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Business Intelligence · head to head

Databox vs Zenlytic

Databox logo

Databox

Business Intelligence

KPI dashboards that pull from the tools you already run on

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zenlytic logo

Zenlytic

Business Intelligence

Conversational analytics on a governed semantic layer that shows you the SQL it ran

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Databox has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Databox data sources are the billing unit, so cost tracks the number of tools you connect rather than the value you get from them; Zenlytic answer quality is bounded by the semantic model, so a team without a maintained dbt project and metric definitions must complete a modelling project before the AI is useful at all.
  • They diverge on capability: Databox covers Pre-built dashboards, Zenlytic covers Zoe conversational agent.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 25 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Databox and Zenlytic actually diverge.

Attributes where Databox and Zenlytic differ
AttributeDataboxZenlytic
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Mobile, TvWeb
CategoryUnknownBusiness Intelligence
Founded2012Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

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 Databox

  • Pre-built dashboards
  • Dashboard designer
  • Metric library
  • Goal tracking
  • Scorecards
  • Alerts
  • Scheduled reports
  • Client reporting

Only in Zenlytic

  • Zoe conversational agent
  • YAML semantic layer
  • LookML import
  • Row and column permissions
  • Dashboards
  • dbt integration
  • Embedded analytics
  • Query transparency

What people use each for

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

Databox

  • Watching marketing, sales and finance KPIs from separate SaaS tools on one shared dashboardnot Zenlytic
  • Agencies reporting campaign performance to many clients without rebuilding a report per accountnot Zenlytic
  • Putting a live KPI board on an office TV or a recurring email to a leadership teamnot Zenlytic
  • Replacing a manually maintained spreadsheet that someone updates from tool exports each weeknot Zenlytic
  • Tracking goals and getting alerted when a metric moves past a thresholdnot Zenlytic

Zenlytic

  • A data team of three fielding sixty ad hoc requests a week from operators who could answer them in chat insteadnot Databox
  • An ecommerce company where merchandisers need cohort and margin questions answered without waiting for an analystnot Databox
  • A Looker customer looking for an exit that can import existing LookML rather than remodel from scratchnot Databox
  • A finance team that needs every AI-generated number to show its SQL before it goes in a board packnot Databox

Where each one falls short

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

Databox

  • Data sources are the billing unit, so cost tracks the number of tools you connect rather than the value you get from them
  • The $71 Analyst plan is a single seat: adding even a second person means the $199 Core plan, a 2.8x jump
  • AI credits are metered monthly, from 50 on Free to 1,000 on Scale, so heavier AI use pushes you up a tier
  • Every published price assumes annual billing; monthly billing forfeits the advertised 20% saving
  • Free and Analyst plans sync daily and hourly respectively, so neither suits anything close to real-time monitoring
  • It is a dashboarding layer, not a warehouse: there is no transformation or modelling step for messy source data

Zenlytic

  • Answer quality is bounded by the semantic model, so a team without a maintained dbt project and metric definitions must complete a modelling project before the AI is useful at all.
  • It is a small venture-funded company in a category that Snowflake, Databricks and Microsoft are all building into natively, which is a real procurement risk on a multi-year contract.
  • Pricing is not published and is negotiated per deal, so small buyers have no benchmark and no leverage.
  • The visualisation and dashboard layer is thinner than established BI tools, so teams wanting pixel control over reporting will find it limiting.
  • It assumes a cloud data warehouse; organisations with data spread across operational databases and spreadsheets have to consolidate first, which is the expensive part of the project.

Pricing, plan by plan

Databox

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 3 data sources
    • 1 user
    • 50 AI credits per month
  • Analyst$71/month
    • 5 data sources
    • 1 user
    • 150 AI credits per month
  • Team - Core$199/month
    • 10 data sources
    • 3 users
    • 500 AI credits per month
  • Team - Scale$319/month
    • 30 data sources
    • 10 users
    • 1,000 AI credits per month

Zenlytic

On request
  • Zenlytic$undefined/year
    • Annual contract quoted by seats and deployment
    • Semantic layer, dashboards and Zoe included
    • Embedded analytics licensed separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Databox if

  • You need pre-built dashboards.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, Tv.
  • You also want dashboard designer.
Databox review

Choose Zenlytic if

  • You need zoe conversational agent.
  • You also want yaml semantic layer.
Zenlytic review

Questions people ask

Is Databox or Zenlytic better?
Neither clearly leads. Databox starts at Free and Zenlytic at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Databox or Zenlytic?
Databox has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Databox and On request for Zenlytic.
Does Databox or Zenlytic run on more platforms?
Databox runs on Web, Mobile, Tv. Zenlytic runs on Web.
Can I use Databox for free?
Yes. Databox has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Zenlytic starts at On request.
What is Databox best used for?
Databox is most often used for watching marketing, sales and finance kpis from separate saas tools on one shared dashboard, agencies reporting campaign performance to many clients without rebuilding a report per account, putting a live kpi board on an office tv or a recurring email to a leadership team, replacing a manually maintained spreadsheet that someone updates from tool exports each week. Of those, watching marketing, sales and finance kpis from separate saas tools on one shared dashboard and agencies reporting campaign performance to many clients without rebuilding a report per account are not what Zenlytic is typically brought in for.
What can Databox do that Zenlytic cannot?
Databox covers Pre-built dashboards, Dashboard designer, Metric library, Goal tracking. Zenlytic covers Zoe conversational agent, YAML semantic layer, LookML import, Row and column permissions.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Databox: How much does Databox cost?

Databox has a free forever plan with 3 data sources and 1 user. Paid plans are Analyst at $71 per month, Team Core at $199 per month and Team Scale at $319 per month, with an Agency plan from $79 per month plus $20 client packs and a Custom tier on request. All prices are billed annually; monthly billing forfeits the 20% annual saving.

Source
Zenlytic: Does Zenlytic publish pricing?

No. Contracts are quoted annually based on seats and deployment scope.

Databox: Does Databox have a free plan or a free trial?

Both. The Free plan is free forever and covers 3 data sources, 1 user, 50 AI credits a month and daily syncing. Paid plans also offer a 14-day free trial with no credit card required.

Source
Zenlytic: Can it read my Looker model?

Yes, it imports LookML, which is the main reason Looker customers evaluate it.

Databox: How many users does each Databox plan include?

Free and Analyst are single-user. Team Core includes 3 users and Team Scale includes 10. The Agency and Custom plans include unlimited users.

Source
Zenlytic: Does it write arbitrary SQL against my warehouse?

No. Queries are constrained to the semantic layer, and the generated SQL is shown with every answer.

Databox: How many tools does Databox integrate with?

Databox connects to more than 130 tools, spreadsheets, databases and APIs, including HubSpot, Salesforce, Google Analytics, Google and Facebook Ads, Shopify, Stripe, QuickBooks, Google Sheets and custom API sources.

Source
Zenlytic: Do I need dbt?

Not strictly, but the product is designed around a modelled warehouse and works poorly without one.

Databox: How often does Databox refresh its data?

The Free plan syncs daily. Analyst, Team Core, Team Scale, Agency and Custom plans all sync hourly.

Source
Databox: Who makes Databox?

Databox, Inc., founded in 2012 by Davorin Gabrovec, who is now President and Chief Product Officer. Pete Caputa became CEO in 2017 after a decade at HubSpot. The company is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, with its product and engineering team based in Ptuj, Slovenia.

Source
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