# Compare Microsoft SQL Server vs Tableau 2026 | Capterra > Unsure of what to choose? Check Capterra to compare Microsoft SQL Server and Tableau based on pricing, features, product details, and verified reviews. Source: https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-208764/SQL-Server-vs-Tableau --- # Microsoft SQL Server vs Tableau Features and Cost Comparison Last updated May 10th, 2026 Provider data verified by our Software Research team, and reviews moderated by our Reviews Verification team.[Learn more](https://www.capterra.com/our-story/) Your comparison: Microsoft SQL ServerTableau2/4 selected [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.6 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.6 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) [## Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.6 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) Starting Price $13748.00one time Value-for-Money 4.3 Functionality 4.6 Ease of Use 4.3 Customer Service 4.3 Reviews Sentiment Based on [1,977 reviews](#user-reviews) Positive 1,918 Neutral 55 Negative 4 [## Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.6 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) Starting Price $15.00/month Value-for-Money 4.2 Functionality 4.5 Ease of Use 4.1 Customer Service 4.2 Reviews Sentiment Based on [2,351 reviews](#user-reviews) Positive 2,235 Neutral 90 Negative 26 ## Not a match? 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Fit Score methodology Our Fit Score reflects how reviewers rate a product’s performance against a set of features reviewers rate as most important. A higher score indicates the product is rated better in delivering what reviewers most care about. If the Fit Score is not shown for a specific product, that only means there are currently not enough relevant data points to develop a meaningful score. It does not indicate that the product should be excluded from further evaluation. Best for Methodology 63%Fit Missing features Feature ratings Customizable Reports NA Multiple Data Sources 5.0 Dashboard Creation NA Reporting/Analytics 4.5 Data Visualization 4.3 86%Fit High performer Feature ratings Customizable Reports 4.6 Multiple Data Sources 4.5 Dashboard Creation 4.6 Reporting/Analytics 4.5 Data Visualization 4.7 User satisfaction User satisfaction 4.6 User reviews[1,977](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) Ease of use 4.3 Functionality 4.6 Value for money 4.3 Customer support 4.3 User satisfaction 4.6 User reviews[2,351](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) Ease of use 4.1 Functionality 4.5 Value for money 4.2 Customer support 4.2 Price starts from Price starts from $13748Flat Rate, One Time - Free version - Free trial Price starts from $15Per User, Per Month - Free version - Free trial Best for Best for Companies of all sizes, looking for database management software Best for Tableau is used by analysts, data and IT leaders, business leaders, developers, marketing departments, finance departments, sales teams, and support and service teams. ## User reviews Pros & cons SB Sachita B. Student > "Microsoft SQL Server is one of the most user-friendly database tools, it is used to run queries manage tables , see execution..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7048400) AF Adashia F. Owner > "The Multi-factor Authentication on all Microsoft products can really be a pain more than a help." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7089227) KK Kayla K. Sales engineer > "Its user-friendly management tools, strong security features, and powerful analytics capabilities make it a reliable choice for..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6735213) ZP Zoe P. Employee > "The costs can also blow out depending on your licensing requirements and if running locally in house, the hardware costs." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6828671) TB Tyler B. Tier Two Technician > "It integrates quite seamlessly with cloud applications, can be easy to use and features many use cases across multiple fields" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7119809) LD Leo D. Embedded software test engineer > "Feature overload can confuse even seasoned DBAs." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7127594) DS Daniel S. Director of Research and Development > "My favorite flow is using migrations to do database updates." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7136524) Suraj D. Senior AI engineer > "It is a bit slow to handle billions of rows." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7087424) Suraj D. Senior AI engineer > "Microsoft SQl server is widely used too and it makes the support and maintenance better." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7087424) KK Kayla K. Sales engineer > "One downside of Microsoft SQL Server is its high licensing costs, which can be prohibitive for smaller businesses." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6735213) VR Verified Reviewer Data Engineer > "Excellent performance with large datasets and highly reliable security features." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7089500) LD Leo D. Embedded software test engineer > "Typos in SQL = database rage." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7127594) VR Verified Reviewer Analyst > "Queries run fast most of the time, and the tools make pulling reports or building dashboards really straightforward." