SAP Crystal Reports vs Windward Core comparison

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between SAP Crystal Reports and Windward Core based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

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To learn more, read our detailed Reporting Report (Updated: March 2024).
765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.
Featured Review
Quotes From Members
We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use.
Here are some excerpts of what they said:
Pros
"We use SAP Crystal Reports for operational reporting.""I find Crystal Reports very easy to use, even for a non-technical person.""The most valuable feature of the solution is that it is a fantastic way of generating reports.""SAP Crystal Reports offers a plethora of features, many of which were available much earlier than in the Crystal Reports we previously used. We extensively use its capabilities for generating general reports, working with Kaspersky data, and even incorporating images into our reports. The range of functions available in SAP Crystal Reports is diverse, and we leverage them across various systems for our needs.""The initial setup of the solution is pretty easy.""It is an user-friendly solution.""The most valuable feature is that from a user's point of view, it is easy to use and requires just a simple click to generate a report."

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"The most valuable feature is the fact that it uses Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel as base templates, so when you generate, it's easy for clients to upgrade, and maintain, and generate out either a PDF or an actual Excel spreadsheet.""The ability for users to have design and layout control is also critically important. Without this ability, procuring report designs would represent a huge bottleneck. Report design tools also enable upsell opportunities for customized reports, with quick turnaround times.""The most valuable feature is that it provides good, dynamic document-generation performance and the documents are being generated reliably.""Technical support is ​very good. They reply immediately and follow-up with any questions.​""The usually the response is within one hour. The technical support will WebEx with you. I rate them as a 10 out of 10.""We ended up going with Windward for the level of support we got from them during our proof of concept.""The engine being able to sit inside of our firewall is the most important feature.""It has the ability to easily integrate into existing apps with little code. If you know how to use MS Office, you can create a report."

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Cons
"If at all possible, a little bit of improvement on the analytical side is needed.""SAP Crystal Reports should provide better support for dynamic connectors.""It has significantly enhanced security features, especially when compared to the standard security features of the earlier PeerSpot version I purchased. I've observed improvements in security, and overall, it's quite commendable. Regarding potential enhancements for the next release of this solution, I haven't closely examined SAP Crystal Reports 53. I've only encountered it briefly, perhaps once or twice. However, I anticipate that it likely offers advanced features distinct from its predecessor. I believe there may be notable improvements and additions in the latest version, and I look forward to exploring them further.""The financing part needs improvement.""There could be improvements made to the analytics capabilities.""A real improvement would be a simpler system that allows users to play with the visualization without needing specialized skills and code.""SAP Crystal Reports has some compatibility issues with third-party products."

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"They should add a document distribution solution on top of the document generation capability. It should allow us to send the generated document to a certain recipient (e.g. customer contact’s email address) based on a business-rules management system. That system would allow the end-user to manage a relationship between a document template and its recipient.""About six months ago, we raised the possibility of improving the way they manage the HTML 5. Sometimes, when you insert a lot of data in the data source, you get an error because it is not managing HTML 5 features well. I believe they have addressed this in later versions of their product.""They're not a gigantic company, so they just don't have all the capital to do whatever they would want to do. That's the only reason I would hold back even that one point. I know that if I do ask for something, I'll get it. I just know that it will take some time.""Regarding AutoTag, we do notice that when you want to refactor a little bit of your template design or when you want to implement changes, sometimes you need a lot of clicks to get the change done. For instance... it would be helpful to be able to find all the identifiers with the old name and replace them with the new name. We haven't found a way to do that with the find-replace tool. Throughout the user-interface of Windward, you need a lot of clicks to get that done.""It is software, so there are always times where things don't work. Most of the time issues happen when trying to move to a new version. There might be problems with reports that were created in an older version, so either we have to make a tweak to the templates or we report it to them and get them to make an adjustment to their software.""There is always room for improvement in the speed, especially with the complex, multi-line Excel spreadsheets. They made some improvements in the last version that are quantum-fold faster than when I first started. But there is always room for improvement there. You always want reports faster and faster.""I have to deal with VERY long lists of properties contained in our XMLs and it would be nice if Windward offered a way to alphabetize this property list.""​AutoTag needs to be web-based, so our customers can create reports from our web.​"

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Pricing and Cost Advice
  • "This product costs a lot of money."
  • "I feel that SAP Crystal Reports is a reasonably priced product."
  • "We pay fifteen hundred dollars as licensing fee."
  • "The cost of licensing can be a significant factor to consider when upgrading or transitioning to a new version of SAP Crystal Reports. It's important to evaluate the benefits and features offered by the new version against the associated costs to ensure it aligns with your organization's needs and budget."
  • "SAP Crystal Reports is a very expensive solution."
  • More SAP Crystal Reports Pricing and Cost Advice →

