We performed a comparison between IBM Cognos and Information Builders WebFOCUS based on real PeerSpot user reviews.
Find out in this report how the two Legacy BI Tools solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI."The most valuable feature of IBM Cognos is security. The solution has updated features that other competitors' solutions come out with long after IBM Cognos has had them."
"This solution allows you to input a wide range of file formats."
"The most valuable features are Report Development (Functionality) and Information Distribution (Flexibility)."
"In terms of stability, I think that Cognos is more stable than Tableau and Power Bi because of its framework manager concept that allows us to import metadata and store it in the framework manager."
"The main difference that I like about Cognos compared to other solutions is its data splitting functionality. We have all our company data inside the Cognos environment and so we prefer to split the information Cognos itself. It's more efficient this way."
"If they want dashboarding, storytelling, and analyzing why KPIs are met or not, then Cognos is a better candidate than Qlik Sense."
"Previously, we were doing static reporting. Management would request a report, and it would take staff a week or more to provide it. With Cognos, we have dynamic reporting, and it has reduced both reporting and decision making times significantly. With the solution's dashboard, the company's management team has updated records at their fingertips. This means that they can directly access the data they need to make decisions."
"The Report Studio that is aimed at professional report writers."
"The most valuable feature is building ad hoc reports."
"It stands out for its ability to work across different platforms, support mainframe data, offer cloud integration, automate report scheduling, and provide a robust scripting language."
"The solution can read and write 500 different types of outputs."
"I would rate the scalability a ten out of ten. It's highly scalable and can handle significant data volumes."
"We would like to see development of the product's UI function, to make it more of a UI tool that can be configured as required."
"They should provide improved visual reporting."
"Tableau and Power BI are faster than Cognos."
"One key area for improvement is the need to improve the self-service nature and functionality of the product in terms of visual analytics."
"IBM Support can be slow at times, but they can usually deliver in a timely manner."
"It could have more options for themes."
"There are a lot of limitations with the out-of-the-box tool."
"The technical support team’s response time is slow and needs to be improved."
"The solution can be improved by adding more automated options for reporting."
"The challenge lies not in what the tool can do but in how you use it and understand the data."
"When it comes to customer support, we don't always reach the right person. Sometimes, we get junior-level reps who aren't as knowledgeable as we are."
"If there were to be any improvements right now, their documentation needs to get in sync with their product."
More Information Builders WebFOCUS Pricing and Cost Advice →
IBM Cognos is ranked 3rd in Legacy BI Tools with 11 reviews while Information Builders WebFOCUS is ranked 6th in Predictive Analytics with 4 reviews. IBM Cognos is rated 8.0, while Information Builders WebFOCUS is rated 8.8. The top reviewer of IBM Cognos writes "Improved the quality of our KPIs, while reducing calls to the IT department". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Information Builders WebFOCUS writes "A flexible mainframe product with unique file features and a rock solid scheduling feature". IBM Cognos is most compared with Microsoft Power BI, Tableau, Oracle OBIEE, SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform and Oracle Hyperion, whereas Information Builders WebFOCUS is most compared with Microsoft Power BI, Tableau, SAP BusinessObjects Business Intelligence Platform, Alteryx and SAS Visual Analytics. See our IBM Cognos vs. Information Builders WebFOCUS report.
We monitor all Legacy BI Tools reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.