Apache Hadoop vs SAP BW4HANA comparison

Apache and SAP are both solutions in the Data Warehouse category. Apache is ranked #8 with an average rating of 7.9, while SAP is ranked #9 with an average rating of 7.6. Apache holds a 5.1% mindshare in Data Warehouse, compared to SAP’s 4.4% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of Apache users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 86% of SAP users who would recommend it.

Apache Hadoop

Read 39 Apache Hadoop reviews

1,448 Views
1,191 Comparison Views

89% willing to recommend

SAP BW4HANA

Read 42 SAP BW4HANA reviews

1,471 Views
978 Comparison Views

86% willing to recommend

Apache Hadoop

SAP BW4HANA

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Dec 18, 2024

Apache Hadoop and SAP BW4HANA are prominent data management platforms competing in big data and analytics. Apache Hadoop boasts cost efficiency and open-source flexibility, which gives it an edge for organizations managing extensive datasets. However, SAP BW4HANA’s robust analytics and integration capabilities often justify its higher cost for users seeking comprehensive solutions.

Features: Apache Hadoop thrives in storage and processing through its distributed file system, HDFS, which efficiently manages large data types including video, pictures, JSON, XML, and plain text. It is scalable and supports various data types, making it a preferred cost-effective choice for big data tasks. Conversely, SAP BW4HANA excels in analytics and visualization with an architecture tailored for seamless ERP integration and extensive reporting capabilities.

Room for Improvement: Apache Hadoop faces criticism for its complexity and lack of a user-friendly interface, with users advocating for enhanced performance speed and easier integration for real-time analytics. Conversely, SAP BW4HANA's primary drawbacks include its high cost and limited customization options, with users calling for better third-party tool integration and adjustments in licensing models to alleviate financial constraints.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Apache Hadoop offers flexible deployment options, both on-premise and in the cloud, but relies on community forums and third-party vendors for support, being favorable to tech-savvy businesses. SAP BW4HANA primarily focuses on on-premise setups while expanding cloud capabilities, offering structured albeit pricier support options.

Pricing and ROI: Apache Hadoop’s open-source nature presents a budget-friendly option for companies capitalizing on large-scale data without traditional RDBMS constraints. In contrast, SAP BW4HANA is recognized for its expense, but many enterprises find the investment worthwhile given its advanced analytics and smooth integration with SAP environments, resulting in substantial ROI for properly equipped organizations.

To learn more, read our detailed Apache Hadoop vs. SAP BW4HANA Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Apache Hadoop vs. SAP BW4HANA

March 2025

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Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Apache Hadoop

Ranking in Data Warehouse

8th

Average Rating

7.8

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

SAP BW4HANA

Ranking in Data Warehouse

9th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.6

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2025, in the Data Warehouse category, the mindshare of Apache Hadoop is 5.1%, down from 5.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP BW4HANA is 4.4%, down from 4.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Data Warehouse

Featured Reviews

Sushil Arya

Software developer at Fiserv

Provides ease of integration with the IT workflow of a business

When working with Kafka, I saw that the data came in an incremental order. The incremental data processing part is still not very effective in Apache Hadoop. If the data is already there, it can be processed very effectively, especially if the data is coming in every second. If you want to know the location of some data every second, then such data is not processed effectively in Apache Hadoop. I can say that one of the features where improvements are required revolves around the licensing cost of the tool. If the tool can build some licensing structures in a pay-per-use manner, organizations can get the look and feel of Apache Hadoop. Apache Hadoop can offer a licensing structure of the product that can be seen as similar to how AWS operates. Apache Hadoop can look into the capability of processing incremental data. The tool's setup process can be a scope of improvement. Also, it is not very simple because while doing the setup, we need to do all the server settings, including port listing and firewall configurations. If we look at other products on the market, then they can be made simpler. There are certain shortcomings when it comes to the product's technical support part, making it an area where improvements are required. The time frame for the resolution is an area that needs to be improved. The overall communication part of the technical support team also needs improvement.

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Csaba Grünblatt

Senior Data, Data warehouse and BI/Analytics Architect at Techwave.