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7016218) LS Lauren S. Accounting > "Sometimes their are glitches and we are booted from the server" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6403392) TB Tyler B. Tier Two Technician > "However, scheduled SQL backups are also very important and are easily managed." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7119809) CC Cosmin C. Senior IT Auditor > "My experience is limited to running queries, looking at security tables." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6665468) VP Ville P. Systems Manager > "With options ranging from on-premises installations to a wide array of cloud offerings, there’s a solution to suit everyone’s..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6563204) VR Verified Reviewer It Support > "The most i least like from the Microsoft SQL Server is when i change mw computer name, i have to reinstal the software, if not mw..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6063321) DO Diosdado O. Freelancer > "Overall it's a great choice for a secure server storage and offers features that will help database developers or administrator..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6307872) DV Dat V. IT Manager > "Can be too structured when storing data, need sql query scripting skill to fully get the best use of the system." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4895927) AF Adashia F. Owner > "Muti-factor Authentication can be a pain, though. Once you get past that, this is a decent tool to use." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7089227) RB Rony B. Accounts Manager > "The licensing costs, especially for enterprise editions, might be a limiting factor for smaller organizations." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4872282) Suraj D. Senior AI engineer > "Given little bit of changes it is the best tool I used for the databases." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7087424) HC Humberto C. Systems Engineer > "The biggest disadvantage I see is that it is not as mature in its implementation in unix environments." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6066197) SR Samuel R. Business Analyst > "It was a simple and effective tool to ETL data from ERP sources and analyse data outside the system." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6432970) WI Wassim I. Associate Professor > "The performance of MS-SQL Server lags with concurrent user access." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4899736) BS Ben S. Infrastructure Architect > "The application is easy to use, fast, consistent, and integrates into everything with no problems." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7140331) AN Adam N. Director of IT > "Very Expensive, especially compared to open source alternatives" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6578316) DH Dan H. IT Manager > "I like the security setup, and the ability to export databases and configurations." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6323735) RB Rony B. Accounts Manager > "One drawback was the complexity of the platform, which required a steep learning curve and technical expertise." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4872282) JM Julius M. ICT Assistant > "Microsoft SQL Server is the go-to software for my Data storage needs, it gives great UI and data management services like..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___5013782) HA Harun A. Engineer > "The 10 GB limit for the express version is insufficient." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___5051985) LMM Luis Miguel M. cco > "Even when through the time new technologies emerger to the scene, MS SQL server still be the best option to enterprise solution,..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4882535) LD Lana D. Support > "Managing sql server can be challenging for beginners" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6144561) FC Filipe C. Resident Engineer > "Powerfull database management system that has a good combiantion with other softwares that permit us to store and retrieve..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4881493) Ryan M. Marketing Analytics Engineer > "I also had quite a few authentication problems because I was logging in with different credentials than my laptop password and it..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4490292) MR Madhava R. team lead > "SQL Server is not just a database engine; it provides many other services, tools, and applications" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6335590) KB Kawther B. journalist > "For whatever reason, the primary database stops responding or behaves abnormally if the primary and secondary databases become..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4577101) Amanda L. Designer > "My experience with Microsoft server is very delightful, I am an independent contractor and I own my own business, so I'm always..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6101042) MS Mahmoud S. marketing > "For instance, rather than receiving a syntax error, you can receive a weird message if you forget to include a comma while..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3913915) AN Adam N. Director of IT > "Great relational database engine that we've used for years, pairs very well with .NET development and Microsoft shop." