Analyze data effortlessly with these online analytical tools

Introduction: The Growing Need for Online Analytical Tools

Data is exploding from sources like web traffic, social media, mobile devices, sensors, and enterprise applications. Making sense of this data avalanche to gain insights presents a major challenge. This is where online analytical tools empower developers and analysts to efficiently analyze large datasets and uncover impactful insights.

The primary benefits of online analytical tools include:

• Easy access to analytical capabilities without complex on-premises software setup and maintenance. This enables faster time-to-insight.
• Ability to collaborate with team members by sharing reports and insights in real-time.
• Scalability to handle exponentially growing volumes of data compared to traditional analytics software.
• Significant cost savings over traditional analytics solutions through pay-as-you-go cloud pricing.

In this article, we will explore some of the top online analytical tools across categories like data visualization, statistics, business intelligence, and reporting. These tools help analysts and developers visualize patterns, test hypotheses, identify trends and derive actionable insights from data. With the rise of big data, online analytical tools have seen massive adoption thanks to their flexibility, scalability, and ease-of-use. They enable gaining valuable insights faster.

Data Visualization Tools

Data visualization tools make exploring and understanding complex data intuitive through interactive charts, graphs, and dashboards. They allow easy ad-hoc analysis and reporting without the need for coding.

Key capabilities of data visualization tools:

• Drag-and-drop interface to build charts, reports and dashboards visually.
• Connectors to ingest and integrate data from diverse sources like databases, warehouses, spreadsheets etc.
• Custom report and dashboard creation with interactive filters and drill-down capabilities.
• Options to apply advanced analytics like forecasting, clustering, regression etc.
• Collaborative sharing of reports and visualizations.

Beyond giants like Tableau, Power BI and Google Data Studio, some other popular data visualization tools used by developers include:

• Apache Superset - A modern open source data exploration and visualization web app popular with developers. Offers enterprise-ready capabilities.
• Redash - Open source tool focused on enabling ad-hoc querying, visualization and dashboarding for analysts and developers.
• Metabase - Intuitive open source BI tool for data exploration and visualization using a simple point-and-click interface.

Tableau

Tableau is the industry-leading commercial data visualization tool known for its broad capabilities and intuitive interface. Key features:

• Drag-and-drop interface to build reports and dashboards even for non-technical users.
• One-click analytics providing instant advanced analysis like forecasting, clustering, statistical modeling etc.
• Seamless data preparation and blending from numerous sources and formats.
• Beautiful interactive visualizations optimized for understanding insights easily.
• Trusted by over 82,000 businesses, nonprofits, government agencies in 150+ countries.

Power BI

Power BI is Microsoft's business intelligence and analytics platform focused on interactive visualizations. Main capabilities:

• Interactive reports and dashboards providing insights into business data.
• Close integration with Microsoft data platforms like Azure, Excel, SQL Server, Dynamics 365.
• Inbuilt AI through features like natural language queries, automated insights, forecasting.
• Flexible delivery through web, mobile, embedded analytics and PDF reports.
• Used by 85% of Fortune 500 companies like Adobe, DHL, Chevron across sectors.

Google Data Studio

Google Data Studio is a free data visualization and reporting tool. Key features:

• Build interactive dashboards and reports with drag and drop interface.
• Seamless integration with Google Analytics, BigQuery, Sheets and other Google products.
• Library of connectors to ingest data from diverse sources.
• Customizable templates, themes and geographic mapping.
• Share interactive dashboards securely with other users.
• Used by companies like Forbes, Ticketmaster, UPS to gain data insights.

Statistical Analysis Tools

While data visualization provides the big picture, statistical analysis facilitates deeper examination of patterns, relationships and trends within data. These tools provide diverse statistical tests and algorithms to derive actionable insights.

For example, A/B testing helps analysts determine if a new webpage design, product feature or marketing campaign performs better than the existing version. Regression analysis quantifies relationships between variables. Clustering algorithms group data points with similar characteristics.

Key capabilities of statistical analysis tools:

• Broad range of descriptive statistics, hypothesis testing, predictive modeling, forecasting and other techniques.
• Algorithms optimized for performance and accuracy.
• Automation of repetitive analytical workflows.
• Detailed reports and visualizations to better understand statistical outputs.

Some leading statistical analysis tools beyond Excel are JASP, JMP, Stata, SAS, RapidMiner, Knime etc. These tools help quantify relationships, identify patterns, test assumptions, and drive data-based decision making.

JASP

JASP is an open-source statistical analysis tool focused on ease-of-use through its intuitive graphical interface.

• Enables common statistical tests like ANOVA, t-tests, regression, contingency tables etc.
• Outputs beautiful, publication-ready tables and graphs.
• Options to extend functionality via integration with R and Python.
• Actively maintained and trusted by researchers globally.

