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Energy · head to head

AVEVA PI System vs Uplight

AVEVA PI System logo

AVEVA PI System

Energy

Industrial data infrastructure for real-time insights

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Uplight logo

Uplight

Energy

Customer engagement, rebate marketplaces and demand flexibility software sold to regulated utilities

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: AVEVA PI System pricing is not published and comes through an account representative; Uplight the product assumes a regulated utility with commission-approved programmes, so competitive retailers and aggregators find much of the reporting and measurement machinery irrelevant while still paying for it.
  • They diverge on capability: AVEVA PI System covers Real-time data collection, Uplight covers Energy marketplace.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which AVEVA PI System and Uplight actually diverge.

Attributes where AVEVA PI System and Uplight differ
AttributeAVEVA PI SystemUplight
Pricing modelone-timequote
PlatformsDesktop, Web, Mobile, ApiWeb, iOS, Android, API
Founded1967Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Energy).

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 AVEVA PI System

  • Real-time data collection
  • Time-series data storage
  • Asset framework
  • Visualization
  • Analytics
  • Event management
  • Notifications
  • Data integration

Only in Uplight

  • Energy marketplace
  • Personalised recommendations
  • Rates engagement
  • Demand response
  • Distributed energy resource management
  • Programme reporting
  • Home energy reports
  • OEM and device partnerships

What people use each for

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

AVEVA PI System

  • Industrial data collection and storage for oil, gas, and chemical processingnot Uplight
  • Real-time operational data visualization and HMI dashboardsnot Uplight
  • Supply chain and asset performance monitoring across sitesnot Uplight
  • Compliance and audit trail management for regulated industriesnot Uplight
  • Integration with SCADA systems and manufacturing executionnot Uplight

Uplight

  • A regulated utility that must deliver an approved energy efficiency programme and evidence the savings to its commissionnot AVEVA PI System
  • A utility launching a residential demand response programme built on customer-owned thermostats and batteriesnot AVEVA PI System
  • A utility moving customers onto time-of-use tariffs that needs enrolment journeys rather than a billing change alonenot AVEVA PI System
  • A utility that wants rebates applied at the point of purchase instead of processing claim forms after the factnot AVEVA PI System

Where each one falls short

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

AVEVA PI System

  • Pricing is not published and comes through an account representative
  • The vendor is moving to a subscription commercial model, so perpetual licence expectations no longer hold
  • Made up of several separately named components, including PI Server, PI Vision, Edge Data Store and the adapters and connectors needed per data source

Uplight

  • The product assumes a regulated utility with commission-approved programmes, so competitive retailers and aggregators find much of the reporting and measurement machinery irrelevant while still paying for it.
  • Procurement runs through long RFPs tied to rate cases and programme approvals, so implementation dates are set by a regulator rather than by the utility or the vendor and slip when filings slip.
  • The investor group of Schneider Electric, AES and Octopus Energy Group is made up of active energy market participants, which is a governance question a utility should raise in diligence rather than discover later.
  • The platform spans engagement, marketplace and demand management, and those capabilities were built or acquired separately, so a buyer taking one module gets less of the integration benefit than the platform story implies.
  • The reference base and product depth are strongest in North America, so a European or Asia-Pacific utility gets fewer comparable deployments and less functionality built around local market rules.

Pricing, plan by plan

AVEVA PI System

On request
  • Data Archive$undefined/license
    • Time-series data storage
    • High-speed data collection
    • Data compression
  • Operations$undefined/license
    • PI Vision dashboards
    • AF analytics
    • Event frames
  • Enterprise$undefined/license
    • PI Integrator
    • Cloud connectivity
    • Advanced analytics

Uplight

On request
  • Uplight platform$undefined/year
    • Quoted per utility programme by customer count and modules
    • Frequently structured around approved programme budgets and performance targets
    • Marketplace economics include product fulfilment and rebate handling

Which should you pick?

Choose AVEVA PI System if

  • You need real-time data collection.
  • You work on Desktop, Web, Mobile, Api.
  • You also want time-series data storage.
AVEVA PI System review

Choose Uplight if

  • You need energy marketplace.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android, API.
  • You also want personalised recommendations.
Uplight review

Questions people ask

Is AVEVA PI System or Uplight better?
Neither clearly leads. AVEVA PI System starts at On request and Uplight at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, AVEVA PI System or Uplight?
AVEVA PI System starts at On request and Uplight at On request.
Does AVEVA PI System or Uplight run on more platforms?
AVEVA PI System runs on Desktop, Web, Mobile, Api. Uplight runs on Web, iOS, Android, API.
What is AVEVA PI System best used for?
AVEVA PI System is most often used for industrial data collection and storage for oil, gas, and chemical processing, real-time operational data visualization and hmi dashboards, supply chain and asset performance monitoring across sites, compliance and audit trail management for regulated industries. Of those, industrial data collection and storage for oil, gas, and chemical processing and real-time operational data visualization and hmi dashboards are not what Uplight is typically brought in for.
What can AVEVA PI System do that Uplight cannot?
AVEVA PI System covers Real-time data collection, Time-series data storage, Asset framework, Visualization. Uplight covers Energy marketplace, Personalised recommendations, Rates engagement, Demand response.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

AVEVA PI System: What is AVEVA PI System pricing?

AVEVA does not list PI System pricing on its website. AVEVA markets industrial software through enterprise sales channels with custom quotes.

Source
Uplight: Who owns Uplight?

It is privately held and backed by Schneider Electric, AES Corporation and Octopus Energy Group.

AVEVA PI System: Does AVEVA offer a Flex Subscription Program?

AVEVA mentions Flex Subscription Program on its site for flexible product access, but pricing and terms are not published publicly.

Source
Uplight: Can a competitive energy retailer use it?

It can, but the product is designed around regulated programme delivery and measurement, so a retailer pays for machinery it does not need.

AVEVA PI System: Is AVEVA PI System available in the cloud?

AVEVA offers cloud options for its products, but per-seat or usage-based pricing for cloud deployments is not disclosed on the vendor website.

Source
Uplight: Does Uplight do demand response as well as efficiency?

Yes. It acquired the AutoGrid distributed energy resource platform from Schneider Electric in 2024, which added device control and dispatch to the engagement business.

Uplight: Is pricing published?

No. Deals are quoted per programme and usually sized against an approved programme budget.

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