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6578316) KB Kawther B. journalist > "Given that there are numerous open-source options on the market that can offer comparable functionality but unquestionably lack..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4577101) VR Verified Reviewer Analyst > "I like that security is tight—we don’t have to stress about sensitive data getting out." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7016218) KT Keith T. Sr Software Engineer > "a bit expensive and a bit hard to understand the pricing structure sometimes, not a ton of addons, and many built in features..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4196176) DS Daniel S. Director of Research and Development > "Our company has learned to rely on it." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7136524) Andy H. Technology Planning for Transport Networks > "Access is used for the database and this has led to slow performance when the number of data increases." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3804833) VR Verified Reviewer Analyst > "It makes it easier to integrate into Power BI." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___7016218) VR Verified Reviewer Data Analyst > "I do not like the fact that there are not many features to connect SQL with other softwares within SQL window itself." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3745414) PL Phil L. SQL DBA \\ ERP Administrator > "MS SQL Server provides a secure, fault tolerant, and robust environment for our data hosting needs. " [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4970941) CF Carnisha F. Freelancer > "Permitting is confounding, at whatever point you have a permit by call or by central processor center, it's a digit hard to..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4752009) ZP Zoe P. Employee > "It's almost rock solid and runs without many issues." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6828671) ZA Zakaria A. student > "Cost, hardware limitations, complex licensing, disallowing too many users, and restricted compatibility" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3796825) ZP Zoe P. Employee > "Overall my experience is it's very robust as a database." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6828671) AG Andrew G. Software Engineer > "Removing duplicate rows is a huge pain and the logging that comes back from some queries is not always useful" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3796888) VR Verified Reviewer Internship for software developer > "Great features, cross-platform, well equiped, a good search/filter system, data secured, and the permissions system seemed pretty..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6239720) HV Harish V. Associate System Engineer > "Higher cost compared to current market standards, some syntax structure can be hard to adopt and service is not so great." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3726163) SS Sam S. Self Employed > "Microsoft SQL Server offers a powerful platform for managing and organizing large amounts of data effectively." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6029716) VR Verified Reviewer Billing and Operations Analyst > "intellisense doesn’t work" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6205074) Juan Antonio R. IT Consultant > "It was also able to perform data analysis and visualizations with ease, thanks to integration with other Microsoft products." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6174896) TA Turan A. IT Expert > "There is no minor or major deficiency in the system. If a very careful plan is not made during the installation phase, problems..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4056993) RB Rony B. Accounts Manager > "The advanced query optimization and indexing capabilities have ensured optimal performance for our applications." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4872282) JN Jeff N. Web Manager > "We had issues with it after a year or two." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6035457) AH Ajoke H. Data Analyst > "It is good for database management." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6652093) YK Yoshiomi K. Member > "This makes the operation unstable when a large number of accesses are received." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3759332) RB Rony B. Accounts Manager > "The platform's robustness and scalability have empowered us to efficiently manage and analyze our data." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4872282) AP Alejandro P. IT Planning > "MSQL don't have a visual performance dashboard that help you to understand better is a performance issue is happening so you have..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3162078) Panashe B. IT Specialist > "Microsoft SQL Server is a powerful database, though its complexity can be a challenge, its capabilities are undeniably impressive." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6004037) NP Nikhil P. Sr. software developer > "It has got very steep learning curve .Also the cloud offering of MS SQL server is not to the mark" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4577276) RB Rony B. Accounts Manager > "The robustness and scalability of the platform allowed us to handle large volumes of data with ease." