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Business Intelligence · head to head

Amazon QuickSight vs Anaplan

Amazon QuickSight logo

Amazon QuickSight

Business Intelligence

Scalable, serverless BI by AWS

From
$3/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Anaplan logo

Anaplan

Business Intelligence

Connected planning platform with an in-memory calculation engine for large multidimensional models

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Amazon QuickSight reader and Reader Pro roles charged separately at $3 and $20/month; Anaplan workspace is licensed by memory consumed, so a model that grows as the business adds SKUs, regions or scenarios generates a bill increase without a single new user being added, and teams end up optimising models for licence cost rather than clarity.
  • They diverge on capability: Amazon QuickSight covers SPICE In-memory Engine, Anaplan covers Hyperblock calculation engine.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Amazon QuickSight and Anaplan actually diverge.

Attributes where Amazon QuickSight and Anaplan differ
AttributeAmazon QuickSightAnaplan
Starting price$3/monthOn request
Pricing modelper-userquote
PlatformsAWSWeb, iOS
Founded2006Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Business Intelligence).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Amazon QuickSight

  • SPICE In-memory Engine
  • ML Insights
  • Natural Language Queries
  • Embedded Analytics
  • Pay-per-session
  • Redshift
  • S3
  • Athena

Only in Anaplan

  • Hyperblock calculation engine
  • Connected planning
  • Scenario and versioning
  • Model builder
  • Anaplan PlanIQ
  • Workflow and approvals
  • Application lifecycle management
  • Data integration

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Amazon QuickSight

  • Business intelligencenot Anaplan
  • Dashboard creationnot Anaplan
  • Data visualizationnot Anaplan

Anaplan

  • Sales territory and quota planning across thousands of reps where a change to segmentation must reflow quota immediatelynot Amazon QuickSight
  • Demand and supply planning at SKU and location level for a manufacturer with tens of thousands of itemsnot Amazon QuickSight
  • Workforce planning that ties headcount, cost and capacity to a revenue plan across dozens of business unitsnot Amazon QuickSight
  • Replacing a spreadsheet estate where the master planning model has become too large and too fragile for Excel to open reliablynot Amazon QuickSight

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Amazon QuickSight

  • Reader and Reader Pro roles charged separately at $3 and $20/month
  • Author and Author Pro roles charged at $24 and $40/month
  • $250/month infrastructure fee required if Pro users or Q&A enabled
  • SPICE storage charged at $0.38/GB monthly (10 GB included)
  • Pixel-perfect reports start at $500/month for 500 monthly units
  • Alerts charged at $0.05-$0.50 per 1,000 metrics evaluated

Anaplan

  • Workspace is licensed by memory consumed, so a model that grows as the business adds SKUs, regions or scenarios generates a bill increase without a single new user being added, and teams end up optimising models for licence cost rather than clarity.
  • Model building requires certified Anaplan modellers using a proprietary formula language, and the labour market for that skill is small, so most customers stay dependent on a systems integrator long after go-live.
  • Thoma Bravo took the company private in 2022 in a $10.7bn deal, and customers have since reported firmer renewal terms; a private-equity owner optimising for cash flow is a real factor in a multi-year planning contract.
  • Native reporting and visualisation are weak for anything beyond planning grids, so most customers push data out to Power BI or Tableau for executive reporting, adding another tool and another latency point.
  • Implementations are long. A connected planning programme across finance and supply chain routinely runs six to eighteen months before the first production plan, which is difficult to justify when the business wants a forecast this quarter.

Pricing, plan by plan

Amazon QuickSight

$3/month
  • Reader$3/month
    • Dashboard viewing only
  • Reader Pro$20/month
    • Enhanced reader capabilities
  • Author$24/month
    • Dashboard creation and editing
  • Author Pro$40/month
    • Advanced authoring features

Anaplan

On request
  • Anaplan$undefined/year
    • Licensed by user tier and by workspace capacity
    • Workspace charged on memory consumed by models, independent of user count
    • Multi-year enterprise agreements are the norm

Which should you pick?

Choose Amazon QuickSight if

  • You need spice in-memory engine.
  • You work on AWS.
  • You also want ml insights.
Amazon QuickSight review

Choose Anaplan if

  • You need hyperblock calculation engine.
  • You work on Web, iOS.
  • You also want connected planning.
Anaplan review

Questions people ask

Is Amazon QuickSight or Anaplan better?
Neither clearly leads. Amazon QuickSight starts at $3/month and Anaplan at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Amazon QuickSight or Anaplan?
Amazon QuickSight starts at $3/month and Anaplan at On request.
Does Amazon QuickSight or Anaplan run on more platforms?
Amazon QuickSight runs on AWS. Anaplan runs on Web, iOS.
What is Amazon QuickSight best used for?
Amazon QuickSight is most often used for business intelligence, dashboard creation, data visualization. Of those, business intelligence and dashboard creation are not what Anaplan is typically brought in for.
What can Amazon QuickSight do that Anaplan cannot?
Amazon QuickSight covers SPICE In-memory Engine, ML Insights, Natural Language Queries, Embedded Analytics. Anaplan covers Hyperblock calculation engine, Connected planning, Scenario and versioning, Model builder.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Amazon QuickSight: What does Amazon QuickSight cost per user?

QuickSight pricing varies by user role. Readers start at $3/month, Reader Pro at $20/month, Authors at $24/month, and Author Pro at $40/month. All prices are per user per month.

Source
Anaplan: Why is Anaplan expensive even when user counts are low?

Because workspace is licensed on the memory your models consume as well as on users. Large models cost money regardless of how many people log in.

Amazon QuickSight: Does QuickSight charge an infrastructure fee?

Yes, QuickSight charges an infrastructure fee of $250/month per account if the account has at least one Pro user, has Q&A enabled via topics, or has dashboard Q&A enabled.

Source
Anaplan: Do we need a systems integrator?

Almost always for the first implementation. The proprietary modelling language and the scale of typical models make an experienced partner or an internal certified team effectively mandatory.

Amazon QuickSight: What are QuickSight's session capacity pricing options?

Session capacity pricing starts at $250/month for 500 sessions. Annual plans range from $20,000/year for 50,000 sessions to $258,000/year for 1,600,000 sessions, with volume discounts reducing unit costs from $0.50 to $0.16 per additional session.

Source
Anaplan: Who owns Anaplan?

Thoma Bravo, which took it private in 2022 for $10.7bn.

Amazon QuickSight: How much does additional SPICE storage cost?

Additional SPICE storage beyond the included 10 GB costs $0.38 per GB per month. Authors receive 10 GB included, but Readers do not.

Source
Anaplan: Can it replace our BI tool?

No. It is a planning and calculation platform; most customers still export to Power BI or Tableau for reporting and dashboards.

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