Apache NiFi vs Google Cloud Dataflow comparison

The compared Apache and Google solutions aren't in the same category. Apache is ranked #8 in CS , with an average rating of 7.7, and holds a 7.9% mindshare in the category. Google is ranked #8 in SA , with an average rating of 7.9, and holds a 7.7% mindshare. Additionally, 91% of Apache users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 91% of Google users who would recommend it.

Apache NiFi

Read 12 Apache NiFi reviews

2,136 Views
991 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Google Cloud Dataflow

Read 11 Google Cloud Dataflow reviews

3,450 Views
2,838 Comparison Views

91% willing to recommend

Apache NiFi

Google Cloud Dataflow

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Apache NiFi and Google Cloud Dataflow based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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Buyer's Guide

Compute Service

January 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 NiFi

Average Rating

7.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Compute Service (8th)

Google Cloud Dataflow

Average Rating

8.0

Reviews Sentiment

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Streaming Analytics (8th)

Mindshare comparison

Apache NiFi and Google Cloud Dataflow aren’t in the same category and serve different purposes. Apache NiFi is designed for Compute Service and holds a mindshare of 7.9%, up 6.5% compared to last year.
Google Cloud Dataflow, on the other hand, focuses on Streaming Analytics, holds 7.7% mindshare, up 6.8% since last year.

Compute Service

Streaming Analytics

Featured Reviews

Bharghava Raghavendra Beesa

Senior Developer at Infosys

The tool enables effective data transformation and integration

There are some areas for improvement, particularly with record-level tasks that take a bit of time. The quality of JSON data processing could be improved, as JSON workloads require manual conversions without a specific process. Enhancing features related to alerting would be helpful, including mobile alerts for pipeline issues. Integration with mobile devices for error alerts would simplify information delivery.

Read full review

Jana Polianskaja

Data Engineer at Accenture

Build Scalable Data Pipelines with Apache Beam and Google Cloud Dataflow

As a data engineer, I find several features of Google Cloud Dataflow particularly valuable. The ability to test solutions locally using Direct Runner is crucial for development, allowing me to validate pipelines without incurring the costs of full Dataflow jobs. The unified programming model for both batch and streaming processing is exceptional - requiring only minor code adjustments to optimize for either mode. This flexibility extends to language support, with robust implementations in both Java and Python, allowing teams to leverage their existing expertise. The platform's comprehensive monitoring capabilities are another standout feature. The intuitive interface, Grafana integration, and extensive service connectivity make troubleshooting and performance tracking highly efficient. Furthermore, seamless integration with Google Cloud Composer (managed Airflow) enables sophisticated orchestration of data pipelines.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The initial setup is very easy. I would rate my experience with the initial setup a ten out of ten, where one point is difficult, and ten points are easy."

"We can integrate the tool with other applications easily."

"Visually, this is a good product."

"The most valuable features of this solution are ease of use and implementation."

"The user interface is good and makes it easy to design very popular workflows."

"It's an automated flow, where you can build a flow from source to destination, then do the transformation in between."

"Apache NiFi is user-friendly. Its most valuable features for handling large volumes of data include its multitude of integrated endpoints and clients and the ability to create cron jobs to run tasks at regular intervals."

"The initial setup is very easy."

More Apache NiFi pros

"The support team is good and it's easy to use."

"The most valuable features of Google Cloud Dataflow are the integration, it's very simple if you have the complete stack, which we are using. It is overall very easy to use, user-friendly friendly, and cost-effective if you know how to use it. The solution is very flexible for programmers, if you know how to do scripts or program in Python or any other language, it's extremely easy to use."

"I would rate the overall solution a ten out of ten."

"Google Cloud Dataflow is useful for streaming and data pipelines."

"The solution allows us to program in any language we desire."

"The best feature of Google Cloud Dataflow is its practical connectedness."

"The service is relatively cheap compared to other batch-processing engines."

"The product's installation process is easy...The tool's maintenance part is somewhat easy."

More Google Cloud Dataflow pros

Cons

"The quality of JSON data processing could be improved, as JSON workloads require manual conversions without a specific process."

"The use case templates could be more precise to typical business needs."

"The overall stability of this solution could be improved. In a future release, we would like to have access to more features that could be used in a parallel way. This would provide more freedom with processing."