Performs all necessary data warehouse tasks and offers additional functionalities

SAP BW4HANA improved data reporting processes significantly. Performance on HANA database is good. Well-built data models ensure consistent and fast reporting. Reusable models enhance efficiency, even for SaaS services. In-memory computing, especially since HANA, has greatly improved performance in data analysis tasks. It eliminates the need for complex optimizations like creating indexes or aggregates. Queries that once took minutes now run in seconds, enabling real-time reporting, especially for SAP ECC on HANA. SAP BW4HANA's integration capabilities are streamlined with a simplified architecture and more virtual layers. You can directly load data into optimized layers, reducing the need for extra storage. The introduction of Open ODS Views allows for additional logic and master data inclusion, making integration faster and simpler. The learning curve for SAP BW4HANA is much faster now compared to ten years ago, thanks to abundant free resources like documentation, videos, blogs, and learning journeys provided by SAP. It is simpler to learn with these resources available compared to the past when you had to attend courses and rely on books. I would recommend SAP BW4HANA to users looking to implement it, especially if they want to keep their systems on-premise and already have SAP systems. Those with BW on HANA have two choices: BW4HANA or DataSphere, depending on their cloud strategy. If they are advanced in their cloud strategy and want to migrate off-premise, DataSphere is a good choice. However, for a robust solution on-premise or in a private cloud, BW4HANA is an excellent option. Overall, I would rate BW4HANA as a nine out of ten. It performs all necessary data warehouse tasks and offers additional functionalities. We use it traditionally, with complex transformations and models but with less emphasis on real-time processing and third-party sources.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"Hadoop can store any kind of data—structured, unstructured, and semi-structured—and presents it using the relational model through Hive."

"What I like about Apache Hadoop is that it's for big data, in particular big data analysis, and it's the easier solution. I like the data processing feature for AI/ML use cases the most because some solutions allow me to collect data from relational databases, while Hadoop provides me with more options for newer technologies."

"The most valuable features are powerful tools for ingestion, as data is in multiple systems."

"High throughput and low latency. We start with data mashing on Hive and finally use this for KPI visualization."

"Apache Hadoop can manage large amounts and volumes of data with relative ease, which is a feature that is beneficial."

"The most valuable feature is the database."

"It's good for storing historical data and handling analytics on a huge amount of data."

"Initially, with RDBMS alone, we had a lot of work and few servers running on-premise and on cloud for the PoC and incubation. With the use of Hadoop and ecosystem components and tools, and managing it in Amazon EC2, we have created a Big Data "lab" which helps us to centralize all our work and solutions into a single repository. This has cut down the time in terms of maintenance, development and, especially, data processing challenges."

More Apache Hadoop pros

"The solution is easier to maintain than traditional SAP products."

"It is a stable solution...The initial setup was easy."

"You can do hierarchical alert slicing and dicing out-of-box, which is not available in other solutions. I haven't come across that in Oracle or any other software provider."

"The most valuable feature is the dashboard."

"The solution is useful for connecting with external systems."

"We benefited from BW/4HANA's ability to utilize predefined content inside. We didn't need to start from scratch."

"The most valuable aspect of this solution is that the infrastructure is easy to understand."

"The UI is completely new, beautiful, and user-friendly. There are some other helpful features like global filters and advanced tools. We can perform custom calculations easily From a technical perspective, the performance has been enhanced and optimized for a limited number of flows. The content settings are more advanced, and there are so many other features that I can't name them all."

More SAP BW4HANA pros

Cons

"I mentioned it definitely, and this is probably the only feature we can improve a little bit because the terminal and coding screen on Hadoop is a little outdated, and it looks like the old C++ bio screen. If the UI and UX can be improved slightly, I believe it will go a long way toward increasing adoption and effectiveness."

"In the next release, I would like to see Hive more responsive for smaller queries and to reduce the latency."

"There is a lack of virtualization and presentation layers, so you can't take it and implement it like a radio solution."

"Hadoop's security could be better."

"It would be good to have more advanced analytics tools."

"The key shortcoming is its inability to handle queries when there is insufficient memory. This limitation can be bypassed by processing the data in chunks."

"General installation/dependency issues were there, but were not a major, complex issue. While migrating data from MySQL to Hive, things are a little challenging, but we were able to get through that with support from forums and a little trial and error."

"The load optimization capabilities of the product are an area of concern where improvements are required."

More Apache Hadoop cons

"It's complicated to use. You need to spend a lot of time learning about it. The interface could be improved. It's not intuitive to build a data model and use their ETL tools."

"From a technical perspective, it could be even more related to legacy systems. The connectivity requirement is quite high and requires systems that are up-to-date."

"Challenges arise with real-time client requirements when clients are accustomed to Microsoft Excel's extensive features for data analysis. They expect similar flexibility and customization in the solution, particularly regarding headers displaying keys and descriptions or just keys. Achieving this level of customization can be challenging, and it's an area that may need improvement."

"The product needs to improve with more performance and fewer data layers."

"In the next release, I would like to see their BI component introduced with a mobile version, as it is not currently present."

