Pentaho Business Analytics vs SAP Crystal Reports comparison

Hitachi Vantara and SAP are both solutions in the Reporting category. Hitachi Vantara is ranked #16 with an average rating of 8.0, while SAP is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.4. Hitachi Vantara holds a 1.2% mindshare in RT, compared to SAP’s 2.8% mindshare. Additionally, 89% of Hitachi Vantara users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of SAP users who would recommend it.

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Pentaho Business Analytics and SAP Crystal Reports based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two Reporting solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Pentaho Business Analytics vs. SAP Crystal Reports Report (Updated: December 2024).

Buyer's Guide

Pentaho Business Analytics vs. SAP Crystals

December 2024

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Categories and Ranking

IBM Cognos

Mindshare comparison

As of December 2024, in the Reporting category, the mindshare of IBM Cognos is 4.6%, down from 6.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Pentaho Business Analytics is 1.2%, down from 1.6% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of SAP Crystal Reports is 2.8%, down from 4.2% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Reporting

Featured Reviews

Carlos Larrad Salgado

Deputy Director Operations Management Control at Mapfre

Improved the quality of our KPIs, while reducing calls to the IT department

I don't like that when we use Colab packages, we get less functionality. For example, you can make groups of data with Excel or with the data sets from the packages, but when you use the Colab packages directly, you can only group the data when you analyze it with Analysis Studio. I think Cognos needs to improve more on this functionality. The user experience is also very important. Cognos is not very easy to understand sometimes, especially when they change the layout but keep the functionality the same. The help is not very graphic and they have no examples. Cognos has to make a big effort to help with understanding the functionality by improving the documentation. There is a lot of documentation, but the examples are hard to find and they should make their help section easier to understand for non-technical users.

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Sayan König

Senior Manager, Financial Services at KPMG

Flexible, easy to understand, and simple to set up

The repository should be improved. There should be the possibility to have versioning, to make it combinable with some Git repositories or something like that, to check out the processes and make sure it has a traceable history. The solution could really be improved. There are too many bugs in our version.

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MVD Prasad

Assistant General Manager at Soma Enterprise

Helps analyze your data by creating richly formatted, pixel-perfect, and multiple reports from virtually any data source, delivered in over a dozen formats

It has significantly enhanced security features, especially when compared to the standard security features of the earlier PeerSpot version I purchased. I've observed improvements in security, and overall, it's quite commendable. Regarding potential enhancements for the next release of this solution, I haven't closely examined SAP Crystal Reports 53. I've only encountered it briefly, perhaps once or twice. However, I anticipate that it likely offers advanced features distinct from its predecessor. I believe there may be notable improvements and additions in the latest version, and I look forward to exploring them further.

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 Report Studio that is aimed at professional report writers."

"We are able to generate quality reports easily which allows us to decrease response time."

"Even while a user is using a cube for reporting, there will not be a situation as ' Cube file locked; unable to build or deploy'."

"Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

"It is a stable product."

"Self-service is possible through the use of dashboards, which are also very intuitive. Stories can be used to pin snapshots, tell the story for meetings, etc."

"Report Studio: This is the most powerful and sophisticated tool for professional reporting."

"The comprehensiveness or broadness of the software functions or business intelligence functions that it provides is valuable. It is also quite easy to use and user-friendly."

More IBM Cognos pros

"The most valuable feature of Pentaho is the Tableau report."

"Easy to use components to create the job."

"The initial setup is pretty straightforward."

"We were able to install it without any assistance from tech support."

"It is robust, offers market intelligence, and utilizes modules effectively."

"Pentaho Business Analytics' best features include the ease of developing data flows and the wide range of options to connect to databases, including those on the cloud."

"I use the BI Server, CDE Dashboards, Saiku, and Kettle, because these tools are very good and highly experienced."

"Pentaho is an analytics platform that can be used when an organization has a lot of big data storage systems already installed and needs to manage and analyze that data. It has a specific use case for unstructured data, such as documents, and needs to be able to search and analyze it."

"The initial setup of the solution is pretty easy."

"I find Crystal Reports very easy to use, even for a non-technical person."

"It is an user-friendly solution."

