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Software · head to head

Chartio vs Power BI

Chartio logo

Chartio

Software

Cloud-based data exploration (discontinued)

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Power BI logo

Power BI

Software

Business analytics by Microsoft

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Power BI has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Chartio chartio shut down on March 1, 2022 after the team joined Atlassian, and the site now serves only a shutdown notice and a migration guide; Power BI free tier cannot publish or share reports; Pro tier required for collaboration
  • They diverge on capability: Chartio covers Visual Query Builder, Power BI covers AI-powered Insights.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Chartio and Power BI actually diverge.

Attributes where Chartio and Power BI differ
AttributeChartioPower BI
Starting priceOn requestFree
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, Desktop, Mobile
Founded20101975

Identical on both: pricing model (Unknown), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Chartio

  • Visual Query Builder
  • Interactive Dashboards
  • Data Blending
  • Collaboration
  • Embedding
  • PostgreSQL
  • MySQL
  • Redshift

Only in Power BI

  • AI-powered Insights
  • Natural Language Queries
  • Real-time Dashboards
  • Paginated Reports
  • Mobile Apps
  • Excel
  • Azure
  • Dynamics 365

Both cover

  • Salesforce
  • Web support

What people use each for

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

Chartio

  • Drag and drop chart building over SQL databasesnot Power BI
  • Shared business dashboards for non-technical teamsnot Power BI
  • Exploring warehouse data without writing SQLnot Power BI

Power BI

  • Self-service analyticsnot Chartio
  • Data explorationnot Chartio
  • Ad-hoc reportingnot Chartio
  • Collaborative analysisnot Chartio
  • Embedded analyticsnot Chartio

Where each one falls short

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

Chartio

  • Chartio shut down on March 1, 2022 after the team joined Atlassian, and the site now serves only a shutdown notice and a migration guide
  • No pricing, signup or product access remains; the site's copyright notice stops at 2021
  • Existing customers were required to migrate their dashboards to another tool rather than being moved to an Atlassian successor product

Power BI

  • Free tier cannot publish or share reports; Pro tier required for collaboration
  • Free tier cannot schedule automatic data refreshes
  • Offline capabilities limited to local Power BI Desktop; cloud service always requires internet
  • Data refresh capped at 8 times per day on Pro tier without Premium Per User

Pricing, plan by plan

Chartio

On request
  • DiscontinuedFree
    • Service ended March 2022

Power BI

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Local report creation in Power BI Desktop
    • Cannot publish or share
    • No scheduled refreshes
  • Power BI Pro$14/user/month
    • Publish and share reports
    • Up to 8 scheduled refreshes/day
    • Collaborate with other Pro users
  • Premium Per User$24/user/month
    • All Pro features
    • Up to 48 scheduled refreshes/day
    • Copilot integration

Which should you pick?

Choose Chartio if

  • You need visual query builder.
  • You also want interactive dashboards.
Chartio review

Choose Power BI if

  • You need ai-powered insights.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
  • You also want natural language queries.
Power BI review

Questions people ask

Is Chartio or Power BI better?
Neither clearly leads. Chartio starts at On request and Power BI at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Chartio or Power BI?
Power BI has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Chartio and Free for Power BI.
Does Chartio or Power BI run on more platforms?
Chartio runs on Web. Power BI runs on Web, Desktop, Mobile.
Can I use Power BI for free?
Yes. Power BI has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Chartio starts at On request.
What is Chartio best used for?
Chartio is most often used for drag and drop chart building over sql databases, shared business dashboards for non-technical teams, exploring warehouse data without writing sql. Of those, drag and drop chart building over sql databases and shared business dashboards for non-technical teams are not what Power BI is typically brought in for.
What can Chartio do that Power BI cannot?
Chartio covers Visual Query Builder, Interactive Dashboards, Data Blending, Collaboration. Power BI covers AI-powered Insights, Natural Language Queries, Real-time Dashboards, Paginated Reports. Both handle Salesforce, Web support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Power BI: Can I use Power BI Desktop offline?

Power BI Desktop runs locally and can edit reports offline, but publishing to the service and refreshing cloud data sources requires internet connection. Offline reports show cached data from the last refresh.

Source
Power BI: What are the data refresh limits for each tier?

Power BI Premium Per User allows up to 48 scheduled refreshes per day, while Pro tier is limited to 8 scheduled refreshes per day. Free tier cannot schedule automatic refreshes.

Source
Power BI: Can I use Power BI Free with shared data sources?

Free tier users can create local reports in Power BI Desktop but cannot publish to the Power BI Service for collaboration. Publishing requires Power BI Pro ($14/user/month).

Source
Power BI: Is SSO available and on which plan?

SSO is available on Power BI Premium Per User ($24/user/month) and Fabric capacity plans through Azure AD integration.

Source
Power BI: What does Copilot require in Power BI?

Copilot for natural language queries and automatic report generation requires Power BI Premium Per User or Fabric capacity pricing, not available on Pro or Free tiers.

Source
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