  • "I can't advise anybody about pricing and licensing, but it was competitive. A lot of things we did look at were all volume-based, so it was a case of you buy a license to generate this many reports a year, and that's not something that I'm particularly interested in because it doesn't give you any idea - if we have future growth, or if we have a lean year - for budgeting reasons it's more difficult. With Windward it's a straight out license fee, whether we generate one page or we generate a million, it makes no difference."
  • "​They are fair and flexible. They are willing to work with your current architecture to make sure you have the best deal.​"
  • "CapEx fits our requirements, OpEx is higher due to the 20% service and maintenance cost, where we normally pay 15%."
  • "It is absolutely worth the value. They have flexibility, depending on what you're looking for from a buying standpoint. The current pricing models are quite flexible, with the ability to use it on an as-needed basis, or to get a perpetual license that covers a customer that might have extensive needs. I think it's pretty good."
  • "For what you're getting, it's an extremely good value."
  • "The only problem with the pricing of Windward is the limitation on the number of reports generated. It is costly in that sense. If you want to increase, you have to pay more, based on the number of reports generated per day. It is not the same with Crystal Reports. With the latter, you buy a license at one point in time and that's it."
  • "From my experience in this field, the product is reasonably priced, at least with the RESTful engine implementation. It's definitely not a cheap option. People say, "That's a fair amount of money to pay for a document generation tool." At the same time, you do get good functionality and the support is good."
  • "Pricing is something I complain about. Production pricing is okay, but for a testing environment the pricing looks a bit high to me."
  • More Windward Core Pricing and Cost Advice →

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    Questions from the Community
    Top Answer:SAP Crystal Reports should provide better support for dynamic connectors. The solution should export reports to Excel in a real Excel format and not in a paper-oriented way. The solution should… more »
    Top Answer:We were dedicated to Crystal Reports, and now they have shifted to SAP reports. While both functionalities are similar, there might be some enhancements or additional features to look forward to in… more »
    Top Answer:We use SAP Crystal Reports for operational reporting.
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    9th
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    24th
    out of 50 in Reporting
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    Also Known As
    Windward, Windward Studios
    Learn More
    Overview

    Turn information from almost any data source into a sophisticated, interactive report with SAP Crystal Reports. This powerful, user-friendly application for small businesses and departments can help you deliver key insights to the right decision maker, at the right time, in the right format. 

    Click here for a free trial

    What is Windward Studios?

    For over a decade, Windward has been a leader in the software development industry by creating the most innovative and advanced document automation and reporting software on the planet. 

    Data-Driven Document Automation

    Generate stunning documents that incorporate relevant data easily and seamlessly.

    Visually Striking Designs

    Our software provides innovative tools and features to build beautiful designs and stunning layouts, all within the familiar Microsoft Office Suite. Your imagination is the only limitation.

    Agile Document Logic

    We offer the best document automation software for the new millennium. With our conditional logic functionality, you can swiftly personalize the document content to gratify your end users. 

    Huge Time Saver

    Looking for faster template creation that enables you to keep pace with your business?  With our software, template creation takes minutes and you do not need any programming experience to get it done.

    Exceptionally Intuitive Interface

    Our program's design offers documents that can be edited, customized and designed using MS Office. Enjoy a stress-free document automation experience in programs you already know.

    Efficient Savings

    Significantly reduce the resources and time required for template development by using our streamlined template design and document automation tools. 

    Offer
    Learn more about SAP Crystal Reports
    Revolutionize Your Automated Document Generation Process


    WindWard Core makes customized document automation fast and simple. Install WindWard Core and start designing your own templates in a matter of minutes!

    Sample Customers
    City of Buenos Aires, ASR Group, Citrix, EarlySense, Usha International Limited, Automotive Resources International (ARI), LivePerson, Coelba (Grupo Neoenergia), RZD Russian Railways, National Basketball Association - NBA, TALLY WEiJL, El Machetazo, Young Heroes, Mozzart, Mitsui Knowledge Industry (MKI) , Surgutneftegas Open Joint Stock Company, The VELUX Group, AOK Bundesverband, AL-KO KOBER GROUP
    HAL, Inc., Axe Group, White Clark Group, Blueprint Software, Aspect Security, Nucleus Software, LeBlanc’s Food Stores, South Sound 911, Aegon, Barclays, Fidelity Investments, ArisGlobal LLC, USDA, RepLink, AON Hewitt
    Top Industries
    REVIEWERS
    Healthcare Company17%
    Financial Services Firm17%
    Construction Company8%
    Computer Software Company8%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Government10%
    Computer Software Company10%
    Financial Services Firm8%
    Manufacturing Company7%
    REVIEWERS
    Financial Services Firm21%
    Healthcare Company21%
    Computer Software Company21%
    Insurance Company7%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Computer Software Company16%
    Financial Services Firm14%
    Comms Service Provider7%
    Real Estate/Law Firm7%
    Company Size
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business29%
    Midsize Enterprise27%
    Large Enterprise43%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business23%
    Midsize Enterprise14%
    Large Enterprise63%
    REVIEWERS
    Small Business61%
    Midsize Enterprise13%
    Large Enterprise26%
    VISITORS READING REVIEWS
    Small Business20%
    Midsize Enterprise19%
    Large Enterprise61%
    Buyer's Guide
    Reporting
    March 2024
    Find out what your peers are saying about Microsoft, Tableau, Oracle and others in Reporting. Updated: March 2024.
    765,234 professionals have used our research since 2012.

    SAP Crystal Reports is ranked 9th in Reporting with 48 reviews while Windward Core is ranked 24th in Reporting. SAP Crystal Reports is rated 8.4, while Windward Core is rated 8.8. The top reviewer of SAP Crystal Reports writes "Helps analyze your data by creating richly formatted, pixel-perfect, and multiple reports from virtually any data source, delivered in over a dozen formats". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Windward Core writes "It has streamlined a lot of our reporting processes". SAP Crystal Reports is most compared with Microsoft Power BI, TIBCO Jaspersoft, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services, IBM Cognos and Alteryx, whereas Windward Core is most compared with Docmosis, Nintex Document Generation, CA Easytrieve Report Generator, Templafy and OpenText Magellan BI & Reporting.

    See our list of best Reporting vendors.

    We monitor all Reporting 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.