SAP Analytics Cloud vs. Tableau Desktop

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
SAP Analytics Cloud
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
The SAP Analytics Cloud solution brings together analytics and planning with integration to SAP applications and access to heterogenous data sources. As the analytics and planning solution within SAP Business Technology Platform, SAP Analytics Cloud supports trusted insights and integrated planning processes enterprise-wide to help make decisions without doubt.
$36
per month per user
Tableau Desktop
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
Tableau Desktop is a data visualization product from Tableau. It connects to a variety of data sources for combining disparate data sources without coding. It provides tools for discovering patterns and insights, data calculations, forecasts, and statistical summaries and visual storytelling.
$70
per month
Pricing
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Editions & Modules
SAP Analytics Cloud for Business Intelligence
$36.00
per month per user
SAP Analytics Cloud for Planning
Price upon request
per month per user
Tableau Creator
$70.00
Per User / Per Month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsGet started on your 30-day trial with SAP Analytics Cloud, supporting analytics enterprise-wide. Extend it up to 90 days if you want to.All pricing plans are billed annually.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Considered Both Products
SAP Analytics Cloud
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAC is a strong solution that offers a high degree of flexibility in its usage. The ability to incorporate excel type based logic and functionality, as well as a myriad of supported models makes SAC a solid choice. Other systems like BI and Tableau have better UI interfaces …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAP Analytics Cloud is competitive and has huge potential to get to the top. It should also learn from the market leaders in cloud and analytics, be it, AWS, GCP, Azure, Databricks, Tableau, etc., and should incorporate the missing features.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Positives and negatives to both, Tableau is the best visually but not as strong on integration. Power Bi is very customization but is very ungoverned.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAC is a full-featured analytics platform, it offers AP, CPM and PA unlike Tableau which doesn’t encompass corporate performance management tools.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
It was a corporate decision that will serve all hubs in the world to gain scalability. Once a gain, one fits all.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAP Analytics Cloud has the largest user base in the manufacturing field because of its service.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Single tool to have all built in capabilities of reporting, planning & prediction. Ease of usage to business users as no need to sign in on different tools for different kind of analytics. Easy integration with SAP Source systems for importing data. Natural Language Querying …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAC includes predictive analytics features, allowing users to perform advanced analytics and forecast future trends. This can be a valuable asset for organizations seeking predictive modeling capabilities.

It has an integration with the SAP landscape, seek a unified platform for …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
More integrated to our landscape SAP based
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
I preferred SAC since it had a lot of tools unlike some alternatives which were missing some capabilities such as CPM on Ms Power BI.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Easy integration with the ERP
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAP Analytics Cloud has better visuals.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
End to end seamless integration with other SAP products in the eco system.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
It's very advanced as compared to any other software and its usability is effective with its data usage power to give effective results from that data as well as profitable from the company's perspective, and you can do work in clicks, which are mainly for data inputs, …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Since we are IT software Selling organisation we need to review data of the deals that are closed new project coming so we can plan our resources. SAP Analytics helps us to analyse the data and plan our deals and projects. Obviously, there are manual decisions taken post …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Firstly the support is much much better than the other platform used by me. The interactive and user-friendliness and also the fact it is a product from one of the leading software companies is a key reason to recommend this tool. The tool, I'm sure will evolve and be …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
As compared to Lumira and design studio SAC is installation free software which offers multiple features on cloud platform with live and import data conectivity features within one product.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
SAP undoubtedly provides the best use case scenario given its integration capabilities and data management features. Other products do not provide a complete solution and obviously the product quality and reputation matters a lot given the intensity of product usage across the …
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
I like this tool is cloud-based architecture, no desktop installation required.
Device agnostic.
A single platform for BI, planning predictive snd app development.
Chose SAP Analytics Cloud
Similar visualization options, but SAP Analytics Cloud has better integration to SAP backend data.
Tableau Desktop
Chose Tableau Desktop
Well, Tableau has a nicer UI compared to Spotfire. But the main reason why Tableau stacked against the other was the pricing.
