Top 10 Alation Competitors Ranked by G2

In today’s world, driven entirely by data, everything is about having a strong cataloging tool to tap into an organization’s data. Though Alation dominated this space, other powerful tools boasted impressive features and unique capabilities. Next is a blog on Alation’s top 10 competitors and their alternatives, focusing on their top features, pricing, and why you would want them for data cataloging.

What does a Data Catalog Tool offer?

The following are the first factors to consider when selecting a data catalog tool.

• Data Governance: How much does the tool help with data governance, specifically the management of policies and their compliance?
• Integration capabilities: Does this integrate with the existing data sources, BI tools, and cloud services?
• Ease of Use: How intuitive is the interface, and does it support teamwork?
• Scalability: Will the tool scale out to meet your organization’s ever-evolving data needs?

Top 10 Alation Competitors 

1. Alteryx

G2 rating: 4.6(619)

Alteryx is an extremely powerful data analytics platform that can handle everything from end-to-end data preparation and data blending to advanced data analytics. It allows its consumers to accelerate workflow development in this tool using a relatively simple drag-and-drop interface without requiring extensive coding.

Features

• End-to-End Data Analytics: Supports data preparation, blending, and advanced analytics.
• Drag-and-Drop Interface: User-friendly interface for building data workflows.
• Integration with BI Tools: Seamless integration with popular BI tools like Tableau and Power BI.
• Automation: Automates repetitive tasks and workflows, improving efficiency.

Pricing

• An entry-level plan for individual users or small teams is needed.
• Collaboration and automated workflow management for mid-sized organizations.
• Advanced analytics, large-scale deployment, and premium support for large enterprises.

2. Atlan

G2 Rating: 4.6(97)

A next-generation data collaboration platform integrated with diverse data tools enriches the collaboration of teams and governance. It is very intuitive, highly scalable, and suitable for small and large teams.

Features

• Collaboration-First Design: Built for team collaboration with shared annotations and tasks.
• Automated Data Lineage: Maps data flows and dependencies automatically.
• Integration Hub: Connects with various data sources and BI tools.
• Customizable Workflows: Allows the creation of custom workflows for governance and quality checks.

Pricing

• Free for small teams with basic features.
• Advanced collaboration, data lineage, and tool integrations.
• Enhanced security, compliance, and personalized support.

3. Google Data Catalog

G2 Rating: 4.4(28)

This is a fully managed cloud-native metadata management service that allows users to make data discovery more accessible and intuitive. It smoothly fits into the Google Cloud ecosystem, allowing for advanced querying capabilities and datasets that are large.

Features

• Unified Data Catalog: Centralized metadata management across Google Cloud.
• Data Discovery: Advanced search and data tagging capabilities.
• Integration with Google Services: Seamlessly integrates with other Google Cloud services.
• Security: Enterprise-grade security features, including data encryption.

Pricing

• Basic cataloging with API call limitations.
• Advanced data discovery, tagging, and Google Cloud integrations.
• Enterprise-level features, including enhanced security and support.

4. Talend Data Catalog

G2 Rating: 4.3(4)

With Qlik’s recent acquisition, the Talend Data Catalog provides complete metadata management and data governance, with ease of integration across the Talend suite. Extremely easy to use and feature-rich, it is sure to excite any organization wanting increased visibility and enhanced collaboration on data.

Features

• Automated Metadata Management: Discovers and catalogs metadata from various sources.
• Data Quality Profiling: Tools for profiling, cleansing, and enriching data.
• Data Lineage: Tracks data lineage across systems for transparency.
• Integration with Talend Tools: Seamlessly integrates with other Talend products.

Pricing

• Full data governance, advanced metadata management, and integrations.
• Cloud edition supports cloud-based features with enhanced scalability and support.

5. SAP Data Intelligence

G2 Rating: 4.1(10)

SAP Data Intelligence is a harmonized, common data management platform where integration, orchestration, and governance can be done with diverse data from the environment. The AI and machine learning features of it are highly advanced, too, which also make data processing and analytics applied to the most complex data operations in major volumes more feasible.

Features

• Comprehensive Data Management: Combines integration, cataloging, and orchestration.
• AI and Machine Learning Integration: Enhances data processing and analytics with AI/ML.
• Multi-Cloud Support: Supports deployment across cloud and on-premises environments.
• Data Governance and Compliance: Ensures compliance with data privacy regulations.

Pricing

• The basic plan includes essential data management features for small teams.
• The professional plan includes advanced analytics, AI integration, and enhanced data processing.
• The enterprise plan includes full-scale governance, real-time processing, and enterprise support.

6. Informatica EDC

G2 Rating: 4.3(21)

Informatica EDC provides enterprise-class metadata management and data governance capabilities that provide full visibility into data discovery and lineage tracking. This integrates with a range of sources and supplies additional AI-driven insight that helps further advance data visibility and compliance.

Features

• AI-Powered Data Discovery: Automatically discovers and catalogs data across the enterprise.
• Metadata Management: Centralized management and enrichment of metadata.
• Data Lineage Visualization: End-to-end data lineage tracking.
• Customizable Dashboards: Create custom dashboards to monitor data assets.

Pricing

• The Basic plan includes essential metadata management and discovery tools for small teams.
• The Professional plan includes AI-driven discovery, advanced lineage, and enhanced metadata management.
• The Enterprise plan includes a full suite of data governance and advanced analytics.

