 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Formatting Templates7.7180 Ratings00 Ratings
    Ad-hoc Reporting
    Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    7.9
    196 Ratings
    1% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Drill-down analysis8.4193 Ratings00 Ratings
    Formatting capabilities7.7193 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integration with R or other statistical packages7.4143 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report sharing and collaboration8.2191 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Output and Scheduling
    Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    7.9
    189 Ratings
    4% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Publish to Web8.1179 Ratings00 Ratings
    Publish to PDF7.7174 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Versioning7.7145 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report Delivery Scheduling8.3148 Ratings00 Ratings
    Delivery to Remote Servers7.9111 Ratings00 Ratings
    Data Discovery and Visualization
    Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    7.7
    189 Ratings
    4% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)8.3183 Ratings00 Ratings
    Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization8.1168 Ratings00 Ratings
    Predictive Analytics7.2138 Ratings00 Ratings
    Pattern Recognition and Data Mining7.339 Ratings00 Ratings
    Access Control and Security
    Comparison of Access Control and Security features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    8.3
    180 Ratings
    2% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Multi-User Support (named login)8.6169 Ratings00 Ratings
    Role-Based Security Model8.1148 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)8.1160 Ratings00 Ratings
    Report-Level Access Control8.149 Ratings00 Ratings
    Single Sign-On (SSO)8.5141 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Capabilities
    Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    7.9
    162 Ratings
    2% above category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    Responsive Design for Web Access7.6152 Ratings00 Ratings
    Mobile Application7.5133 Ratings00 Ratings
    Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile7.8155 Ratings00 Ratings
    Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding
    Comparison of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    7.6
    116 Ratings
    2% below category average
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    -
    Ratings
    REST API7.7104 Ratings00 Ratings
    Javascript API7.485 Ratings00 Ratings
    iFrames8.055 Ratings00 Ratings
    Java API6.769 Ratings00 Ratings
    Themeable User Interface (UI)7.391 Ratings00 Ratings
    Customizable Platform (Open Source)8.444 Ratings00 Ratings
    Data Source Connection
    Comparison of Data Source Connection features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    -
    Ratings
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    7.0
    56 Ratings
    18% below category average
    Connect to traditional data sources00 Ratings9.056 Ratings
    Connecto to Big Data and NoSQL00 Ratings5.043 Ratings
    Data Transformations
    Comparison of Data Transformations features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    -
    Ratings
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    6.8
    56 Ratings
    18% below category average
    Simple transformations00 Ratings8.956 Ratings
    Complex transformations00 Ratings4.755 Ratings
    Data Modeling
    Comparison of Data Modeling features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    -
    Ratings
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    7.5
    54 Ratings
    6% below category average
    Data model creation00 Ratings9.028 Ratings
    Metadata management00 Ratings6.035 Ratings
    Business rules and workflow00 Ratings7.145 Ratings
    Collaboration00 Ratings9.140 Ratings
    Testing and debugging00 Ratings6.451 Ratings
    Data Governance
    Comparison of Data Governance features of Microsoft Power BI and SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    Feature
    Microsoft Power BI
    -
    Ratings
    SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS)
    5.4
    43 Ratings
    40% below category average
    Integration with data quality tools00 Ratings6.238 Ratings
    Integration with MDM tools00 Ratings4.638 Ratings
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    User Ratings
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.6
    (199 ratings)
    8.0
    (56 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.6
    (3 ratings)
    9.0
    (4 ratings)
    Usability
    8.3
    (115 ratings)
    8.0
    (11 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.8
    (6 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (52 ratings)
    8.0
    (8 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    Data Sharing and Collaboration
    8.5
    (82 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Data Sources
    9.0
    (81 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Microsoft Power BISSIS
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Microsoft
    Has significantly improved collation of data and visualisation especially with business across Europe. Has given me the ability to see the Site availability at the click of a button to see which Site is in the "money" and seize opportunities based on Market data
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    As I mentioned earlier SQL Server Integration Services is suitable if you want to manage data from different applications. It really helps in fetching the data and generating reports. Its automation make it very easy and time efficient. It works well with large database as well. But it doesn't work well with real time data, it will take some time to gather the real time data. I would not recommend using it in a real time/fast-paced environment.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Microsoft
    • Options for data source connections are immense. Not just which sources, but your options for *how* the data is brought in.
    • Constant updates (this is both good and bad at times).
    • User friendliness. I can get the data connections set up and draft some quick visuals, then release to the target audience and let them expand on it how they want to.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Standard ETL use cases for daily loads
    • Loading incoming data from Vendors which is placed on FTP and adding them to the SQL Warehouse
    • Creating outgoing data files and writing them to Vendor FTPs
    • Easy Active Directory integration for seamless connections to SQL Server
    • CI/CD by hosting the code on visualstudio.com
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Microsoft
    • It would be easier for users could Microsoft Power BI and Excel used the same programming languages.
