Not All Charts are Created Equal:
PowerBI | Tableau | Looker
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Not All Charts are Created Equal:
PowerBI Tableau Looker
Scroll to Learn More ↓
FROM IDEAS TO IMPACT:
Operationalisin Human-Centred AI at Scale
Olivia Lee
INTELLIGEN CONSULTANT
Meet Olivia Lee – one of our brilliant consultants.
With a background in customer and insights analysis across industries like gaming, insurance and retail, Olivia brings a sharp eye for data storytelling and dashboard design. She’s skilled in tools like PowerBI, BigQuery, Tableau, Looker and SQL, and has a knack for turning complex datasets into clear, business-friendly insights.
Published on April 7, 2025 by
Olivia Lee
As businesses become increasingly data-driven, the need for effective platforms to deliver insights has grown. But with so many options out there, I often get asked: which tool is best?
As controversial as this may be, I’m going to take the risk and walk you through three of the most popular data visualisation tools, Power BI, Tableau, and Looker Studio, and rank them across a few key categories:
In this episode of Humanising Data, our founder Erin Evans sits down with Richie Peters, Head of AI, Delivery & Operations at News Corp whose career spans data science, risk analytics, and enterprise AI leadership across banking, insurance, and media.
From his early curiosity in mathematics and automation to leading large-scale AI initiatives, Richie brings a practical yet forward-looking view on how AI is reshaping business. He explores the shift from traditional predictive models to today’s agentic AI, where systems are not only analysing data, but also taking meaningful action.
With grounded insights and a focus on real-world impact, Richie challenges us to think differently about how AI is built, deployed, and maintained at scale. This conversation is both a roadmap for leaders and an invitation to reimagine AI as a tool for transformation that serves people first and creates real impact. Listen now and don’t miss out on his practical insights for the future of AI.
Ease of Use Features
When it comes to ease of use, Looker Studio takes the top spot. Its web-based drag-and-drop interface is intuitive, especially for non-technical users. If you're used to the Google ecosystem, the interface will feel familiar right away.
Power BI and Tableau come in as close seconds. Both tools have sleek interfaces that make it easy to drag and drop fields into visuals. I’ve seen plenty of beginners pick them up quickly and start building out basic dashboards.
That said, Power BI does have an edge if you’ve used other Microsoft products before. The DAX formula language feels similar to Excel formulas, and Power Query (used in Excel and Access) adds a nice layer of familiarity. But whether it’s Power BI or Tableau, moving from basic to advanced visualisations does involve a learning curve which I’ve experienced firsthand.
Pricing
This one’s pretty straightforward.
> Looker Studio is the most affordable—it’s free as part of the Google ecosystem.
> Power BI comes next, with flexible pricing options based on your needs:
- Power BI Pro: $15 per user/month
- Power BI Premium Per User (PPU): $20 per user/month
The PPU licence unlocks additional features like automated report exports, deployment pipelines, and increased data capacity (100GB vs 1GB in Pro). It’s worth noting that even to view a Power BI report in a Pro or Premium Workspace, you’ll need a valid licence.
> Tableau is the priciest option:
- Tableau Viewer: $15 per user/month (for report viewing only)
- Tableau Explorer: $42 per user/month (for interacting with dashboards)
- Tableau Creator: $75 per user/month (for full dashboard creation)
