Looker vs Microsoft Power BI
embedded BI head-to-head for ERP teams: evidenced capabilities, published pricing, and which ERPs each actually integrates with.
| Starting price | Quote-based | From $14/user/mo (published) |
| Deployment | Cloud | Cloud, On-premises (Report Server) |
| Company size | Mid-market, Enterprise | SMB, Mid-market, Enterprise |
| Stated ERP integrations | NetSuite, SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud | Microsoft Dynamics 365, SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud |
| Vendor | Google Cloud | Microsoft |
Our take
Where Looker leads
- Stronger evidenced coverage on 1 of the 30 capabilities where they differ (led by planning write-back to source system).
- Stated NetSuite integration the alternative doesn't list.
Where Microsoft Power BI leads
- Stronger evidenced coverage on 29 of the 30 capabilities where they differ (led by in-memory columnar query engine and built-in etl / data preparation).
- Published pricing where the alternative quotes.
- Stated Microsoft Dynamics 365 integration the alternative doesn't list.
Where they differ
The 30 capabilities (of 45 in the embedded BI taxonomy) where the evidence separates them, biggest gaps first. “Not evidenced” means our research found no public documentation of this capability — the vendor may still offer it. Confirm on a demo.
| Capability | ||
|---|---|---|
| In-memory columnar query engineData Modeling & Semantic Layer | Not evidenced | Core strength |
| Built-in ETL / data preparationData Modeling & Semantic Layer | Not evidenced | Core strength |
| Native/prebuilt ERP connectorsData Connectivity | Not evidenced | Core strength |
| On-premises data gatewayData Connectivity | Not evidenced | Core strength |
| Key-driver / root-cause analysisAI & Augmented Analytics | Not evidenced | Core strength |
| Mobile-optimized dashboardsDashboards & Visualization | Not evidenced | Supported Mobile-optimized report layouts |
| Geospatial / map visualizationsDashboards & Visualization | Not evidenced | Supported Built-in Map, Filled Map and Azure Maps visuals |
| Pixel-perfect / paginated report layoutsDashboards & Visualization | Not evidenced | Supported Paginated Reports (Power BI Report Builder) |
| Cross-source data blending and joinsData Modeling & Semantic Layer | Not evidenced | Supported Composite models combining DirectQuery and Import sources |
| ODBC/JDBC driver accessData Connectivity | Not evidenced | Supported Generic ODBC/JDBC connectivity via Power Query |
| API-based data ingestionData Connectivity | Not evidenced | Supported REST APIs for dataset push and automation |
| Predictive forecasting / AutoMLAI & Augmented Analytics | Not evidenced | Supported Built-in line-chart forecasting (exponential smoothing) |
| Data cataloging and lineageGovernance & Administration | Not evidenced | Supported Endorsement (certified/promoted datasets) and lineage view |
| Export to Excel/PDF/PowerPointReporting, Alerting & Distribution | Not evidenced | Supported Export to PDF, PowerPoint and Excel |
| Sharing, comments and collaborationReporting, Alerting & Distribution | Not evidenced | Supported Apps and workspaces for distribution; Teams/SharePoint embedding |
| Subscriptions to reports/dashboardsReporting, Alerting & Distribution | Not evidenced | Supported Users can subscribe to reports and dashboards |
| What-if scenario modelingEnterprise Planning & Forecasting | Not evidenced | Supported What-if parameters for scenario analysis |
| Planning write-back to source systemEnterprise Planning & Forecasting | Supported Data actions and write-back integrations | Not evidenced |
| Drag-and-drop dashboard/report authoringDashboards & Visualization | Supported Looker Studio for free-form visualization | Core strength |
| Interactive filtering, drill-down and cross-filteringDashboards & Visualization | Supported Explores for self-service querying | Core strength |
| Broad chart and visualization libraryDashboards & Visualization | Supported Custom visualizations and the Marketplace | Core strength |
| Broad database & cloud warehouse connectorsData Connectivity | Supported Native dialects for BigQuery, Snowflake, Redshift and 50+ databases | Core strength |
| Scheduled and incremental data refreshData Connectivity | Supported Caching policies and persistent derived tables (PDTs) | Core strength |
| Natural-language queryAI & Augmented Analytics | Supported Gemini-powered natural-language querying via Conversational Analytics | Core strength |
| Automated insight / anomaly detectionAI & Augmented Analytics | Supported Agentic insights and automated decisions | Core strength |
| REST API for automation and provisioningEmbedded & Developer Analytics | Supported Full REST API | Core strength |
| Licensing model for customer-facing (ISV) embeddingEmbedded & Developer Analytics | Supported Dedicated Embed edition with API call allowances | Core strength |
| Role-based access controlGovernance & Administration | Supported Centralized permissions, model access and content folders | Core strength |
| Audit logging and usage monitoringGovernance & Administration | Supported Usage and performance monitoring | Core strength |
| Content lifecycle managementGovernance & Administration | Supported Version control and Git integration for LookML models | Core strength |
Both grade identically on the other 15 capabilities — see each product's full profile: Looker, Microsoft Power BI.
Looker vs Microsoft Power BI — FAQs
Is Looker or Microsoft Power BI better for ERP integration?
Both state integrations with SAP, Oracle Fusion Cloud. Looker additionally lists NetSuite. Microsoft Power BI additionally lists Microsoft Dynamics 365. Always verify the connector against your ERP version with a reference customer.
Which is cheaper, Looker or Microsoft Power BI?
Microsoft Power BI publishes a starting rate ($14/user/mo); Looker prices by quote, so a like-for-like number requires asking both.
Get pricing for both
Tell us your ERP, seat count and must-haves and we'll come back with an independent view of what Looker and Microsoft Power BI should each cost you — and whether a third option belongs on your shortlist.