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
BI Standard Reporting
Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.9
247 Ratings
1% below category average
Tableau Desktop
8.5
167 Ratings
4% above category average
Pixel Perfect reports7.8204 Ratings8.5139 Ratings
Customizable dashboards8.1242 Ratings8.8166 Ratings
Report Formatting Templates7.9220 Ratings8.2145 Ratings
Ad-hoc Reporting
Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.9
257 Ratings
5% below category average
Tableau Desktop
8.8
164 Ratings
8% above category average
Drill-down analysis8.0248 Ratings9.0159 Ratings
Formatting capabilities7.9245 Ratings9.0162 Ratings
Integration with R or other statistical packages7.8190 Ratings8.0122 Ratings
Report sharing and collaboration7.9235 Ratings9.3157 Ratings
Report Output and Scheduling
Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
8.0
242 Ratings
2% below category average
Tableau Desktop
8.6
158 Ratings
3% above category average
Publish to Web8.1208 Ratings8.7149 Ratings
Publish to PDF8.2233 Ratings8.3149 Ratings
Report Versioning8.1202 Ratings8.6116 Ratings
Report Delivery Scheduling7.9194 Ratings9.1123 Ratings
Delivery to Remote Servers00 Ratings8.473 Ratings
Data Discovery and Visualization
Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.8
250 Ratings
3% above category average
Tableau Desktop
8.6
156 Ratings
6% above category average
Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)7.8239 Ratings8.9154 Ratings
Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization7.8232 Ratings8.7149 Ratings
Predictive Analytics7.9236 Ratings8.7126 Ratings
Pattern Recognition and Data Mining7.834 Ratings8.02 Ratings
Access Control and Security
Comparison of Access Control and Security features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
8.2
256 Ratings
6% below category average
Tableau Desktop
8.8
142 Ratings
2% above category average
Multi-User Support (named login)8.1235 Ratings8.8139 Ratings
Role-Based Security Model8.1242 Ratings8.3119 Ratings
Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)8.0233 Ratings8.7129 Ratings
Report-Level Access Control8.145 Ratings9.03 Ratings
Single Sign-On (SSO)8.6236 Ratings8.977 Ratings
Mobile Capabilities
Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
8.0
219 Ratings
0% above category average
Tableau Desktop
8.4
135 Ratings
5% above category average
Responsive Design for Web Access7.9208 Ratings8.5124 Ratings
Mobile Application7.8180 Ratings8.197 Ratings
Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile8.0203 Ratings8.8117 Ratings
Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting
Comparison of Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.8
274 Ratings
6% below category average
Tableau Desktop
-
Ratings
Long-term financial planning7.6233 Ratings00 Ratings
Financial budgeting7.8239 Ratings00 Ratings
Forecasting7.9246 Ratings00 Ratings
Scenario modeling7.5237 Ratings00 Ratings
Management reporting8.3265 Ratings00 Ratings
Consolidation and Close
Comparison of Consolidation and Close features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.6
229 Ratings
5% below category average
Tableau Desktop
-
Ratings
Financial data consolidation7.4183 Ratings00 Ratings
Journal entries and reports7.7173 Ratings00 Ratings
Multi-currency management7.5188 Ratings00 Ratings
Intercompany Eliminations7.4143 Ratings00 Ratings
Minority Ownership7.5129 Ratings00 Ratings
Local and consolidated reporting8.0180 Ratings00 Ratings
Detailed Audit Trails7.6170 Ratings00 Ratings
Financial Reporting and Compliance
Comparison of Financial Reporting and Compliance features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
8.0
254 Ratings
3% below category average
Tableau Desktop
-
Ratings
Financial Statement Reporting7.9213 Ratings00 Ratings
Management Reporting8.3244 Ratings00 Ratings
Excel-based Reporting8.0225 Ratings00 Ratings
Automated board and financial reporting8.1203 Ratings00 Ratings
XBRL support for regulatory filing7.6114 Ratings00 Ratings
Analytics and Reporting
Comparison of Analytics and Reporting features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
8.2
277 Ratings
2% above category average
Tableau Desktop
-
Ratings
Personalized dashboards8.2270 Ratings00 Ratings
Color-coded scorecards8.1255 Ratings00 Ratings
KPIs8.3261 Ratings00 Ratings
Cost and profitability analysis8.3243 Ratings00 Ratings
Key Performance Indicator setting8.3246 Ratings00 Ratings
Benchmarking with external data7.6206 Ratings00 Ratings
Integration
Comparison of Integration features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
7.6
258 Ratings
9% below category average
Tableau Desktop
-
Ratings
Flat file integration7.7244 Ratings00 Ratings
Excel data integration7.9247 Ratings00 Ratings
Direct links to 3rd-party data sources7.1226 Ratings00 Ratings
Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding
Comparison of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding features of Product A and Product B
SAP Analytics Cloud
-
Ratings
Tableau Desktop
8.7
64 Ratings
9% above category average