JMP Statistical Software

JMP from SAS is powerful Windows-based statistical analysis and visualization software.

• Point-and-click interface for interactive exploratory data analysis.
• Extensive built-in statistical and analytical capabilities.
• Generates high-quality graphs and visualizations.
• Provides easy reporting and sharing of results.
• Used extensively in manufacturing, life sciences, consumer goods etc.

Stata

Stata is robust statistical software popular across research, government and financial institutions globally.

• Has thousands of built-in advanced statistical procedures and techniques.
• Enables automation of workflows, customization via scripts and programs.
• Generates publication-ready tables, graphs and maps.
• Highly extensible through community-contributed modules.
• Trusted by institutions like World Bank, MIT, Stanford University and more.

Business Intelligence Tools

Business intelligence (BI) tools aggregate and analyze data across the organization to uncover trends, patterns and insights. They connect to multiple data sources, transform the data, and deliver analytics through interactive dashboards and reports.

Key BI tool capabilities:

• Consolidate data from databases, cloud apps, social media etc. into one analytics platform.
• Automated data transformation and modeling.
• Interactive dashboards providing insights across business units.
• Real-time analytics, alerting and predictive capabilities.
• Collaborative analytics and sharing of reports.
• Role-based access and security governance of data.

Leading BI tools include Sisense, Domo, Yellowfin, Looker, Microsoft Power BI, and more. They enable data-driven decision making at scale.

Sisense

Sisense is an end-to-end BI platform providing analytics for complex data across the organization.

• Broad set of data connectors to ERPs, databases, cloud apps etc.
• Powerful data transformation and modeling capabilities.
• AI-driven analytical insights within interactive dashboards.
• Highly scalable with robust data governance and security.
• Used by Nasdaq, Philips, Fender, etc. to unlock analytics value at scale.

Domo

Domo is a modern BI platform focused on real-time data and collaboration across the business.

• Integrates siloed data rapidly via automation and prebuilt connectors.
• Enables easily creating and sharing interactive dashboards and apps.
• Provides capabilities like executive reporting, alerting and predictive analytics.
• Optimized for mobile with touch-optimized dashboards.
• Customers include Mastercard, eBay, UPS and more.

Microsoft Power BI

Microsoft Power BI is a widely used BI platform for building interactive reports and dashboards connected to data.

• Drag-and-drop interface to visualize data through interactive reports.
• Close integration with Microsoft data platforms like Excel, SQL Server, Azure.
• Real-time dashboard updates with streaming data capabilities.
• Natural language query interface via Power BI Q&A.
• Used across industries like retail, finance, manufacturing.

Reporting and Analytics Platforms

Reporting platforms focus on building scheduled reports and dashboards connected to data sources. Analytics platforms provide additional capabilities like ad-hoc analysis, alerting and collaborative features.

These platforms aim to provide:

• Central hub for business data and metrics.
• Interactive data visualization and reporting.
• Scheduled, automated report delivery.
• Ad-hoc data exploration and analytics.
• Unified view of KPIs across the business.

Top options include Looker, Mode, Periscope Data, Chartio, Metabase, Google Data Studio and more.

Looker

Looker is a unified data platform for delivering analytics and embedded experiences.

• Provides single source of truth for data through modeling and governance.
• Enables customizable data apps, dashboards, reports and alerts.
• Scalable data foundation for analytics, ML, personalization and more.
• Used by Amazon, Deliveroo, IBM, Reddit, Yahoo and more leading brands.

Mode

Mode is a collaborative analytics platform focused on interactive reporting and dashboarding.

• Unifies access to data tools like databases and business intelligence tools.
• Allows SQL queries alongside intuitive visual reports and dashboards.
• Features like alerting, scheduling, access controls.
• Used by Lyft, Github, Diageo, Stanley Black & Decker.

Google Data Studio

Google Data Studio is a free visualization and reporting platform.

• Connects to data sources like Google Analytics, Sheets, BigQuery and more.
• Build and share interactive dashboards with no coding needed.
• Offers customizable templates, themes and geographic mapping.
• Integrates AI for natural language queries.
• Used by companies like Forbes, Ticketmaster, Fandom and more.

Conclusion

In this article, we explored some of the top online analytical tools across categories like data visualization, statistics, business intelligence and reporting platforms. Each tool provides powerful capabilities that aid better analysis and faster insights. With the rise of big data, these online tools empower developers and analysts to efficiently unlock value from exponentially growing datasets. Their benefits like easy access, scalability, collaboration and visual interfaces accelerate gaining data-driven insights and building analytics-powered applications.

Online analytical tools will continue to grow as catalysts for deriving impact from data at scale. Check out DevHunt to explore various developer tools and integrations across the data analytics landscape.