Software Alternatives & Startups

Plotly VS Qlik

Compare Plotly VS Qlik and see what are their differences

Plotly

Low-Code Data Apps

Plotly Landing page
Rating
0 reviews
Qlik

Qlik offers an Active Intelligence platform, delivering end-to-end, real-time data integration and analytics cloud solutions to close the gaps between data, insights, and action.

Qlik Landing page
Rating
5.0 · 1 review

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Plotly seems to be a lot more popular than Qlik. While we know about 34 links to Plotly, we've tracked only 1 mention of Qlik.

social mentions
34 vs 1
Data Visualization popularity
40% vs 60%

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Plotly
Qlik
Website plotly.com qlik.com
Pricing
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Plotly 6 features
Qlik 5 features
  • Interactivity
    Plotly offers highly interactive plots that allow users to pan, zoom, and hover over data points for more information. This enhances the user experience and provides deeper insights.
  • High-quality visualizations
    It provides aesthetically pleasing and highly customizable charts, making it suitable for publication-quality visuals.
  • Versatility
    Plotly supports multiple chart types including line charts, scatter plots, bar charts, and 3D plots, making it suitable for a wide range of applications.
  • Python integration
    Plotly is well-integrated with Python and works seamlessly with other popular data science libraries like Pandas, NumPy, and Scikit-learn.
  • Web-based
    The plots can be easily embedded in web applications or dashboards, making it ideal for sharing insights over the internet.
  • Open-source
    Plotly offers an open-source version, which allows users to create and share visualizations without any cost.

Possible disadvantages

  • Performance
    Rendering very large datasets can sometimes be slow, which may not be suitable for real-time data visualization requirements.
  • Learning curve
    Even though the library is well-documented, the extensive range of features can have a steep learning curve for beginners.
  • Cost for advanced features
    While the basic functionality is free, more advanced features, such as export to certain formats and additional customizable options, require a paid subscription.
  • Dependency management
    Plotly has a number of dependencies that need to be managed properly, which can sometimes complicate the setup process.
  • Complexity
    For simple visualizations, Plotly might be overkill and simpler libraries like Matplotlib or Seaborn could be more appropriate.
  • Data Integration
    Qlik offers powerful data integration capabilities, allowing users to pull in data from multiple sources, clean it, and prepare it for analysis. This is particularly useful for organizations dealing with diverse datasets.
  • Associative Data Engine
    Qlik's unique associative data engine enables users to explore data freely, without the limitations of traditional hierarchical or query-based models. This feature ensures that all data relationships are maintained and accessible.
  • Interactive Visualizations
    Qlik provides highly interactive and customizable visualizations, making it easier for users to derive insights and share findings. The visualizations are intuitive and can be tailored to meet specific business needs.
  • AI Capabilities
    The platform includes AI-driven features like Insight Advisor, which helps users uncover insights and generate analytics automatically. This reduces the learning curve and makes advanced analytics more accessible.
  • Scalability
    Qlik is designed to scale from small teams to large enterprises. It supports both on-premises and cloud deployments, making it flexible to meet various business sizes and infrastructure preferences.

Possible disadvantages

  • Complexity in Initial Setup
    The initial setup and configuration of Qlik can be complex and time-consuming, often requiring specialized knowledge or professional services to get started effectively.
  • Cost
    Qlik can be expensive, especially for smaller businesses. The cost includes not just licensing fees but also potential expenditures on training, deployment, and maintenance.
  • Learning Curve
    Although Qlik offers a powerful feature set, there is a steep learning curve for new users. Mastering the platform's full capabilities can take significant time and effort.
  • Performance Issues
    In some instances, users have reported performance issues, particularly when dealing with extremely large datasets or complex queries, which can hinder real-time analysis.
  • Limited Third-Party Integration
    While Qlik does support integration with various third-party tools, it may not be as extensive as some other analytics platforms. This can limit its usefulness in a highly diversified technology stack.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Plotly
Qlik

Overall verdict

  • Overall, Plotly is a strong choice for those looking to create dynamic and interactive data visualizations, thanks to its range of features and ease of integration with web technologies.

Why this product is good

  • Plotly is considered good because it offers a comprehensive suite of tools for creating interactive visualizations that can be used in web applications, reports, and dashboards. It supports many different types of plots, is easy to use for both beginners and experienced developers, and integrates well with popular programming languages like Python, R, and JavaScript.

Recommended for

    Plotly is recommended for data scientists, analysts, and developers who need to create interactive and visually appealing data visualizations. It's particularly useful for those who work with Python or R and want the ability to embed their visualizations in web applications or dashboards.

Overall verdict

  • Qlik is generally considered a good choice for data visualization and business intelligence needs.

Why this product is good

  • Flexibility
    Qlik's platform allows for self-service data discovery, guided analytics, and embedded analytics.
  • Integration
    Qlik integrates well with various data sources, making it versatile for diverse data environments.
  • User friendly
    Qlik offers an intuitive interface that caters both to advanced users and beginners.
  • Active community
    There is a strong community of Qlik users and developers who contribute to forums and share solutions.
  • Powerful analytics
    It provides robust analytics capabilities with associative data indexing, which lets users easily explore data.

Recommended for

  • Businesses seeking a comprehensive business intelligence tool.
  • Users who require a highly flexible, self-service analytics environment.
  • Organizations that need to integrate a wide array of data sources.
  • Companies looking for strong visual analytics capabilities.

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Plotly 5 videos + Add
Qlik 2 videos + Add

Create Real-time Chart with Javascript | Plotly.js Tutorial

More videos

  • Review - Introducing plotly.py 3.0
  • Review - Is Plotly The Better Matplotlib?
  • Tutorial - Plotly Tutorial 2021
  • Review - Data Visualization as The First and Last Mile of Data Science Plotly Express and Dash | SciPy 2021

A Day in the life of a Qlik Cloud User

More videos

  • Demo - Qlik Sense Product Tour

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Plotly
Qlik
40% 40%
60% 60%
22% 22%
78% 78%
100% 100%
0% 0%
0% 0%
100% 100%

User comments

Share your experience with using Plotly and Qlik. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

Plotly no reviews yet
Qlik 5.0 · 1 review

View more

  • Wow So Impresssed
    SaaSHub review
    · Apr 2026

    Qlik's associative data model makes data analytics seamless. Highly Recomend using this to anyone.

  • 10 Best Alternatives to Looker in 2024

    Qlik: Qlik sets itself apart with its associative analytics engine, enabling users to uncover trends and patterns through intuitive exploration without predefined queries. This offers a more flexible and dynamic...

  • Top 11 Fivetran Alternatives for 2024
    estuary.dev · Aug 2024

    Qlik provides three data integration products - Stitch (covered under Stitch) Talend Data Fabric (covered under Talend) and Qlik Replicate, which was originally Attunity. Qlik Replicate has both on-premises and cloud...

View more

Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Plotly 34 mentions
Qlik 1 mention

View more

  • GME FTD - Moving Daily Avg.
    All files was pulled into a program called : QLIK, qlik.com is the company and my company uses it for our reporting and our customer's reporting needs. Source: over 5 years ago

Alternatives to Plotly and Qlik

When comparing Plotly and Qlik, you can also consider the following products.