Energy & Utilities · head to head
Oracle Utilities vs Helioscope
Oracle Utilities
Energy & Utilities
Complete customer care and billing for utilities
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Helioscope
Energy & Utilities
Accurate solar design for commercial projects
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Helioscope has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Oracle Utilities oracle Utilities does not appear on Oracle's published price list index, which covers Technology, eBusiness Suite, Fusion Applications, Engineered Systems, Business Intelligence, Siebel, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, MySQL, Java and several cloud lines; Helioscope licences are single user, so each designer needs their own
- They diverge on capability: Oracle Utilities covers Customer information system, Helioscope covers PV system design.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Oracle Utilities and Helioscope actually diverge.
| Attribute | Oracle Utilities | Helioscope |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | On request | Free |
| Pricing model | quote | subscription |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Web, Mobile, Api | Web, Api |
| Founded | 1977 | 2012 |
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Energy & Utilities).
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 Oracle Utilities
- Customer information system
- Billing and invoicing
- Meter data management
- Customer self-service portal
- Revenue management
- Credit and collections
- Field service management
- Regulatory compliance
Only in Helioscope
- PV system design
- 3D shade modeling
- Performance simulation
- Single-line diagrams
- BOM generation
- Proposal templates
- Component database
- Financial modeling
Both cover
- Salesforce
- SOC2
- Cloud deployment
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Oracle Utilities
- Customer information and billing systems for electric, gas and water utilitiesnot Helioscope
- Meter data management for utility smart metering programmesnot Helioscope
- Work and asset management for utility field operationsnot Helioscope
Helioscope
- Simulating photovoltaic system performance and energy yieldnot Oracle Utilities
- Laying out commercial solar arrays and producing design reportsnot Oracle Utilities
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Oracle Utilities
- Oracle Utilities does not appear on Oracle's published price list index, which covers Technology, eBusiness Suite, Fusion Applications, Engineered Systems, Business Intelligence, Siebel, PeopleSoft, JD Edwards, MySQL, Java and several cloud lines
- Where Oracle does publish prices they are downloadable PDF price lists rather than an interactive pricing page
- Oracle publishes separate commercial and US Public Sector price lists, so the commercial rate does not apply to government buyers
Helioscope
- Licences are single user, so each designer needs their own
- Projects are capped at 10 a month on both Basic and Pro
- System size is capped by plan, at 1.25 MW DC on Basic and 5 MW on Pro, so a larger array forces an upgrade regardless of project count
- Trackers, LIDAR modelling and API access sit on the higher tiers
- Enterprise is priced per project with no published figure
Pricing, plan by plan
Oracle Utilities
On requestNo published plan breakdown. See the Oracle Utilities review.
Helioscope
Free- FreeFree
- 3 projects
- Basic design tools
- Shade analysis
- Professional$95/month
- Unlimited projects
- Advanced shading
- Custom reports
- Enterprise$undefined/month
- Everything in Pro
- API access
- Custom integrations
Which should you pick?
Choose Oracle Utilities if
- You need customer information system.
- You work on Web, Mobile, Api.
- You also want billing and invoicing.
Choose Helioscope if
- You need pv system design.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, Api.
- You also want 3d shade modeling.
Questions people ask
- Is Oracle Utilities or Helioscope better?
- Neither clearly leads. Oracle Utilities starts at On request and Helioscope at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Oracle Utilities or Helioscope?
- Helioscope has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Oracle Utilities and Free for Helioscope.
- Does Oracle Utilities or Helioscope run on more platforms?
- Oracle Utilities runs on Web, Mobile, Api. Helioscope runs on Web, Api.
- Can I use Helioscope for free?
- Yes. Helioscope has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Oracle Utilities starts at On request.
- What is Oracle Utilities best used for?
- Oracle Utilities is most often used for customer information and billing systems for electric, gas and water utilities, meter data management for utility smart metering programmes, work and asset management for utility field operations. Of those, customer information and billing systems for electric, gas and water utilities and meter data management for utility smart metering programmes are not what Helioscope is typically brought in for.
- What can Oracle Utilities do that Helioscope cannot?
- Oracle Utilities covers Customer information system, Billing and invoicing, Meter data management, Customer self-service portal. Helioscope covers PV system design, 3D shade modeling, Performance simulation, Single-line diagrams. Both handle Salesforce, SOC2, Cloud deployment.