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4872282) AC Anil C. Marketing Executive > "Microsoft SQL Server is really expensive when you compare it with MongoDB or MySQL." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3552152) Andres Ernesto L. Developer - Data specialist > "It's very difficult for it to leave you wrong, it's the number 1 relational database manager on the market, a software with years..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6077153) Giridhar P. Manager Data Engineering > "MS SQL Server is not open source, there is always a license cost associated with the product." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3790982) RS RICARDO S. Sales Representative > "Very solid database, You can trust this product without any problem." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6715235) BK Bishoy K. Infrastructure Engineer > "There may also be compatibility problems with more recent technologies." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4542216) TW Tanner W. Integrity Engineer > "Very easy to connect to databases and write queries" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___6501723) OP Oleg P. Business Analyst > "While it's not a feature that I dislike, be warned that unlike with MS Access (which is a simplified version) there is no query..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3513219) GJ Gaurav J. Assistant Consultant > "Microsoft SQL server is one of the best database software around we have used n number of versions starting for sql server 2005..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___3604004) JE Jun E. MIS Supervisor > "Creating table indexes as it constantly bothers me." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4574688) CF Carnisha F. Freelancer > "SQL server is perfect since I can utilize a similar language same application, and for little clients, it utilizes free choice,..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4752009) NJL Nacky J L. Data Administrator > "Licensing can be expensive, and some features require additional costs." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#Capterra___4747869) [View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) VR Verified Reviewer Associate Director, Evaluation > "It integrates will with Python and R, and even many of its native features provide clean, highly useful dashboards for communicating both..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7095796) AH Amir H. E-Commerce Manager > "The usability among non-technical marketing personnel is appalling and the customer service is virtually useless when it comes to having..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7103120) BM Brian M. Data Analyst > "Tableau excels at visual storytelling, helping teams uncover insights, track performance, and make data-driven decisions efficiently." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7079680) VR Verified Reviewer Senior Product Manager > "Given that the licences are expensive, this makes the cost of entry to use Tableau in a company quite high, especially for small companies." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7138950) AC Alexandru C. General Manager > "I enjoyed how Tableau was able to turn raw data into clear charts and interactive dashboards, which tell trends at a glance." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6837120) AA Akeem A. Managing Partner > "Tableau highly depends on data quality by collecting data from external sources which sometimes can offer inaccurate results if data is..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6872043) VR Verified Reviewer Associate Director, Evaluation > "Its integrations with Python and R have been particularly useful and unlock a whole other level of data manipulation and visualization..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7095796) JR Janessa R. Product Marketing Manger > "Slow platform, not a high uptime, boxy look and feel from a visual design standpoint, and rarely works on screenshare." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6842703) Iddy H. Solution Architect > "Tableau connects seamlessly with a variety of data sources, such as Excel, SQL databases, and cloud-based platforms like AWS and Google..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6669990) VR Verified Reviewer Data Science Analyst > "Tableau Interface I didn't like because It's having some issues sometime you know power bi have attractive UI to use and some time I faced..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6865766) Angelina O. Senior Data Manager > "Tableau has fantastic reporting function that allows us to easily present insights from our data." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6830065) CC Chris C. Manager, Business Development > "It can be a little slow in loading reports depending on the size and range of the reporting." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7027868) RM Reed M. Account Executive > "Friendly user interface makes it easy to compare accounts and know that I have the correct information/reporting in front of me." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7084938) KC Krrish C. Data Analyst and Visualization Consultant > "Complex dashboards or large datasets may cause performance to lag." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6817578) PW Patrick W. Project Manager > "We are satisfied with the various data points integrated via Tableau for use with creating graphs that look better than our previous graphs..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6731516) MK Mehakpreet K. Human Resource Intern > "There is nothing negative about Tableau, precisely, but the setup can be a bit difficult at times, as it took me some time to get started." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6826194) VR Verified Reviewer Regional Manager > "The ability to sort data easily, selecting multiple time frames allowed for robust functionality" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7001320) MR Maria R. Operations Manager > "Planning the extraction updates through Tableau Server was cumbersome." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6840183) VR Verified Reviewer Senior Associate > "It has a very clear and effective visualization that can provide insights to our business partners on key metrics" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7007809) LP Le P. Project Manager > "This creates delays during the publishing of the dashboard." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6834881) RC Ryan C. Analytics Manager > "Nice visualizations and can integrate with all kinds of data for dashboarding and reporting purposes" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7036192) ZZ Zoe Z. Analytics Engineer > "Due to the lack of a semantic layer, it frequently results in inconsistent data reported and when the business logic changes, it becomes a..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4836366) SB Sachita B. Student > "It’s intuitive, visually strong, and excellent for building interactive dashboards." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7048417) MK Mariia K. Software Engineer > "No free desktop version which makes it harder to learn the tool for data engineer." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6569417) Angelina O. Senior Data Manager > "Tableau helps us precise insights that makes it easy to make key decisions based on actual data rather than guess work." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6830065) SK Shreyas K. Financial Reporting Analyst > "Also version control is very tricky and complicated so working on multiple versions is not very user friendly." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6803612) AR Anilkumar R. Senior Data Warehouse Consultant > "Tableau makes it super easy to transform raw data into dashboards and reports which help in visualization and in long run decision making." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6717440) PW Patrick W. Project Manager > "The graphs look outdated or not as polished as other graph reports" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6731516) RH Rezaul H. Supervisor Field Research > "It has enabled me to split big data into trends that would otherwise have remained hidden." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6834815) KC Krrish C. Data Analyst and Visualization Consultant > "Incredibly costly, particularly as the subscriber base increases" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6817578) VR Verified Reviewer Senior Product Manager > "Connecting to databases is easy and there are many options e.g. SQL/CSV/Text." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7138950) SC Scott C. Process Improvement Manager > "Tableau lacks robust version control features" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6647469) TA Tim A. Strategic Operations Director > "It’s a fantastic way to display trends and KPIs to leadership without inundating them with raw data." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6860559) JW James W. Revenue ops manager > "Although it integrates with many platforms and getting data into the system is easy, trying to manipulate and display that data compared to..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6019813) RM Reed M. Account Executive > "It's very customizable and I appreciate the live data it can report." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7084938) AS Amber S. Business Administrator > "It also has a high cost." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7028272) JF Joe F. Associate Professor of Law > "It also has amazing reports visualization options that help us easily read and understand the insights contained in the reports." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6568045) Joel M. Quality Coordinator Engineer > "It takes long to manage the information and the dashboards, up to 5-8 seconds so sometime it's difficult to play with filters because it..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4812657) MK Mehakpreet K. Human Resource Intern > "Overall, I loved working on Tableau, and it was far easier to reflect percentages and explain historical and needed data to the team." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6826194) Timothy L. Technical Account Manager > "Large data sets, especially calculated fields can really slow down the software and make the dashboard feel sluggish." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___5092407) James K. Brand Ambassador > "It uses user-friendly dashboards that give very clear visualizations of our data making it easy for us to read and understand them." