Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs Zendesk comparison

Microsoft SQL Server Report...

Read 60 Zendesk reviews

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82 Comparison Views

93% willing to recommend

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Mar 4, 2025

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services and Zendesk each cater to distinct business needs, with the former specializing in data management and reporting and the latter in customer support solutions. While Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services has an advantage in handling complex data tasks, Zendesk is favored for its superior customer-oriented features.

Features: Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services offers powerful reporting capabilities, integration with Microsoft products, and custom report creation. Zendesk delivers valuable features like robust ticketing systems, integration with diverse third-party applications, and customer interaction tracking.

Room for Improvement: Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services could improve on simplifying its deployment process, enhancing user-friendliness, and expanding non-Microsoft integrations. Zendesk might benefit from advanced reporting capabilities, better multi-brand management, and refining its macro features.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services demands significant technical expertise for deployment, possibly hindering customer service. In contrast, Zendesk offers a simpler setup process and emphasizes user-friendly support, ensuring continuous assistance.

Pricing and ROI: Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services involves higher initial costs, with ROI driven by long-term integration efficiencies. On the other hand, Zendesk matches its customer-centric features with setup costs that often yield faster ROI by enhancing client engagement dynamics.

To learn more, read our detailed Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs. Zendesk Report (Updated: March 2025).

Microsoft SQL Servering Services vs. Zendesk

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Helped 846,617 peers since 2012

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

Microsoft SQL Server Report...

Ranking in Reporting

6th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Zendesk

Ranking in Reporting

13th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.8

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

CRM Customer Engagement Centers (7th), CRM (20th), Help Desk Software (9th), IT Service Management (ITSM) (7th), Sales Force Automation (7th), Knowledge Management Software (3rd), Community Platforms (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the Reporting category, the mindshare of Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is 3.5%, down from 4.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Zendesk is 0.2%, up from 0.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Reporting

Featured Reviews

Gnanavel-Chakkarapani

Junior Consultant at CMA CGM

Offers useful templates but needs to improve the connectivity offered

In Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, not much of the interface part is used. With Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, its users face issues with the interface after they use Excel or create Microsoft SSIS Packages. The tool's interface is an area of concern requiring improvement. There needs to be an improvement in the product's connectivity so that the tool can connect easily with other third-party databases. In the dashboard, drag and drop functionality needs to improve, especially when compared to other tools like IBM Cognos Analytics and Qlik Sense. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is useful only for standard reports. In IBM Cognos Analytics, query studio can be used by users to drag the data and simply download the reports, so the user doesn't need to have any technical knowledge like developers. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is to be improved to offer features like query Studio, which is provided in IBM Cognos Analytics.

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Ahmed Nassar

Technical Consultant at Spectrum Group

Stable tool, making it reliable for handling tasks but difficult initial setup

It has a huge problem regarding the price. The price increases every year. Every year, they raise the price of the licenses, which makes a lot of limitations, and you have to pay more. So that's some conditions. Actually, most of the companies that use Zendesk need a customer experience or customer care department. However, Zendesk only works with chatbox or emailing services, but it can also use Genesys, VoIP, or voice sensors. Additionally, Zendesk needs the administration panels to be easier because it's a very complex panel. You need to search for a lot of things to do, like a small job. So you have to do a lot of setup regarding the integration, and it's a little bit challenging to integrate any software in the vendor.

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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

"It is a stable solution."

"It is scalable."

"We get good support from Microsoft."

"Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services has been functional whenever I needed to use it."

"In Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, the installation and configuration are easy."

"The initial setup is easy."

"With SQL Server Reporting Services, I can create reports and printable reports, known as paginated reports."

"I mainly use the solution for the ease of reporting and for executive dashboards."

More Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services pros

"The feature to move over my customer experience team tickets for different specialists is very valuable for my team."

"The stability has been very good."

"Zendesk has been invaluable in automating communications such as email and phone calls."

"One of the most valuable features is the ease of use. If you take the standalone product, it is so easy to use, but if you want a tailor-made Zendesk Guide, you can't do it yourself. However, you can use a template that already exists—they have a lot, and they're very cheap, around 300-400 euros—and use it on all your brands. It's a very easy product to use."

"Its agility and simplicity are the most valuable features. This tool is very user-friendly."

"The product offers very good management. It has a great ability to assign tickets based on content."

"The initial setup is simple and straightforward."

"The most valuable features of Zendesk Support are collaboration, reports, and a self-service portal. The customer and team can see all the information needed from the portal."