"SAP Crystal Reports offers a plethora of features, many of which were available much earlier than in the Crystal Reports we previously used. We extensively use its capabilities for generating general reports, working with Kaspersky data, and even incorporating images into our reports. The range of functions available in SAP Crystal Reports is diverse, and we leverage them across various systems for our needs."

"We use SAP Crystal Reports for operational reporting."

"The most valuable feature is that from a user's point of view, it is easy to use and requires just a simple click to generate a report."

"The overall environment is the best. Data management, graphs, and layout – everything is the best, in my opinion."

"The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is a fantastic way of generating reports."

Cons

"One thing that we really want is the ability to have data portrayed on an image. Cognos is not able to do it at the moment, and that's becoming a requirement from the business side: having an image and then plotting your dataset on top of the image as a map."

"One key area for improvement is the need to improve the self-service nature and functionality of the product in terms of visual analytics."

"There are some problems with how Cognos handles huge data sets and when connecting with multiple sources and searching the data."

"Tableau and Power BI are faster than Cognos."

"There are many problems with the product's stability part, making it an area where improvements are required."

"Compared to Tableau and PowerBI, the IBM interface is easier to use. However, the drag-and-drop functionality isn't as straightforward. Formatting is also more challenging in the cloud than in other applications, like Power BI. Also, if you encounter an issue, it takes more time to resolve it on the formatting side."

"There are a lot of limitations with the out-of-the-box tool."

"Extending dynamic cubes aggregate awareness with calculated measures."

More IBM Cognos cons

"Pentaho Business Analytics' user interface is outdated."

"Logging capability is needed."

"Another concern is that Pentaho is not customizable or interactive."

"The tool is very good, and yet it has some problems as it relies heavily on Java."

"The repository should be improved."

"Deployment is not simple. It is not simple because we are dealing with a lot of data; we are dealing with a lot of storage. So, it's not a simple process."

"Pentaho, at the general level, should greatly improve the easy construction of its dashboards and easy integration of information from different sources without technical user intervention."

"Version control would be a good addition."

More Pentaho Business Analytics cons

"The financing part needs improvement."

"There could be improvements made to the analytics capabilities."

"SAP Crystal Reports has some compatibility issues with third-party products."

"A real improvement would be a simpler system that allows users to play with the visualization without needing specialized skills and code."

"It has significantly enhanced security features, especially when compared to the standard security features of the earlier PeerSpot version I purchased. I've observed improvements in security, and overall, it's quite commendable. Regarding potential enhancements for the next release of this solution, I haven't closely examined SAP Crystal Reports 53. I've only encountered it briefly, perhaps once or twice. However, I anticipate that it likely offers advanced features distinct from its predecessor. I believe there may be notable improvements and additions in the latest version, and I look forward to exploring them further."

"Maybe some Power BI-related features could be added, like dashboards or direct editing in reports."

"SAP Crystal Reports should provide better support for dynamic connectors."

"If at all possible, a little bit of improvement on the analytical side is needed."

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I rate the product price as four or five on a scale from one to ten, where one is a low price, and ten is a high price."

"IBM Cognos price is on the higher side of the spectrum. However, with the features that it brings, such as correlation analysis, it's worth the money. They should look at the pricing more clearly because it's a little on the higher side."

"It is my understanding that the cost is very low. It's not very expensive."

"I don't know the exact cost, but I believe Cognos is quite expensive, especially when it comes to the support consultants and the procedures that need to be applied."

"There is some additional licensing that we needed to purchase because we were touching data outside of our core data platform. The cost was approximately $25,000 for the additional licenses, which were approximate 45 licenses. For the application itself, updates, and the core platform it was approximately $50,000. Giving a total cost of $75,000 annually for our usage of IBM Cognos."

"It is averagely priced."

"The cost of IBM Cognos it's more or less the same as most of the other solutions on the market. They're very competitive with the rest of the market and it is not the most expensive product."

"There is need to assess the purchase license accordingly so as to avoid audit penalties."

More IBM Cognos pricing and cost advice

"Pentaho is expensive ."

"Free and commercial versions are available."

"We were lucky enough to find a Pentaho OEM partner who offered a data warehouse model and the ETL software for about 60K SGD per year."

"SAP Crystal Reports is a very expensive solution."

"We pay fifteen hundred dollars as licensing fee."