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6777560) Pawan S. Senior Executive > "Performance Issue with very large database" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6669313) AS Amber S. Business Administrator > "The dashboard is completely customizable, which I find myself using in meetings and presentations." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7028272) NR Nithin R. Analyst > "Tableau can be costly for individual users or small enterprises due to the high licensing prices associated with Tableau Desktop." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6106158) JF Joe F. Associate Professor of Law > "It uses high level security features that ensures that our data remains safe and sound when analyzing them." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6568045) KS Karthika S. Senior Data Governance Analyst > "Hard to connect with power app data." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6643833) James K. Brand Ambassador > "We have been using Tableau to analyze various aspects of our business like marketing and am happy to report that our experience with Tableau..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6777560) RL Rebekah L. CDD Manager > "It is very slow to load reports, especially when result is required as matter of urgency, and the lack of live data" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6065000) JF Joe F. Associate Professor of Law > "Tableau compatibility with most of our data sources makes it easy to collect data from everywhere in order to achieve more enhanced..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6568045) VR Verified Reviewer Digital Marketing > "Takes time to load large filesSometimes it will crash and makes inconvenientThere is no auto save function" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4828822) MH Martin H. Purchasing Analyst > "I found that Tableau could seamlessly blend data from different sources." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6820439) MK Matt K. Sales Operations Specialist > "The biggest downside with Tableau is that once you create the dashboards and want to make minimal changes, such as add a new user to the..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___3590776) Hameeda T. Technical Analyst > "Strong, clear data visualisations that make insights easy to understand." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___7114834) MO Mohammad O. Director > "Limited data preparation tools: While Tableau offers a range of visualization options, it has limited data preparation tools, which can make..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4612684) JM Joao M. Spinning Instructor > "Tableau has shown us why it is the greatest tool for analyzing business data by offering us a very solid five star experience." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6576966) VR Verified Reviewer Maintenance trainer > "What I dislike is the data exploration and analysis, which, in my opinion, are a bit slow and disproportionate." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4973166) RS Robert S. Data Analyst > "I've used Tableau for creating dashboards tailored to the unique needs of different teams within the company." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6603248) VR Verified Reviewer Account Executive > "This platform is not the most intuitive in terms of ease of use." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6806046) Angelina O. Senior Data Manager > "It has helped us to stay informed about our business through accurate data analytics." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6830065) Caroline C. Game Developer > "Data syncing problems can cause the dashboards to malfunction." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4962185) Brian B. Business administrator > "Sometimes not all data is understood by everyone and what Tableau does is make its presentation easier to understand with its presentation..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6512990) MS Mohamed S. data analyst > "It is difficult and sometimes time-consuming to debug and understand how Tableau reached these values and errors." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4982459) VR Verified Reviewer Associate technical support engineer > "The ability to visualize data and maintain the database where it can be filtered in an easy way." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6673207) AZ Alex Z. Strategy and Operations > "The tool makes it difficult for just anyone to play around with the dashboards created - typically the only thing viewers can do is filter..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4177190) Fohsoh D. Data analyst > "Even though it can be a bit slow with big data, the good parts outweigh the bad." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6878331) Craig S. Senior Platform Operations Specialist > "For example, we use Tableau to visually demonstrate conversion rates for A/B testing, but there isn't an easy (first-party) way to perform..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___3530260) Steven P. Vice President, Customer Success > "Overall I'm impressed with the power of Tableau to analyze massive data sets and present them in a visually appealing manner." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6649833) JL Jennifer L. SAP Configuration Analyst > "It’s difficult to always use it for reporting since it sometimes doesn’t have the full functionality you want." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4828027) GF Gary F. Owner > "Its drag-and-drop interface and seamless integration with various data sources have allowed us to extract valuable insights, drive informed..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6282387) CK Charles K. Product Manager > "Searching for the report I want can be challenging when you have many reports created." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6042742) Joel Neil W. Specialist Recruiter > "Gives real-time data and dashboards, good for team work as the team can access anything that has been building together and by the..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___5021429) AK Alexis K. Accounting assitant > "It might just be our software, but we are unable to change the visuals for our reports." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___5023532) HD Henrietta D. Business Analyst > "Tableau is one of the best data visualization tools out in the market, it allows you to produce highly customizable, appealing..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6192968) Zsolt M. Owner > "The system is a bit slow if you handle a large data set." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6148351) KC Krrish C. Data Analyst and Visualization Consultant > "Works well for big groups of people with lots of viewers and users." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6817578) BNK B.Naveen K. Software Engineer > "Tableau can become very slow when processing heavy tables." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6021630) IC Ivo C. Recruiter > "Our Data team was able to deliver better and faster dashboards and all units were able to align data visualization and build better reports." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4849594) MO Mohammad O. Director > "Processing time: Tableau can be slow when working with large data sets, which can be frustrating for users who need to analyze and visualize..." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___4612684) Fohsoh D. Data analyst > "It is a powerful tool for turning a lot of data into helpful information." [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6878331) JrmC Jérôme C. Data analyst > "The tool is a bit expensive and for some case complicated to connect to data stream" [See full review](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#Capterra___6188433) [View Reviews](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) ## User interface [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/) 4.60 (1,977) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/) 4.56 (2,351) ## Connect with a Capterra advisor for a free 15-minute consultation Get a personalized software list aligned to your business needs with guidance from our expert advisors. Our team has helped 1 million+ businesses like yours find options that fit their needs. ### Features Do these products fit your needs? Prioritize real-user-identified key features according to your needs to find your best fit. \--% Fit vs \--% Fit Access Controls/Permissions 207 Important Ad hoc Query 150 Important Ad hoc Reporting 120 Important Microsoft SQL Server 20/50 - Access Controls/Permissions - Ad hoc Query - Ad hoc Reporting - AI Copilot - Alerts/Notifications - API - Benchmarking - Collaboration Tools - Customizable Branding - Customizable Reports - Customizable Templates - Dashboard - Dashboard Creation - Data Blending - Data Connectors - Data Extraction - Data Import/Export - Data Mapping - Data Mining - Data Synchronization - Data Transformation - Data Visualization - Drag & Drop - Forecasting - Generative AI - Interactive Reports - Key Performance Indicators - Metadata Management - Mobile Access - Multiple Data Sources - Natural Language Processing - OLAP - Performance Metrics - Predictive Analytics - Profitability Analysis - Publishing/Sharing - Real-Time Analytics - Real-Time Data - Real-Time Monitoring - Real-Time Reporting - Reporting/Analytics - Role-Based Permissions - Scorecards - Search/Filter - Self Service Data Preparation - Strategic Planning - Text Analysis - Third-Party Integrations - Trend Analysis - Trend/Problem Indicators [See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/#features) Tableau Top features 43/50 - Access Controls/Permissions - Ad hoc Query - Ad hoc Reporting - AI Copilot - Alerts/Notifications - API - Benchmarking - Collaboration Tools - Customizable Branding - Customizable Reports - Customizable Templates - Dashboard - Dashboard Creation - Data Blending - Data Connectors - Data Extraction - Data Import/Export - Data Mapping - Data Mining - Data Synchronization - Data Transformation - Data Visualization - Drag & Drop - Forecasting - Generative AI - Interactive Reports - Key Performance Indicators - Metadata Management - Mobile Access - Multiple Data Sources - Natural Language Processing - OLAP - Performance Metrics - Predictive Analytics - Profitability Analysis - Publishing/Sharing - Real-Time Analytics - Real-Time Data - Real-Time Monitoring - Real-Time Reporting - Reporting/Analytics - Role-Based Permissions - Scorecards - Search/Filter - Self Service Data Preparation - Strategic Planning - Text Analysis - Third-Party Integrations - Trend Analysis - Trend/Problem Indicators [See all features](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/#features) ### Recognition Microsoft SQL Server