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Business Intelligence · head to head

Fabi vs Yellowfin

Fabi logo

Fabi

Business Intelligence

AI notebooks combining SQL, Python and no-code for small data teams

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Yellowfin logo

Yellowfin

Business Intelligence

Action-based business intelligence

From
$50/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Fabi has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Fabi fabi is an early-stage company with a small team, so the durability risk is real and there is no obvious migration path for Smartbooks if it stops trading.; Yellowfin the pricing page publishes no rate, no minimum and no per-user price; every model ends in a Get Pricing form
  • They diverge on capability: Fabi covers Smartbooks, Yellowfin covers Automated Analysis.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Fabi and Yellowfin actually diverge.

Attributes where Fabi and Yellowfin differ
AttributeFabiYellowfin
Starting priceFree$50/month
Pricing modelPer user per monthsubscription
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWebWeb, Mobile, Embedded
FoundedUnknown2003

Identical on both: 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 Fabi

  • Smartbooks
  • Smart Reports
  • AI analysis
  • Scheduled runs
  • Database connectors
  • Viewer seats

Only in Yellowfin

  • Automated Analysis
  • Data Stories
  • Collaboration
  • Signals
  • Embedded Analytics
  • Salesforce
  • Google Analytics
  • SQL Server

What people use each for

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

Fabi

  • A single analyst at a startup fielding ad hoc questions faster than dashboards can be built for themnot Yellowfin
  • An operations team that needs Python for a one-off analysis but has to hand the result to non-technical colleaguesnot Yellowfin
  • Replacing a set of scheduled Jupyter notebooks that nobody outside the data team can read or rerunnot Yellowfin
  • Exploratory work against a warehouse where building a semantic model first would cost more than the answer is worthnot Yellowfin

Yellowfin

  • Embedding white-labelled dashboards and analytics into a software productnot Fabi
  • Enterprise reporting with automated business monitoring and alertingnot Fabi
  • Data storytelling and guided natural language querying for business usersnot Fabi

Where each one falls short

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

Fabi

  • Fabi is an early-stage company with a small team, so the durability risk is real and there is no obvious migration path for Smartbooks if it stops trading.
  • There is no meaningful governance layer: no data catalogue, no certified metric definitions and limited lineage, so it does not scale to an organisation that needs a single agreed number.
  • The free and Builder tiers cap AI requests, and the daily cap on Starter is reached quickly during genuine exploratory work.
  • Connector counts are limited by tier, so the Builder plan at 39 dollars connects to exactly one data source, which is rarely enough in practice.
  • It overlaps heavily with what Snowflake, Databricks and Hex now ship natively, so a company already paying for one of those is buying a fourth notebook interface.

Yellowfin

  • The pricing page publishes no rate, no minimum and no per-user price; every model ends in a Get Pricing form
  • One of the three embedded models is a revenue share, so Yellowfin takes a cut of the revenue your analytics module earns
  • Another model prices by server core, so scaling deployment hardware raises the licence cost independently of users
  • Getting a quote requires submitting a form with a marketing consent checkbox and a user-count band rather than seeing a rate card

Pricing, plan by plan

Fabi

Free
  • StarterFree
    • One builder seat
    • Ten dashboard viewers
    • Five Smartbooks
  • Builder$39/month
    • Twenty-five Smart Report viewers
    • Ten Smartbooks with workflows
    • One data connector
  • Team$199/month
    • Four builder seats, extra seats at 39 USD
    • Fifty viewers
    • Premium connector
  • Enterprise$undefined/year
    • Unlimited builder seats
    • Full connector access
    • Custom security review

Yellowfin

$50/month
  • Team$50/month
    • Dashboards
    • Stories
    • Collaboration
  • EnterpriseFree
    • Advanced Features
    • Embedding
    • Custom SLA

Which should you pick?

Choose Fabi if

  • You need smartbooks.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want smart reports.
Fabi review

Choose Yellowfin if

  • You need automated analysis.
  • You work on Web, Mobile, Embedded.
  • You also want data stories.
Yellowfin review

Questions people ask

Is Fabi or Yellowfin better?
Neither clearly leads. Fabi starts at Free and Yellowfin at $50/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Fabi or Yellowfin?
Fabi has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Fabi and $50/month for Yellowfin.
Does Fabi or Yellowfin run on more platforms?
Fabi runs on Web. Yellowfin runs on Web, Mobile, Embedded.
Can I use Fabi for free?
Yes. Fabi has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Yellowfin starts at $50/month.
What is Fabi best used for?
Fabi is most often used for a single analyst at a startup fielding ad hoc questions faster than dashboards can be built for them, an operations team that needs python for a one-off analysis but has to hand the result to non-technical colleagues, replacing a set of scheduled jupyter notebooks that nobody outside the data team can read or rerun, exploratory work against a warehouse where building a semantic model first would cost more than the answer is worth. Of those, a single analyst at a startup fielding ad hoc questions faster than dashboards can be built for them and an operations team that needs python for a one-off analysis but has to hand the result to non-technical colleagues are not what Yellowfin is typically brought in for.
What can Fabi do that Yellowfin cannot?
Fabi covers Smartbooks, Smart Reports, AI analysis, Scheduled runs. Yellowfin covers Automated Analysis, Data Stories, Collaboration, Signals.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Fabi: Is there a free plan?

Yes, a Starter tier with one builder, ten viewers, five Smartbooks and ten AI requests a day.

Yellowfin: What pricing models does Yellowfin offer?

Yellowfin offers three flexible models for embedded analytics: Aligned Utility Model (price per unit), Revenue Share Model (based on analytics revenue value), and Server Core (fixed price based on server deployment).

Source
Fabi: Do viewers cost money?

Viewers are bundled by tier rather than charged individually; builders are the priced seat.

Yellowfin: Is Yellowfin pricing predictable and scalable?

Yes, Yellowfin pricing is simple, predictable and scalable with no hidden costs or surprises.

Source
Fabi: Can I run arbitrary Python?

Yes, Smartbooks include Python cells alongside SQL and no-code steps.

Yellowfin: Are there limits on user access or development environments?

No limitations exist on access to functionality across users. There are also no limits on dev and test licenses, ensuring DevOps is covered.

Source
Fabi: How many data connectors does the entry paid plan include?

One. Additional and premium connectors come with the Team tier.

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