    • Would like to see the online version of Microsoft Power BI be as powerful as the desktop version.
    • Publishing a Microsoft Power BI file online and then having to save the file is somewhat redundant.
    • Would like to export each page or chart as an image.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Connection managers for online data sources can be tricky to configure.
    • Performance tuning is an art form and trialing different data flow task options can be cumbersome. SSIS can do a better job of providing performance data including historical for monitoring.
    • Mapping destination using OLE DB command is difficult as destination columns are unnamed.
    • Excel or flat file connections are limited by version and type.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Microsoft
    Microsoft Power BI is an excellent and scalable tool. It has a learning curve, but once you get past that, the sky is the limit and you can build from the most simple to the most complex dashboards. I have built everything from simple reports with only a few data points to complex reports with many pages and advanced filtering.
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Some features should be revised or improved, some tools (using it with Visual Studio) of the toolbox should be less schematic and somewhat more flexible. Using for example, the CSV data import is still very old-fashioned and if the data format changes it requires a bit of manual labor to accept the new data structure
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Microsoft
    Automating reporting has reduced manual data processing by 50-70%, freeing up analysts for higher-value tasks. A finance team that previously spent 20+ hours per week on Excel-based reports now does it in minutes with Microsoft Power BI's automated Real-time dashboards have shortened decision cycles by 30-40%, enabling leadership to react quickly to sales trends, operational bottlenecks, and customer behavior.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    SSIS is a great tool for most ETL needs. It has the 90% (or more) use cases covered and even in many of the use cases where it is not ideal SSIS can be extended via a .NET language to do the job well in a supportable way for almost any performance workload.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Performance
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Microsoft
    SQL Server Integration Services performance is dependent directly upon the resources provided to the system. In our environment, we allocated 6 nodes of 4 CPUs, 64GB each, running in parallel. Unfortunately, we had to ramp-up to such a robust environment to get the performance to where we needed it. Most of the reports are completed in a reasonable timeframe. However, in the case of slow running reports, it is often difficult if not impossible to cancel the report without killing the report instance or stopping the service.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Microsoft
    It is a fantastic tool, you can do almost everything related with data and reports, it is a perfect substitutive of Power Point and Excel with a high evolution and flexibility, and also it is very friendly and easy to share. I think all companies should have Power BI (or other BI tool) in their software package and if they are in the MS Suite, for sure Power BI should be the one due to all the benefits of the MS ecosystem.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    The support, when necessary, is excellent. But beyond that, it is very rarely necessary because the user community is so large, vibrant and knowledgable, a simple Google query or forum question can answer almost everything you want to know. You can also get prewritten script tasks with a variety of functionality that saves a lot of time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Microsoft
    It was integrated with our erp easily and was accessible on cloud.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    The implementation may be different in each case, it is important to properly analyze all the existing infrastructure to understand the kind of work needed, the type of software used and the compatibility between these, the features that you want to exploit, to understand what is possible and which ones require integration with third-party tools
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Microsoft
    Microsoft Power BI is free. If I didn't want to create a custom platform (i.e. my organization insisted on an existing platform that I *had* to use), I'd use Microsoft Power BI. For any start-up or SMB, I'd just use Claude & Grok to build it quickly, also for free. Would not pay for Tableau or Sigma anymore. Not worth it at all.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    I think SQL Server Integration Services is better suited for on-premises data movement and ADF is more suited for the cloud. Though ADF has more connectors, SQL Server Integration Services is more robust and has better functionality just because it has been around much longer
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Microsoft
    • Power BI usage reduced the effort of analytical reports creation by about 80%
    • Empowered all the level of employee to be more vigilant of the data and business insights, gained the profit of 8% overall.
    • AI-powered predictive analytics improved forecasting accuracy by 17%, that topped the overall sales.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Without this, we would have to manually update a spreadsheet of our SQL Server inventory
    • We would also have poor alerting; if an instance was down we wouldn't know until it was reported by a user
    • We only have one other person who uses SQL Server Integration Services , he's the expert. It would fall to me without him and I would not enjoy being responsible for it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Microsoft Power BI Screenshots

    Screenshot of Microsoft Power BI - Turns insights into impact for business usersScreenshot of Power BI integrates easily with Microsoft 365Screenshot of Microsoft Power BI - AI-Powered CapabilitiesScreenshot of Microsoft Power BI - Copilot can be used to create reportsScreenshot of Microsoft Power BI - Data HubScreenshot of Microsoft Power BI - Scales as organizational needs grow