In this guide 7 sections
Choose by where your data sits and who will maintain the reports. Power BI suits firms on Microsoft 365 with someone willing to learn its modelling. Metabase suits teams that can write some SQL and prefer self-hosting. Looker Studio suits a few views over Google Sheets. GullySystem’s reporting work compares all three before licences are bought.
Start with the data, not the tool
Most tool comparisons list features. A business owner needs a different question answered first. Where does the data live today, and who will look after the reports next year?
Billing may run in Tally, leads in Zoho CRM and stock in Google Sheets. Every tool then needs a way to reach all three. A tool only displays what it can reach, and someone still has to agree what each figure means.
So write down a few facts before any demo. Note the sources, the readers and the maintainer.
- Systems that hold the data today
- Number of people who need to read reports
- Who will add a measure after handover
- Whether branch managers must see only their branch
Power BI: strong modelling, licensed per user
Microsoft makes Power BI. Its Desktop app, where reports are built, is a free download. Microsoft’s pricing page says sharing reports needs a Pro or Premium licence, charged per user.
Its strength is the model. Measures are defined once and every report inherits them. Row-level security can limit a branch manager to a single branch.
The cost is learning. Its formula language, DAX, takes real effort to pick up. A business with nobody willing to learn it tends to end up with licences and few working reports.
Metabase: open source and friendly to SQL
Metabase has an open-source edition you host yourself. Paid Starter, Pro and Enterprise editions sit alongside it. It reads directly from databases such as PostgreSQL and MySQL.
Non-technical users can build simple questions through a point-and-click builder. Anything deeper tends to need SQL. It fits a team with one person comfortable writing queries. In practice, that person writes the queries behind the main dashboard, and other staff use the builder to filter and explore what is already there.
Self-hosting is not free of effort. Someone has to run the server, apply updates and back it up. That work belongs in the comparison.
Looker Studio: small needs over Google data
Looker Studio is Google’s dashboard tool. It connects easily to Google Sheets, BigQuery, Google Analytics and advertising accounts.
It suits a handful of views for a small team. Marketing reports and simple sales summaries over a shared sheet are typical uses.
It gets awkward as needs grow. Joining several sources, defining shared measures once and limiting each manager to a single branch all take more workarounds here than in Power BI or Metabase.
A quick way to decide
Match the tool to the team, not to the brand. A business already on Microsoft 365 with an analyst leans towards Power BI. One with a developer and a database leans towards Metabase.
A small firm with one system may need none of them. A nightly export into a shared workbook with pivot views can serve. Revisit the choice when a second source arrives. Licences can wait.
- Microsoft 365 and an analyst on staff: Power BI
- A database and someone who writes SQL: Metabase
- Google Sheets and a few readers: Looker Studio
- One system and two readers: a shared workbook
Reporting tool scorecard
A one-page grid with the three tools across the top and six rows below. Rows cover data sources, readers, maintainer, branch-level access, hosting and running cost. Fill each cell from your own situation, not from a vendor’s feature list.
Open a blank worksheet to printQuestions owners ask
Is Power BI free?
Only for building reports. The Desktop app is a free download. Microsoft’s pricing page says sharing reports needs a Pro or Premium licence, charged per user. Check the current page before planning a budget.
Will a better tool fix figures that do not match?
No. Two departments counting a sale differently will produce two numbers in any tool. Definitions are agreed first, with the accountant present, and then built into the model.
Can we switch tools later?
Yes, though the work does not move cleanly. Definitions and source connections carry over if they are documented. Dashboards themselves are usually rebuilt in the new tool.
Should we buy licences before deciding?
No. Licences bought early often sit unused while a report reads an Excel export from one desktop. Settle the questions and the sources first. Pick the tool after that.
Sources
- Microsoft: Power BI pricing and licensing — verified 6 Oct 2026
- Metabase: pricing and editions — verified 6 Oct 2026