REST API00 Ratings8.756 Ratings
Javascript API00 Ratings8.551 Ratings
iFrames00 Ratings8.949 Ratings
Java API00 Ratings9.146 Ratings
Themeable User Interface (UI)00 Ratings8.453 Ratings
Customizable Platform (Open Source)00 Ratings8.646 Ratings
Best Alternatives
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Small Businesses
IBM Planning Analytics
IBM Planning Analytics
Score 8.3 out of 10
BrightGauge
BrightGauge
Score 8.9 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Centage
Centage
Score 9.6 out of 10
Reveal
Reveal
Score 9.9 out of 10
Enterprises
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Score 8.1 out of 10
Jaspersoft Community Edition
Jaspersoft Community Edition
Score 9.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(298 ratings)
8.9
(194 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
7.4
(7 ratings)
8.9
(39 ratings)
Usability
8.1
(219 ratings)
8.6
(63 ratings)
Availability
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(10 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
6.1
(9 ratings)
Support Rating
6.3
(75 ratings)
6.9
(56 ratings)
In-Person Training
9.0
(1 ratings)
9.4
(4 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
8.0
(4 ratings)
Implementation Rating
4.9
(6 ratings)
8.0
(34 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
8.1
(2 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
7.0
(3 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
SAP Analytics CloudTableau Desktop
Likelihood to Recommend
SAP
SAP Analytics Cloud is great for big companies that want advanced data analysis and planning, especially when they need to work together in real-time or when people need to access data on their phones. It's like a super tool for predicting future trends in industries like retail or finance. SAC also works well for companies that use different types of computer systems because it can easily connect them. But, for small businesses that only need basic reports or don't have a lot of technical resources, a simpler tool might be better. If a company doesn't always have a good internet connection or if they're just starting with analytics, there might be other tools that work better.
Read full review
Tableau
Tableau Desktop is one the finest tool available in the market with such a wide range of capabilities in its suite that makes it easy to generate insights. Further, if optimally designed, then its reports are fairly simple to understand, yet capable enough to make changes at the required levels. One can create a variety of visualizations as required by the business or the clients. The data pipelines in the backend are very robust. The tableau desktop also provides options to develop the reports in developer mode, which is one of the finest features to embed and execute even the most complex possible logic. It's easier to operate, simple to navigate, and fluent to understand by the users.
Read full review
Pros
SAP
  • It makes it easier yo analyse order and related records easily.
  • We can easily maintain and track the performance of employees in organisation.
  • Can easily track various aspects for the growth of an organisation thus allowing real time analysis and tracking of organisation's growth and performance.
Read full review
Tableau
  • An excellent tool for data visualization, it presents information in an appealing visual format—an exceptional platform for storing and analyzing data in any size organization.
  • Through interactive parameters, it enables real-time interaction with the user and is easy to learn and get support from the community.
Read full review
Cons
SAP
  • Complexity in Data Modeling
  • SAC supports various data sources, but improvements in the ease of connecting to and integrating with certain data repositories, especially non-SAP databases, would enhance the platform's versatility and integration capabilities.
  • An offline mode for SAC could be valuable for users who need to access and analyze data without an internet connection. Additionally, optimizing performance for large datasets and complex visualizations would contribute to a smoother user experience.
Read full review
Tableau
  • Formatting the data to work correctly in graphical presentations can be time consuming
  • Daily data extracts can run slowly depending on how much data is required and the source of the data
  • The desktop version is required for advanced functionality, editing on [the] Tableau server allows only limited features
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
SAP
There’s no doubt I will renew SAP Analytics Cloud. It is the most vital tool in our organization that makes it seamless to make rapid business decisions by collecting, modeling and visualizing data in real-time.
Read full review
Tableau
Our use of Tableau Desktop is still fairly low, and will continue over time. The only real concern is around cost of the licenses, and I have mentioned this to Tableau and fully expect the development of more sensible models for our industry. This will remove any impediment to expansion of our use.
