Crystal a great tool for reporting.
February 04, 2014

Crystal a great tool for reporting.

Anonymous | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Software Version

XI

Overall Satisfaction

The IT Department used Crystal Reports to produce reports or the accounting department.
  • Very powerful.
  • Very versatile.
  • Crystal Reports is the Cadillac of reporting suites. very mature very stable.
  • Crystal Reports at times is like using a mac truck to deliver your solution.
  • Crystal Reports very strengths are also its weaknesses it seems like its stable and see no room to grow or improve.
  • There were time were it felt like you had to jump through various hoops to do very simple things, where newer suites seem to be built with simplicity in mind.
  • Crystal Reports has always been the reporting suite that has allowed our accountants to get the data they needed in the format they need.
  • Crystal was also embedded into the web reporting tool we used so any ROI etc... all hinged on the fact we had to use it.
We used Crystal because it was embedded in what we were using. But the alternatives are out there. I would recommend that any company study what their reporting needs are and then decide if Crystal is right. Crystal does have the added cost of finding someone who can use it and understands it. Some newer tools have an easier learning curve. This is not a slam on Crystal. Crystal has had years to build a suite that has the power to pull off the big jobs.
But it was what was built into our software... Though if I were in a similar situation and given a choice, I would most likely choose Crystal. After using it for a bit I can tell you the power of Crystal still stands.
The only scenario in which I would not recommend Crystal is one in which the price tag did not make sense for the company. For instance a small company that needs reporting but not published. Crystal might not be for everyone but it still holds the place as the top of the line reporting suites out there.