7. IBM Watson Knowledge Catalog

G2 Rating: 4.1(18)

IBM Watson Knowledge Catalog is an exceptional cloud solution that uses AI to automate data discovery, data governance, and data collaboration. More importantly, it also integrates seamlessly with the wider IBM ecosystem, making it a very exciting tool in managing enterprise data assets.

Features

• AI-Driven Cataloging: Automated discovery, classification, and cataloging of data assets.
• Governance and Compliance: Comprehensive tools for data governance and regulatory compliance.
• Integration with IBM AI: Seamless integration with IBM Watson AI services.
• Role-Based Access Control: Secure access to data based on user roles.

Pricing

• The Lite plan is free and has limited capabilities for small projects.
• The Standard plan has Comprehensive governance, AI insights, and IBM Cloud integration.
• The Enterprise plan is fully-featured with advanced analytics and 24/7 support.

8. data.world

G2 Rating: 4.2(13)

data.world’s cloud-native data catalog and collaboration platform integrates seamlessly with data warehouses and BI tools, offering a highly intuitive interface and community-driven approach that is accessible and highly scalable for any size organization.

Features

• Community-Driven Catalog: Collaborative platform for sharing and discovering data assets.
• Linked Data Architecture: Enhances data discoverability through connected data ecosystems.
• Data Governance Framework: Tools for managing governance, policies, and compliance.
• Advanced Search: Powerful search capabilities with metadata and tag-based filtering.

Pricing

• The free plan has a basic community edition with limited features.
• The Pro plan has advanced governance and collaboration tools with extended API access.
• The Enterprise edition is tailored for large organizations with enterprise-grade security and support.

9. Collibra

G2 Rating: 4.2(76)

Collibra is a leading Data Governance and Cataloging platform having the strong framework and collaborative toolsets. Ideal for organizations needing broad governance, data lineage, and privacy compliance.

Features

• Data Governance Framework: Offers a complete solution for data stewardship, quality management, and policy enforcement.
• Automated Data Lineage: Visualizes data flow across systems, aiding in traceability.
• Data Privacy and Compliance: Built-in tools for managing data privacy regulations.
• Collaboration Tools: Facilitates collaboration among data stewards, analysts, and business users.

Pricing

• The standard plan has basic governance and metadata management for small teams.
• The Enterprise plan has Advanced governance, automated lineage, AI-driven tools, and enhanced collaboration.
• Custom plans are tailored solutions for large enterprises with dedicated support.

10. Amundsen

G2 Rating: NA

Amundsen is an open-source data discovery and metadata management platform for any organization to catalog, search, and govern data assets. It provides complete visibility into data lineage, empowering users to locate and understand the data required to perform analytics and make decisions, without adding significant complexity.

Features

• Open-Source Flexibility: Customizable and free, suitable for organizations with development capabilities.
• Automated Metadata Ingestion: Automatically ingests metadata from data sources and BI tools.
• Search and Discovery: Google-like search interface for finding data assets.
• Lineage and Impact Analysis: Visualizes data lineage and its impact across the organization.

Pricing

• Open-Source plan is free and customizable with community support.
• It has a paid tier with hosting, support, and enterprise features.
• Custom plans have tailored pricing for large-scale enterprise needs.

Head-to-Head Comparison Alation Alternatives

To help you decide, here’s a quick comparison table of the top 10 Alation competitors, including Alation itself.

Tool	Integration Capabilities	Ease of Use	Pricing	Scalability
Alation	Extensive integrations with data sources and BI tools	User-friendly with intuitive search	Custom pricing based on features	Scales efficiently for large enterprises
Alteryx	Integrates with various BI tools	Drag-and-drop simplicity	Designer to enterprise pricing	Scales with organizational needs
Atlan	Connects with numerous data tools	Designed for team collaboration	Pricing for different team sizes	Scalable for both small and large teams
Google Data Catalog	Native integration within the Google Cloud ecosystem	Easy to use with advanced search	Tiered pricing based on usage	Scales within the Google Cloud ecosystem
Talend Data Catalog	Seamless integration with Talend suite	Easy to use with robust governance	Free to subscription pricing	Scales across cloud and on-prem environments
SAP Data Intelligence	Supports multi-cloud integration	Comprehensive and user-friendly	Tiered pricing based on features	Scales for large enterprise deployments
Informatica EDC	Integrates with various data sources and applications	AI-driven with advanced features	Subscription pricing model	Scales for enterprise data management
IBM Watson Knowledge Catalog	Strong integration with IBM tools	User-friendly, AI-driven features	Lite to enterprise pricing	Scalable within the IBM ecosystem
Data.World	Integrates well with data warehouses and BI tools	Community-driven, intuitive interface	Free to enterprise pricing	Scales across multiple environments
Collibra	Connects with numerous data sources and BI tools	Easy to use with a strong focus on governance	Tiered pricing based on usage	Scales across large enterprises
Amundsen	Customizable integrations	Simple and effective search	Open-source to enterprise pricing	Flexible and scalable open-source model

Conclusion

Selecting the right data catalog tool depends on your organization’s specific needs, including data governance, integration, ease of use, and scalability. Each tool mentioned here offers unique strengths, making it a strong alternative to Alation. Whether a small team or a large enterprise, a data cataloging solution is tailored to your needs.

FAQ on Alation Competitors