More Zendesk pros

Cons

"We have had issues with the refresh interval since we have too many reports scheduled. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services is also expensive."

"There is room for improvement in the pricing model."

"Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services needs to improve performance."

"In this solution, the cost should be reduced for the enterprise edition."

"Technical support is in minor need of improvement so that they can solve problems in a more timely manner."

"It would be really nice to have better integration between the solution and Power BI."

"The setup is difficult because you have to install different servers."

"I would like the solution to add the scheduling feature for reports."

More Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services cons

"The solution itself wasn't easy to set up."

"The support team is time-consuming, and they don't find the answer to our problem."

"The price of the solution should be reduced."

"If I write an article, and I have a team of 30 people, and they all have a Zendesk account, when I write an article, I send them an email. "Hey guys, I just wrote this article. It's one of the most popular topics this month on which we are not covered. Please check it and make sure that you include it in your resolutions". The issue is, once I send it to those 30 people, and they open it, the next morning, that article is the most popular article."

"One of the drawbacks of Zendesk is that it doesn't provide a secure way for us to send data. So, we usually use a secure SharePoint folder link. We put that in the Zendesk ticket so that the requester has a secure way of getting to their data."

"Sometimes if there was a way to just flag the actual issue out of those email chains - that would be really helpful."

"The data you get when logged in to Zendesk Support differs from the data you get when you programmatically query Zendesk Support through its API because of a sync time delay."

"There could be improvements in integration, which can be achieved with APIs or tools like Zapier."

More Zendesk cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The tool's licensing costs are expensive."

"The solution is expensive."

"The pricing is high."

"The price is pretty good."

"The product pricing is reasonable in terms of suitable features for business."

"The solution is cheaper than its alternatives."

"The solution is free to use for developers."

"Value-wise, the solution's pricing is good for the price that we pay."

"From what I hear, Zendesk's pricing is a little expensive."

"The price is very competitive."

"We pay for the solution on a yearly basis and my understanding is that the cost is about $30,000. That's the cost for 24 to 25 agents."

"You have to pay extra for better support. So it's not only the license that you pay for, but you have to pay extra for the support as well."

"There are different plans that are offered. We are using the entry-level plan. The overall price of the solution should be reduced. The price is too high."

"Zendesk's licensing is not cheap. For Enterprise, we are paying $200 per agent. It's a per-month cost, so it's pretty steep. There are some services you need to pay extra for. For example, with Zendesk Guide, we had to buy the most expensive offering in order to get Multibrand and everything. We also had to pay a lot of money for themes."

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

14%

Government

12%

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

23%

Educational Organization

12%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?

I mainly use the solution for the ease of reporting and for executive dashboards.

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?

I don't recall the current pricing as it changes frequently.

What needs improvement with Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services?

They could improve the scalability and stability of SQL Server Reporting Services. I haven't used it recently, so I can't provide detailed suggestions on improvements.

What do you like most about Zendesk Support?

I found the user experience with vendors on Zendesk to be straightforward, especially when it comes to understanding and searching for specific tickets. The search and navigation tools are easy to ...

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Zendesk Support?

I am not currently aware of the exact pricing, but since we are still using Zendesk, it appears to be at a reasonable price point.

What needs improvement with Zendesk Support?

Report generation is still slightly tricky and not very customizable as per my inquiries. It would be advantageous to have an AI layer that can analyze incoming requests and generate summaries, as ...

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Product Reports

Microsoft SQL Servering Services

Download Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services product report

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services report

Download Zendesk product report

Also Known As

SQL Server Reporting Services, Microsoft SSRS, SSRS, MS SQL Server Reporting Services

Zendesk Support, Zendesk Guide, Zendesk Sell

Overview

At Microsoft, our mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. Our mission is grounded in both the world in which we live and the future we strive to create. Today, we live in a mobile-first, cloud-first world, and the transformation we are driving across our businesses is designed to enable Microsoft and our customers to thrive in this world.

We do business in 170 countries and are made up of 114,000 passionate employees dedicated to fulfilling our mission of helping you and your organization achieve more.

Microsoft

Zendesk Support is intuitive, and it's built with support agents in mind. Everything they need lives in a single, dynamic help desk interface so it's easy to be productive and manage customer interactions.

Sample Customers

CMS Wire, The New York Times

Mailchimp, Tesco, Vimeo, Instacart, Mediaocean, Slack, Uber

Microsoft SQL Servering Services vs. Zendesk