is recognized as a top-rated tool in 3 Capterra Shortlist reports Tableau is recognized as a top-rated tool in 4 Capterra Shortlist reports ### Deployment & support Microsoft SQL Server Deployment - Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based - Desktop Mac - Desktop Windows - Desktop Linux - On-Premise Windows - On-Premise Linux - Desktop Chromebook - Mobile Android - Mobile iPhone - Mobile iPad Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos Tableau Deployment - Cloud, SaaS, Web-Based - Desktop Mac - Desktop Windows - Desktop Linux - On-Premise Windows - On-Premise Linux - Desktop Chromebook - Mobile Android - Mobile iPhone - Mobile iPad Support - Email/Help Desk - FAQs/Forum - Knowledge Base - Phone Support - 24/7 (Live rep) - Chat Training - In Person - Live Online - Webinars - Documentation - Videos ### Company Details Microsoft SQL Server - By Microsoft - Located in United States - Founded in 1975 Tableau - By Salesforce - Located in United States - Founded in 2003 ## Popular Comparisons [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [MySQL](https://www.capterra.com/p/11482/MySQL/)[4.59 (2,095)](https://www.capterra.com/p/11482/MySQL/reviews/) $13748one time Price $2000/year 4.6 Features 4.5 4.3 Ease of Use 4.4 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-11482/SQL-Server-vs-MySQL) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [Microsoft Power BI](https://www.capterra.com/p/176586/Power-BI/)[4.58 (1,879)](https://www.capterra.com/p/176586/Power-BI/reviews/) $15/month Price $10/month 4.5 Features 4.5 4.1 Ease of Use 4.1 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/176586-208764/Power-BI-vs-Tableau) [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [Google Cloud](https://www.capterra.com/p/268690/Google-Cloud-Platform/)[4.68 (2,282)](https://www.capterra.com/p/268690/Google-Cloud-Platform/reviews/) $13748one time Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.5 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-268690/SQL-Server-vs-Google-Cloud-Platform) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [Google Analytics 360](https://www.capterra.com/p/177042/Google-Analytics/)[4.69 (8,091)](https://www.capterra.com/p/177042/Google-Analytics/reviews/) $15/month Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.5 Features 4.6 4.1 Ease of Use 4.2 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/177042-208764/Google-Analytics-vs-Tableau) [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [MongoDB](https://www.capterra.com/p/127374/MongoDB/)[4.66 (469)](https://www.capterra.com/p/127374/MongoDB/reviews/) $13748one time Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.6 Features 4.6 4.3 Ease of Use 4.4 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-127374/SQL-Server-vs-MongoDB) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [Looker](https://www.capterra.com/p/169053/Looker/)[4.55 (282)](https://www.capterra.com/p/169053/Looker/reviews/) $15/month Price $2000/month 4.5 Features 4.4 4.1 Ease of Use 4.3 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/169053-208764/Looker-vs-Tableau) [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [Airtable](https://www.capterra.com/p/146652/Airtable/)[4.65 (2,229)](https://www.capterra.com/p/146652/Airtable/reviews/) $13748one time Price $20/month 4.6 Features 4.5 4.3 Ease of Use 4.4 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-146652/SQL-Server-vs-Airtable) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [Domo](https://www.capterra.com/p/119119/Domo/)[4.29 (330)](https://www.capterra.com/p/119119/Domo/reviews/) $15/month Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.5 Features 4.3 4.1 Ease of Use 4.1 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/119119-208764/Domo-vs-Tableau) [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [Microsoft Access](https://www.capterra.com/p/233275/Microsoft-Access/)[4.40 (207)](https://www.capterra.com/p/233275/Microsoft-Access/reviews/) $13748one time Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.6 Features 4.4 4.3 Ease of Use 4.0 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-233275/SQL-Server-vs-Microsoft-Access) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [MATLAB](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/)[4.60 (2,093)](https://www.capterra.com/p/125813/MATLAB/reviews/) $15/month Price $203.63/year 4.5 Features 4.6 4.1 Ease of Use 4.0 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/125813-208764/MATLAB-vs-Tableau) [Microsoft SQL Server](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/)[4.60 (1,977)](https://www.capterra.com/p/1417/SQL-Server/reviews/) vs [Oracle Database](https://www.capterra.com/p/5938/Oracle-Database/)[4.55 (472)](https://www.capterra.com/p/5938/Oracle-Database/reviews/) $13748one time Price Contact vendor for pricing 4.6 Features 4.5 4.3 Ease of Use 4.1 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/1417-5938/SQL-Server-vs-Oracle-Database) [Tableau](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/)[4.56 (2,351)](https://www.capterra.com/p/208764/Tableau/reviews/) vs [Zoho Analytics](https://www.capterra.com/p/129749/Zoho-Analytics/)[4.42 (360)](https://www.capterra.com/p/129749/Zoho-Analytics/reviews/) $15/month Price $30/month 4.5 Features 4.3 4.1 Ease of Use 4.2 [View full comparison](https://www.capterra.com/compare/129749-208764/Zoho-Analytics-vs-Tableau)