"Other competitors provide better solutions that are more up to date with current technology."

"The UI is not user-friendly."

"They have taken out a few BW functionalities when they redesigned this. The way of multi-dimensional thinking and star schema got a little bit lost. It may be because of the cost, but certain functionalities that were previously implemented from the BW side should come back again in the whole product. It is a young product. It is version 2.0. In time, I'm pretty sure they will come back again because otherwise, it limits the potential of the product, and I have to do a lot of modeling towards that direction. For me, the analytics focus is too much. It is not cube-oriented in that way, so its functionality is limited. It is not really technically limited in the back end; it is more limited in the front end. It has a data-mining mindset for SQL developers. The navigational attributes should be easy. It needs to be built in models. I see the data mark cube or understanding that the composite provider needs to be models in a cube coming back. The multi-dimensional star schema approach and the reporting need to be done as well as possible to leverage the star scheme below. This is definitely not understood by many consultants and even composite providers for star schema. They always think in terms of flat tables, which is limiting. You need to build the right dimensions, objects, and so on. If you can build this in BW4HANA, then you have this understanding that BW4HANA is not forcing you in this direction, but it should force you a bit better in this direction. Maybe a few elements which were in use in BW should come back again. It would help the community to determine the direction to build on the cube. You can have maybe 50 elements, and then you can expand it to what you need by leveraging navigation. So far, this functionality is a little bit limited in the tool, and it is not thought through, but I think it will come. They should also be adding more capabilities for the transformation between different objects. In BW, this is currently limited, especially towards composite providers. It is a bit complex basically in the building. You have to have a lot of knowledge as well as know how to do it better because it is a bit different from BW. There is not too much expertise currently in the consulting markets. Many are trying to build something, but it may be based on their knowledge of what they have from the BW and HANA side. You have to find the right mix from both of them at this time. We also have HANA Native. These are our two different sync sources basically, and we have approaches to connect nicely, but it is hard to manage your team because a lot of coaching is required."

More SAP BW4HANA cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It's reasonable, but there's room for improvement in cost-effectiveness."

"We just use the free version."

"For any big enterprise the costs can be handled, and it is suitable for big enterprises because the scale of data is large. For medium and small enterprises, the tool is on the high-price side."

"The product is open-source, but some associated licensing fees depend on the subscription level."

"This is a low cost and powerful solution."

"We don't directly pay for it. Our clients pay for it, and they usually don't complain about the price. So, it is probably acceptable."

"The price of Apache Hadoop could be less expensive."

"Do take into consider that data storage and compute capacity scale differently and hence purchasing a "boxed" / 'all-in-one" solution (software and hardware) might not be the best idea."

More Apache Hadoop pricing and cost advice

"The product is free if we have the ECC license."

"SAP BW/4HANA is expensive."

"The cost and licensing depends on how the customer is going to use the solution."

"For some, the rates offered by SAP can be costly while for others it may seem cheap. The price ultimately depends on how you have negotiated your contract with SAP."

"The solution is expensive."

"The tool is affordable."

"In general, it's quite expensive."

"Price wise, this solution is on the higher side."

More SAP BW4HANA pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

34%

Computer Software Company

11%

University

Energy/Utilities Company

Manufacturing Company

17%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Computer Software Company

Retailer

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Apache Hadoop?

It's primarily open source. You can handle huge data volumes and create your own views, workflows, and tables. I can also use it for real-time data streaming.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Apache Hadoop?

The product is open-source, but some associated licensing fees depend on the subscription level. While it might be free for students, organizations typically need to pay for their subscriptions. Th...

See all answers

What needs improvement with Apache Hadoop?

Hadoop lacks OLAP capabilities. I recommend adding a Delta Lake feature to make the data compatible with ACID properties. Also, video and audio streaming import issues could be improved to ensure p...

See all answers

What do you like most about SAP BW4HANA?

One significant advantage of SAP BW/4HANA is the direct integration with the SAP HANA database, providing seamless access to real-time analytics. Additionally, it enables real-time data integrati...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for SAP BW4HANA?

We have a broad licensing arrangement, which is expensive but worth it for sizeable businesses.

See all answers

What needs improvement with SAP BW4HANA?

The interface could be more user-friendly, as we often need to do low-level coding to get things done.

