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Business Intelligence · head to head

Geckoboard vs Sigma Computing

Geckoboard logo

Geckoboard

Business Intelligence

Real-time KPI dashboards

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sigma Computing logo

Sigma Computing

Spreadsheets

Spreadsheet-style analytics that queries a cloud data warehouse directly with no extract layer

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Geckoboard has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Geckoboard annual billing required; monthly billing not offered; Sigma Computing every user interaction is a live warehouse query, so compute costs rise with adoption and land on the warehouse invoice rather than the BI line item, which routinely surprises the team that approved the purchase.
  • They diverge on capability: Geckoboard covers Real-time Updates, Sigma Computing covers Spreadsheet interface over SQL.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Geckoboard and Sigma Computing actually diverge.

Attributes where Geckoboard and Sigma Computing differ
AttributeGeckoboardSigma Computing
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Tv, MobileWeb
CategoryBusiness IntelligenceSpreadsheets
Founded2010Unknown

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 Geckoboard

  • Real-time Updates
  • TV Mode
  • Custom Widgets
  • Data Blending
  • Sharing
  • Salesforce
  • Zendesk
  • Google Analytics

Only in Sigma Computing

  • Spreadsheet interface over SQL
  • No extract layer
  • Input tables and write-back
  • Workbooks
  • Embedded analytics
  • Version control and dbt awareness

What people use each for

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

Geckoboard

  • TV wall dashboards for office and operations displaysnot Sigma Computing
  • Live KPI monitoring for sales and support teamsnot Sigma Computing
  • Sharing read-only metrics widely, since viewers are unlimited on every tiernot Sigma Computing
  • Alerting when a metric crosses a thresholdnot Sigma Computing

Sigma Computing

  • A finance or operations team that lives in spreadsheets and needs warehouse-scale data without exporting CSVsnot Geckoboard
  • An organisation that has consolidated on Snowflake or Databricks and wants one governed access layer rather than several desktop toolsnot Geckoboard
  • Planning and scenario work where users need to type assumptions back into governed tables rather than into a local filenot Geckoboard
  • Embedding customer-facing analytics into a product where each tenant must only see their own rowsnot Geckoboard

Where each one falls short

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

Geckoboard

  • Annual billing required; monthly billing not offered
  • Add-on dashboards cost $24 each
  • Additional editors cost $20 each
  • Additional screens cost $20 each

Sigma Computing

  • Every user interaction is a live warehouse query, so compute costs rise with adoption and land on the warehouse invoice rather than the BI line item, which routinely surprises the team that approved the purchase.
  • It cannot work without a supported cloud data warehouse, so an organisation running analytics on an on-premises database or a plain application database has nothing to connect to.
  • Pricing is not published and seats are differentiated by capability, so budgeting requires a sales cycle and a headcount forecast before you can compare it with a tool you could simply buy.
  • Performance is only as good as the warehouse behind it, which means slow or badly modelled tables surface as a slow interface and the fix is a data engineering project, not a Sigma setting.
  • Statistical and scientific visualisation is limited compared with dedicated tools, so anything beyond standard business charting has to be done elsewhere and brought back in.

Pricing, plan by plan

Geckoboard

Free
  • Essentials$79/month
    • 2 dashboards
    • 1 editor
    • 1 screen
  • Performance$319/month
    • 20 dashboards
    • 3 editors
    • 5 screens
  • Enterprise$null/mo
    • Unlimited dashboards, editors, and screens
    • All Performance features
    • Dedicated support manager

Sigma Computing

On request
  • Sigma Computing$undefined/year
    • Quoted per organisation
    • Seat types are differentiated by whether a user views, explores or authors
    • Warehouse compute is billed separately by your cloud data warehouse vendor

Which should you pick?

Choose Geckoboard if

  • You need real-time updates.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Tv, Mobile.
  • You also want tv mode.
Geckoboard review

Choose Sigma Computing if

  • You need spreadsheet interface over sql.
  • You also want no extract layer.
Sigma Computing review

Questions people ask

Is Geckoboard or Sigma Computing better?
Neither clearly leads. Geckoboard starts at Free and Sigma Computing at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Geckoboard or Sigma Computing?
Geckoboard has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Geckoboard and On request for Sigma Computing.
Does Geckoboard or Sigma Computing run on more platforms?
Geckoboard runs on Web, Tv, Mobile. Sigma Computing runs on Web.
Can I use Geckoboard for free?
Yes. Geckoboard has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Sigma Computing starts at On request.
What is Geckoboard best used for?
Geckoboard is most often used for tv wall dashboards for office and operations displays, live kpi monitoring for sales and support teams, sharing read-only metrics widely, since viewers are unlimited on every tier, alerting when a metric crosses a threshold. Of those, tv wall dashboards for office and operations displays and live kpi monitoring for sales and support teams are not what Sigma Computing is typically brought in for.
What can Geckoboard do that Sigma Computing cannot?
Geckoboard covers Real-time Updates, TV Mode, Custom Widgets, Data Blending. Sigma Computing covers Spreadsheet interface over SQL, No extract layer, Input tables and write-back, Workbooks.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Geckoboard: How much does Geckoboard cost?

Geckoboard offers Essentials at $79 per month, Performance at $319 per month, and custom-priced Enterprise plans. All plans are billed annually. A 14-day free trial is available.

Source
Sigma Computing: Does Sigma store a copy of my data?

No. Queries are executed on your warehouse and results are returned for display, which is why there is no extract refresh to manage.

Geckoboard: Is there an annual billing discount for Geckoboard?

Yes, annual billing provides 20% savings compared to monthly pricing. Pricing is shown for annual billing with VAT not included.

Source
Sigma Computing: What does it actually cost?

The vendor does not publish prices. Expect an annual contract priced by seat type, plus a warehouse compute increase you should model separately.

Geckoboard: What are the add-on costs for additional Geckoboard resources?

Additional dashboards cost $24 each, extra editors cost $20 each, and additional screens cost $20 each. All add-ons are billed with the annual subscription.

Source
Sigma Computing: Can business users break the warehouse?

They can run expensive queries. Warehouse sizing, query limits and materialised tables are the controls, and they need configuring before a wide rollout.

Geckoboard: Does Geckoboard offer discounts for nonprofits?

Yes, Geckoboard offers 20% off any plan for nonprofit organizations.

Source
Sigma Computing: Is it a replacement for a modelling layer like dbt?

No. Sigma works best on top of modelled tables and is usually deployed alongside dbt rather than instead of it.

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