"The cost of licensing can be a significant factor to consider when upgrading or transitioning to a new version of SAP Crystal Reports. It's important to evaluate the benefits and features offered by the new version against the associated costs to ensure it aligns with your organization's needs and budget."

"I feel that SAP Crystal Reports is a reasonably priced product."

"This product costs a lot of money."

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Comparison Review

it_user6978

Co-Founder at Helical IT Solution (Jaspersoft, Pentaho, Talend, Kettle, DWBI, ETL, Ctools, iReport, Jasper Report)

Jun 10, 2013

Jaspersoft vs. Pentaho – Which one to use & is there any need to purchase the commercial edition

Any company (be it technology, manfucaturing, human resource, ecommerce, SME etc) always has the need for Business Intelligence to some or the other extent. If cost is one of the consideration factor, then the 2 BI tools which are at the forefront are Pentaho and Jaspersoft. But, often the same…

Read full review

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Educational Organization

55%

Financial Services Firm

Computer Software Company

Manufacturing Company

Financial Services Firm

25%

Computer Software Company

13%

Government

Educational Organization

Financial Services Firm

11%

Computer Software Company

10%

Government

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

Seeking lightweight open source BI software

It depends on the Data architecture and the complexity of your requirement. Some great tools in the market are Qlik ...

See all answers

What do you like most about IBM Cognos?

The solution's most valuable feature is its ease of use, which makes it easily compatible with other tools.

See all answers

What needs improvement with IBM Cognos?

I need improvements, particularly with the Framework Manager, which has an outdated user interface from older version...

See all answers

Seeking lightweight open source BI software

There are many...It would rather depend what System BI architecture or Enterprise legacy you have at your end...I wou...

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Pentaho Business Analytics?

For those starting to use this tool, there is a free version available which is beneficial. The company also finds th...

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What needs improvement with Pentaho Business Analytics?

The tool is very good, and yet it has some problems as it relies heavily on Java. The platform works with Java, and i...

See all answers

What needs improvement with SAP Crystal Reports?

Maybe some Power BI-related features could be added, like dashboards or direct editing in reports. We use query langu...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for SAP Crystal Reports?

We use SAP Crystal Reports for reporting. We use it for financial reports like statements of accounts, trial balances...

See all answers

What do you like most about SAP Crystal Reports?

We use SAP Crystal Reports for operational reporting.

See all answers

Comparisons

Microsoft Power BI vs IBM Cognos

Compared 14% of the time

Tableau vs IBM Cognos

Compared 10% of the time

Oracle Hyperion vs IBM Cognos

Compared 10% of the time

Amazon QuickSight vs IBM Cognos

Compared 8% of the time

Databricks vs IBM Cognos

Compared 2% of the time

More IBM Cognos Competitors

KNIME vs Pentaho Business Analytics

Compared 28% of the time

Databricks vs Pentaho Business Analytics

Compared 18% of the time

Microsoft Power BI vs Pentaho Business Analytics

Compared 15% of the time

Tableau vs Pentaho Business Analytics

Compared 8% of the time

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs Pentaho Business Analytics

Compared 7% of the time

More Pentaho Business Analytics Competitors

Microsoft Power BI vs SAP Crystal Reports

Compared 21% of the time

TIBCO Jaspersoft vs SAP Crystal Reports

Compared 20% of the time

Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services vs SAP Crystal Reports

Compared 10% of the time

MicroStrategy vs SAP Crystal Reports

Compared 8% of the time

Oracle OBIEE vs SAP Crystal Reports

Compared 6% of the time

More SAP Crystal Reports Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

IBM Cognos

December 2024

Download IBM Cognos product report

Buyer's Guide

Pentaho Business Analytics

December 2024

Download Pentaho Business Analytics product report

Buyer's Guide

SAP Crystals

December 2024

Download SAP Crystal Reports product report

Also Known As

Cognos, Cognos Analytics, IBM Cognos Analytics

Pentaho, Kettle, Hitachi Pentaho Business Analytics

No data available

Learn More

IBM

Hitachi Vantara

SAP

Overview

IBM Cognos Business Intelligence provides a wide range of tools to help you analyze your organization's data. IBM Cognos BI allows businesses to monitor events and metrics, create and view business reports, and analyze data to help them make effective business decisions.

