Datarails vs. Anaplan
FP&A software solutions come in all shapes and sizes. While some focus on specific aspects of finance or have limited integrations, there are a few top of the line FP&A solutions that do a great job of encompassing everything.
Two of these solutions, Datarails and Anaplan, offer FP&A teams efficient solutions for automation and analysis, which greatly enhances their financial processes.
After collecting data, comparisons, and customer feedback from many different sources, this report will compare the two software solutions and help you get a better understanding of which one is a better choice for your organization.
Side by Side Comparison
Features
Features | Datarails | Anaplan |
|---|---|---|
Maintaining Use/Customer Success | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Excel Compatibility | Complete native Excel functionality as if you never left Excel. Internal financial models can be imported as well | No native Excel but has an Excel add-in option through the Anaplan ribbon |
Power BI | Customized dashboard and no need to learn BI | Need to learn Power BI |
Integrations
Integrations | Datarails | Anaplan |
|---|---|---|
HR+ Labor Planning | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Third Party BI Integrations | Integrates with all of the big software applications but has a wide variety of options in addition, with over 70 available integrations | Anaplan Connects imports and exports data integrations from platforms such as Salesforce, Workiva, and Dell Boomi. |
Integrating Systems | CRM, ERP, HRIS and more | CRM, ERP, HRIS and more |
Functionalities
Functionalities | Datarails | Anaplan |
|---|---|---|
Onboarding Engagement Time | One of the fastest times on the market thanks to native Excel | Average onboarding time with good support |
Customer geographic segmentation | Mostly US, UK, and Canada | Large variety all over the world |
Audience | SMBs | Small, Medium, and Large Businesses |
Pricing
How much does Anaplan cost compared to DataRails?
Pricing | Datarails | Anaplan |
|---|---|---|
Contract flexibility | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Pricing | Starting at around $24k per year | Around $50k per year for standard plan |
Datarails Quotes:
“I look at the insights in Datarails every single day. That’s how I know how we’re doing on sales, on revenue, how I can look at trends and forecast what’s going to happen in the future.”
Rob A.
CFO of Bedrock Quartz
“We have so much data at our disposal but previously didn't always know how to look at it. Thanks to Datarails we can easily access it all, compare and contrast between budgets and actuals, and decide how we want to go forward. If you're looking to improve decision-making, Datarails is your tool.”
Neil, N.
Group CFO at an Information Technology and Services Enterprise
Anaplan Quotes:
“Anaplan is highly customizable and can solve varied business problems. As an implementation consultant, this allows me to not only solve for current business needs but also help end-users think about any future issues they can solve with the tool.”
Ben R.
Senior Associate
“Anaplan offers flexibility that enables companies to build their business processes according to specific needs. These custom processes can then be connected inside Anaplan, which starts to multiply the benefits from the system.”
Lyuben C.
Consultant
Plans and Pricing
Two of the biggest factors that companies look for when comparing between FP&A solutions are price and payment options. In this case, Datarails wins big on both. Anaplan’s contracts tend to run for around $50,000 per year, which is a middle-of-the-pack price for a top-of-the-line solution. Although Anaplan is an attractive option for many companies, Datarails has one of the lowest prices on the market, starting at only $24,000 per year. Datarails’ solution combined with the price makes it an extremely attractive option for small and medium sized businesses.
Winner: Datarails
Integrations
Datarails and Anaplan have excellent integrations- both in terms of system integrations and third party integrations. In terms of system integrations, they both integrate with CRM, ERP, HRIS, or just about any other system of choice. In regards to third party integrations, both companies provide plenty of great options as well. Anaplan Connects imports and exports data integrations from important platforms such as Salesforce, Workiva, and Dell Boomi, as well as many other small and big integrations that connect different departmental data. Datarails as well has an impressive list of integrations with NetSuite, Salesforce, Oracle, Quickbooks, and HubSpot just to name a few.
Winner: Tie
Features and Functionality
FP&A software tools are cloud based solutions with a growing list of features and functions. There are a huge amount of benefits to automation and having all the data in one place, therefore customers can be rather meticulous about which exact functions a solution has before they make a decision. Datarails and Anaplan both have a host of features that allow finance experts to drill down and crunch numbers, and the data from Finance, Sales, Marketing, Supply Chain, and HR becomes quicker and more accurate.
While both Datarails and Anaplan are two of the leading FP&A solutions, especially in terms of the number and quality of features they offer, the main differentiator is not in the number of functions, but rather in how it's provided. Datarails has a higher compatibility with Excel, meaning the ease of use, familiarity, and implementation time all outrank Anaplan and gives them the edge in this category.
Winner: Datarails
Summary
No FP&A team will be disappointed with either solution, but Datarails edges out Anaplan for two important reasons. The first one is Datarails’ native Excel functionality. This reduces the implementation and onboarding time by a large margin, and keeps the finance team using their most comfortable tool, Excel, all while taking advantage of the host of benefits that automation and integration has to offer. The second advantage is the price tag. Datarails offers a great price and flexible contract option which is hard for any FP&A software in the same league to beat.
Final score:
Datarails - ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Anaplan - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
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