See all answers

Comparisons

Oracle Exadata vs Apache Hadoop

Compared 22% of the time

Azure Data Factory vs Apache Hadoop

Compared 14% of the time

Teradata vs Apache Hadoop

Compared 12% of the time

BigQuery vs Apache Hadoop

Compared 12% of the time

Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics vs Apache Hadoop

Compared 7% of the time

More Apache Hadoop Competitors

Snowflake vs SAP BW4HANA

Compared 29% of the time

Microsoft Azure Synapse Analytics vs SAP BW4HANA

Compared 29% of the time

SAP HANA vs SAP BW4HANA

Compared 8% of the time

Amazon Redshift vs SAP BW4HANA

Compared 8% of the time

SQL Server vs SAP BW4HANA

Compared 7% of the time

More SAP BW4HANA Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Apache Hadoop

March 2025

Download Apache Hadoop product report

Buyer's Guide

SAP BW4HANA

March 2025

Download SAP BW4HANA product report

Also Known As

No data available

SAP BW/4HANA

Overview

The Apache Hadoop project develops open-source software for reliable, scalable, distributed computing. The Apache Hadoop software library is a framework that allows for the distributed processing of large data sets across clusters of computers using simple programming models. It is designed to scale up from single servers to thousands of machines, each offering local computation and storage. Rather than rely on hardware to deliver high-availability, the library itself is designed to detect and handle failures at the application layer, so delivering a highly-available service on top of a cluster of computers, each of which may be prone to failures.

Apache

SAP BW4HANA is a data warehouse solution developed by SAP for businesses looking to analyze big data in real time. It is designed to run on the SAP HANA database, offering improved performance and optimized processing of large data sets. SAP BW/4HANA provides an array of advanced analytics capabilities, including predictive analytics, text analytics, and spatial data processing. It also offers a modern, intuitive user interface and streamlined data modeling and administration tools, making it easier for businesses to access, manage, and utilize their data.

SAP BW4HANA Features

SAP BW4HANA has many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:

In-memory data processing: The solution runs on the SAP HANA database, providing fast and efficient data processing.

Advanced analytics: SAP BW4HANA includes capabilities for predictive analytics, text analytics, and spatial data processing.

Data modeling and administration: The solution provides streamlined data modeling and administration tools for efficient data management.

Modern user interface: SAP BW4HAN is designed with a modern, intuitive user interface for easier data access and analysis.

Data warehousing optimization: The solution is optimized for big data warehousing, offering improved performance and scalability.

Integration with SAP ecosystem: SAP BW4HAN integrates with the SAP ecosystem, including SAP S/4HANA and SAP Cloud Platform, for seamless data exchange.

Real-time data processing: It supports real-time data processing and analysis, enabling businesses to make data-driven decisions.

Data governance and security: With its robust data governance and security features, SAP BW4HAN can be used for secure data management and compliance.

Automated data loading: SAP BW4HAN supports automated data loading from various sources, including SAP and non-SAP systems.

Advanced data visualization: With its advanced data visualization capabilities, users can generate better data insights and make more informed business decisions.

SAP BW4HANA Benefits

There are many benefits to implementing SAP BW4HANA. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:

Improved data processing speed: Running on the SAP HANA database, SAP BW/4HANA provides fast and efficient data processing, resulting in improved performance and reduced downtime.

Streamlined data management: The solution's streamlined data modeling and administration tools make it easier for organizations to manage their data, improving overall efficiency and reducing the risk of errors.

Improved data governance: SAP BW/4HANA includes robust data governance and security features, helping organizations meet regulatory requirements and protect sensitive data.

Cost savings: By optimizing data warehousing processes, SAP BW/4HANA helps organizations reduce costs and improve their bottom line.

Reviews from Real Users

SAP BW4HANA is a solution that stands out when compared to many of its competitors. Some of its major advantages are its hierarchical alert slicing, real-time insights, and its ability to transform large amounts of data.

PeerSpot reviewer, Srivatsav A., SAP BW/4HANA Specialist at a government, is very happy with the solution. He explains, "You can do hierarchical alert slicing and dicing out-of-box, which is not available in other solutions. I haven't come across that in Oracle or any other software provider."

“It has got wonderful features in terms of analyzing your production data, and it gives you real-time insight into productive maintenance. You can plan your budget, and you can map them against actuals. It gives you good insights on overall performance and processes,” says Amrit J., ERP Application Manager at an energy/utilities company.

In addition, a Technology Analyst at a tech services company mentions, "The most valuable feature is that we can transform a huge amount of data and apply business logic as per the requirements."

SAP

Sample Customers

Amazon, Adobe, eBay, Facebook, Google, Hulu, IBM, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Spotify, AOL, Twitter, University of Maryland, Yahoo!, Cornell University Web Lab

Information Not Available

Buyer's Guide

Apache Hadoop vs. SAP BW4HANA

March 2025

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