"There should be a better way to integrate a development environment with local tools."

"The tool should incorporate more tutorials for advanced use cases. It has tutorials for simple use cases."

"There is room for improvement in integration with SSO. For example, NiFi does not have any integration with SSO. And if I want to give some kind of rollback access control across the organization. That is not possible."

"More features must be added to the product."

"There are some claims that NiFi is cloud-native but we have tested it, and it's not."

More Apache NiFi cons

"Google Cloud Dataflow should include a little cost optimization."

"Google Cloud Data Flow can improve by having full simple integration with Kafka topics. It's not that complicated, but it could improve a bit. The UI is easy to use but the experience could be better. There are other tools available that do a better job."

"I would like Google Cloud Dataflow to be integrated with IT data flow and other related services to make it easier to use as it is a complex tool."

"The authentication part of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."

"There are certain challenges regarding the Google Cloud Composer which can be improved."

"The solution's setup process could be more accessible."

"The technical support has slight room for improvement."

"When I deploy the product in local errors, a lot of errors pop up which are not always caught. The solution's error logging is bad. It can take a lot of time to debug the errors. It needs to have better logs."

More Google Cloud Dataflow cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I used the tool's free version."

"It's an open-source solution."

"We use the free version of Apache NiFi."

"The solution is open-source."

"The solution is not very expensive."

"The solution is cost-effective."

"Google Cloud is slightly cheaper than AWS."

"The price of the solution depends on many factors, such as how they pay for tools in the company and its size."

"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate Google Cloud Dataflow's pricing a four out of ten."

"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a seven to eight out of ten."

"Google Cloud Dataflow is a cheap solution."

"The tool is cheap."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

17%

Computer Software Company

15%

Manufacturing Company

Retailer

Financial Services Firm

17%

Retailer

12%

Manufacturing Company

12%

Computer Software Company

12%

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Apache NiFi?

The initial setup is very easy.

See all answers

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

I used the tool's free version.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Apache NiFi?

See all answers

What do you like most about Google Cloud Dataflow?

The product's installation process is easy...The tool's maintenance part is somewhat easy.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Dataflow?

The solution is not very expensive.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Google Cloud Dataflow?

The authentication part of the product is an area of concern where improvements are required. For some common users, the solution's authentication part is difficult to use. The scalability of the p...

See all answers

Comparisons

AWS Lambda vs Apache NiFi

Compared 29% of the time

Apache Spark vs Apache NiFi

Compared 13% of the time

AWS Fargate vs Apache NiFi

Compared 9% of the time

Azure Stream Analytics vs Apache NiFi

Compared 7% of the time

Apache Storm vs Apache NiFi

Compared 4% of the time

More Apache NiFi Competitors

Databricks vs Google Cloud Dataflow

Compared 42% of the time

Apache Flink vs Google Cloud Dataflow

Compared 11% of the time

Amazon MSK vs Google Cloud Dataflow

Compared 10% of the time

Spring Cloud Data Flow vs Google Cloud Dataflow

Compared 8% of the time

Amazon Kinesis vs Google Cloud Dataflow

Compared 5% of the time

More Google Cloud Dataflow Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Apache NiFi

February 2025

Download Apache NiFi product report

Buyer's Guide

Streaming Analytics

January 2025

Download Google Cloud Dataflow product report

Also Known As

No data available

Google Dataflow

Overview

Apache NiFi is an easy to use, powerful, and reliable system to process and distribute data. It supports powerful and scalable directed graphs of data routing, transformation, and system mediation logic.

Apache

Google Dataflow is a unified programming model and a managed service for developing and executing a wide range of data processing patterns including ETL, batch computation, and continuous computation. Cloud Dataflow frees you from operational tasks like resource management and performance optimization.

Google

Sample Customers

Macquarie Telecom Group, Dovestech, Slovak Telekom, Looker, Hastings Group

Absolutdata, Backflip Studios, Bluecore, Claritics, Crystalloids, Energyworx, GenieConnect, Leanplum, Nomanini, Redbus, Streak, TabTale

Find out what your peers are saying about Amazon Web Services (AWS), Apache, Spot by NetApp and others in Compute Service. Updated: January 2025.

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