IBM Cognos applies techniques to describe, summarize, and compare data, and draw conclusions. This allows users to see trends and discover anomalies or variances that may not be evident by simply reading data. Data sources that contain information from different areas of a business can be stored in separate packages. Users can see only information that they have been granted access to, based on their group or role.

IBM Cognos BI consolidates the following business intelligence functions into a single web-based solution:

IBM Cognos Insight: Create personal and managed workspaces for data analysis. Using these interactive workspaces, you can share insight results with managers. Cognos Insight supports write-back, and you can also use these workspaces to capture and integrate management goals, commitments, and forecasts.
IBM Cognos Workspace: With IBM Cognos Workspace, you can create rich, interactive workspaces using IBM Cognos content as well as data from external sources. You can view and open your favorite workspaces and reports, edit content in your workspaces, and share your workspaces via email.
IBM Cognos Analytics: IBM Cognos Analytics utilizes built-in AI and intuitive searches which helps users to quickly create the visualizations and a wide range of reports. Cognos Analytics provides cognitive and managed self-service, enabling you to gain insights from controlled and trusted data.
IBM Cognos Report Studio and IBM Cognos Query Studio: Easily create structured and query reports. IBM Cognos allows users to create application and report templates. In addition, report authors can reuse report objects to apply filters, fields, and styles to reports. Users can set the language of the user interface and report content according to the user's native language.
IBM Cognos Event Studio: Receive notifications of events that occur within your organization in real time. Event Studio enables the creation of agents that detect the occurrence of business events, failures, or anomalies, based on the change of specific events or data conditions. Notification can be sent via email, publication in the portal, or by triggering reports.
IBM Cognos Connection: This is the Web portal for IBM Cognos BI and is the central area for accessing all the IBM Cognos functions. In the web portal, users can schedule and distribute reports, create tasks, administer the server and the access permissions, and more.

Reviews from Real Users

IBM Cognos stands out among its competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are its powerful analysis tool and its reporting capabilities.

Prasad B., a senior software engineer at a financial services firm, notes, “The product is a very good reporting tool and is very flexible. It allows for the users to get a scheduled report. We can receive automated reports as well. They are easy to schedule on a weekly or monthly basis. It is very fast. I mean in means of report output, it's very fast compared to the actual clients involved.”

Pentaho is an open source business intelligence company that provides a wide range of tools to help their customers better manage their businesses. These tools include data integration software, mining tools, dashboard applications, online analytical processing options, and more.

Pentaho has two product categories: There is the standard enterprise version. This is the product that comes directly from Pentaho itself with all of the benefits, features, and programs that come along with a paid application such us analysis services, dashboard design, and interactive reporting.

The alternative is an open source version, which the public is permitted to add to and tweak the product. This solution has its advantages, aside from the fact that it is free, in that there are many more people working on the project to improve its quality and breadth of functionality.

Turn information from almost any data source into a sophisticated, interactive report with SAP Crystal Reports. This powerful, user-friendly application for small businesses and departments can help you deliver key insights to the right decision maker, at the right time, in the right format.

Click here for a free trial

Sample Customers

More than 23,000 leading organizations across multiple industries use Cognos. Some examples of Cognos customers include BMW Financial Services, Quinte Health Care, Troy Corporation, Michigan State University, and GKN Land System.

Cargo 2000 Lufthansa, Marketo, ModCloth, Cardiac Science, Telefonica, ExactTarget, Active Broadband Networks, and Brussels Airport.

City of Buenos Aires, ASR Group, Citrix, EarlySense, Usha International Limited, Automotive Resources International (ARI), LivePerson, Coelba (Grupo Neoenergia), RZD Russian Railways, National Basketball Association - NBA, TALLY WEiJL, El Machetazo, Young Heroes, Mozzart, Mitsui Knowledge Industry (MKI) , Surgutneftegas Open Joint Stock Company, The VELUX Group, AOK Bundesverband, AL-KO KOBER GROUP

Buyer's Guide

Pentaho Business Analytics vs. SAP Crystals

December 2024

Free Report: Pentaho Business Analytics vs. SAP Crystal Reports

Find out what your peers are saying about Pentaho Business Analytics vs. SAP Crystal Reports and other solutions. Updated: December 2024.

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