Read full review
Usability
SAP
Considering the feedback and improvements made over time, users often rate SAP Analytics Cloud's usability in the range of 7 to 9 out of 10. Positive aspects include its integration capabilities, collaborative features, and the ability to create visually appealing dashboards. Some users, however, may note a learning curve or desire additional customization options.
Read full review
Tableau
Tableau Desktop has proven to be a lifesaver in many situations. Once we've completed the initial setup, it's simple to use. It has all of the features we need to quickly and efficiently synthesize our data. Tableau Desktop has advanced capabilities to improve our company's data structure and enable self-service for our employees.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
SAP
No answers on this topic
Tableau
When used as a stand-alone tool, Tableau Desktop has unlimited uptime, which is always nice. When used in conjunction with Tableau Server, this tool has as much uptime as your server admins are willing to give it. All in all, I've never had an issue with Tableau's availability.
Read full review
Performance
SAP
No answers on this topic
Tableau
Tableau Desktop's performance is solid. You can really dig into a large dataset in the form of a spreadsheet, and it exhibits similarly good performance when accessing a moderately sized Oracle database. I noticed that with Tableau Desktop 9.3, the performance using a spreadsheet started to slow around 75K rows by about 60 columns. This was easily remedied by creating an extract and pushing it to Tableau Server, where performance went to lightning fast
Read full review
Support Rating
SAP
Since the implementation stage, the support team has been very helpful and assisting. Even in the later stages, the tech team had quite a rapid response. In general, SAP has provided us with great customer support, let it be for a specific product of SAP or for integration of different modules.
Read full review
Tableau
I have never really used support much, to be honest. I think the support is not as user-friendly to search and use it. I did have an encounter with them once and it required a bit of going back and forth for licensing before reaching a resolution. They did solve my issue though
Read full review
In-Person Training
SAP
Good videos and reference material available in SAP Portal.
Read full review
Tableau
It is admittedly hard to train a group of people with disparate levels of ability coming in, but the software is so easy to use that this is not a huge problem; anyone who can follow simple instructions can catch up pretty quickly.
Read full review
Online Training
SAP
No answers on this topic
Tableau
The training for new users are quite good because it covers topic wise training and the best part was that it also had video tutorials which are very helpful
Read full review
Implementation Rating
SAP
SAC is a simple solution ad it works fine when connecting it to other SAP tools. On the other hand, connecting it to third party solutions brings difficulties when there's no previous design and the objetives are not clear. It is really important to integrate Business users from the start to provide with valuable business insights
Read full review
Tableau
Again, training is the key and the company provides a lot of example videos that will help users discover use cases that will greatly assist their creation of original visualizations. As with any new software tool, productivity will decline for a period. In the case of Tableau, the decline period is short and the later gains are well worth it.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
SAP
SAP is a product/solution that contains extra capabilities that might be considered an enhancement; SAP Analytics Cloud models are based on a huge data collection, and numerous models can be integrated. When coupled with different SAP systems, Analytics Cloud has a common dataset architecture; this software also includes improved analytics capabilities.
Read full review
Tableau
If we do not have legacy tools which have already been set up, I would switch the visualization method to open source software via PyCharm, Atom, and Visual Studio IDE. These IDEs cannot directly help you to visualize the data but you can use many python packages to do so through these IDEs.
Read full review
Scalability
SAP
No answers on this topic
Tableau
Tableau Desktop's scaleability is really limited to the scale of your back-end data systems. If you want to pull down an extract and work quickly in-memory, in my application it scaled to a few tens of millions of rows using the in-memory engine. But it's really only limited by your back-end data store if you have or are willing to invest in an optimized SQL store or purpose-built query engine like Veritca or Netezza or something similar.
Read full review
Return on Investment
SAP
  • In general, SAC is a comprehensive analytics platform that offers a range of capabilities for data visualization, reporting, planning, and predictive analytics. It is particularly well-suited for businesses that use SAP systems and are looking to gain insight into their data in a single, integrated platform.
Read full review
Tableau
  • Tableau was acquired years ago, and has provided good value with the content created.
  • Ongoing maintenance costs for the platform, both to maintain desktop and server licensing has made the continuing value questionable when compared to other offerings in the marketplace.
  • Users have largely been satisfied with the content, but not with the overall performance. This is due to a combination of factors including the performance of the Tableau engines as well as development deficiencies.
Read full review
ScreenShots