Compare the whole picture before choosing between off-the-shelf BI and a built dashboard
Power BI, Looker Studio, and Tableau are good tools that suit many organizations, and we do not tell people to drop them. We help you see the full cost — per-user licences, data connection work, and long-term maintenance — then choose what genuinely fits your team and budget.
- Per user
- off-the-shelf BI is licensed by viewer count
- One-off
- a built dashboard is paid as a development project
- Same work
- both routes need the same data connection effort
- Mix them
- many organizations run both for different jobs
The short answer
Should we use Power BI or build our own dashboard?
Decide by how many people need to open it and how complex the data connections are. With a small number of viewers, data in standard files or databases, and someone in-house to maintain reports, an off-the-shelf tool like Power BI or Looker Studio is cheaper. When many people need access, the dashboard must be embedded in your own product, or local systems have no ready-made connector, building it usually costs less over time.
Key facts
- Off-the-shelf BI is licensed per user per month, so cost grows with the number of viewers
- A purpose-built dashboard costs more to develop first, but adds no per-seat licence as viewers grow
- Both routes need the same data connection and modelling work — usually the largest cost
- Many businesses run both: an off-the-shelf tool for internal analysis, purpose-built screens for company-wide or customer-facing views
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Where off-the-shelf BI is strong
Where off-the-shelf BI is the right call
We recommend an off-the-shelf tool when these conditions hold — it is faster and cheaper.
Few users, one team
When the viewer count is limited, per-seat licensing stays comfortably manageable.
Data in standard systems
SQL, Google Sheets, or major platforms with ready connectors start producing value quickly.
Someone in-house maintains reports
With an analyst who knows the tool, report changes don't wait on a developer.
Flexible exploration matters
For analysis that constantly reshapes the view, these tools are genuinely excellent.
Where teams usually get stuck
Where Thai businesses usually get stuck with off-the-shelf BI alone
These are not flaws in the tools — they are conditions to know up front so budget and plan are right.
Cost scales with viewers
Once every branch manager should have access, per-seat licensing becomes a recurring cost to plan for.
Some local systems have no connector
Certain POS and accounting products ship no standard connector, so extraction has to be built anyway.
Embedding in your own product
Showing dashboards to customers inside your web or app requires higher tiers or additional work.
Row-level access
Restricting each branch to its own rows is possible, but it is an ongoing design, not a one-time setting.
Complex formulas become one person's knowledge
When reports depend on intricate measures, the organization ends up dependent on whoever wrote them.
Off-the-shelf BI fits when
- Viewers are few and all inside the organization
- Data sits in systems with standard connectors
- Someone in-house can adjust reports
- You want to start exploring as fast as possible
A built dashboard fits when
- Many people — or outside parties — need access
- It must be embedded in your own web or app
- Systems involved have no ready-made connector
- You need fine-grained control over data and access
Try it
Buy or build — how to decide
Walk the questions one at a time and see which way your case points.
Yes →
Use off-the-shelf (SaaS)
faster, cheaper, start now
No → need high flexibility?
A lot → build custom
Some → customize (hybrid)
Cost structure
The cost structure worth comparing in full
Comparing only licence fees against development cost misleads, because three more items apply to both routes.
Get a free comparison consultConnection and modelling
Extracting from existing systems, cleaning it, and agreeing definitions happens on both routes — usually the biggest single cost.
Recurring cost
Per-user licences on one side, servers and maintenance on the other. Assess both over a three-year horizon.
Internal team time
Who adjusts reports when the business changes? Without an owner, even the most flexible tool quietly goes stale.
The cost of changing your mind
With a well-designed data layer, swapping the presentation tool is cheap — which is why we always separate the two.
Real situations
Four situations we see often, and what we advise
The advice follows viewer count and data shape, not company size alone.
A 3-5 person analysis team, data in SQL
Use an off-the-shelf tool. It starts fast and licensing stays low; we only help prepare the data layer.
30 branch managers need a daily report
Keep the analysts on the off-the-shelf tool, and build a separate summary screen for branches so per-seat cost doesn't grow past what the value justifies.
Customers need to see their own dashboard
Embedding in your product with per-customer data separation gives better control of access and experience when built.
Data is still scattered and doesn't reconcile
Don't pick a tool yet. Start with connection and definitions — that work is required either way.
More in the dashboard family
Related dashboards
Once the approach is settled, the next choice is which screen to build first.
SME dashboard — the whole business
One owner screen for sales, stock, profit, and team.
Sales dashboard
Daily sales vs target, branch comparison, and margin per product.
KPI system & KPI dashboard
Indicators computed from real data, with role-based access.
Turn Google Sheets into a dashboard
The fast, economical start when data still lives in files.
Data Dashboard & Analytics service
The full data service, from connecting sources to deeper analysis.
An Odoo alternative for Thai SMEs
The same style of comparison, on the ERP side.
FAQ
Choosing a BI tool — FAQ
Direct answers to what executives ask most.
Is Power BI more expensive than building our own dashboard?
It depends on viewer count and time horizon. Off-the-shelf BI licenses per user per month, so cost rises with how many people open it; a built dashboard is a development cost followed by hosting and maintenance. The honest comparison is total cost over three years for both routes, with your expected growth in viewers included.
Looker Studio is free — why consider anything else?
Looker Studio suits reporting from sources it already supports, especially marketing data. Limits appear with large data volumes, systems without a standard connector, fine-grained row-level permissions, or embedding dashboards inside your own product. Those cases usually need some development regardless.
We already use Power BI — do we have to stop?
No. The arrangement we recommend most often is running both by job type: analysts keep the off-the-shelf tool for exploration, while purpose-built screens serve large viewer groups or external users — with both reading from the same data layer.
Does a built dashboard lock us to the developer?
It should not, and that belongs in the agreement from the start. We hand over source code, data documentation, and full system access so another team can take over. Keeping the data layer separate from the presentation layer also means the display tool can change without rebuilding everything.
Should we choose the tool first, or organize the data first?
Data first, always. Connecting sources, cleaning them, and agreeing definitions is required whichever tool you pick. Once the data layer is stable, choosing or changing the presentation tool becomes a far more reversible decision.
What should a small business start with?
If data is still in files and only a few people need it, start by restructuring the files and building a small dashboard set — visible results in weeks, at low cost. Decide on enterprise tooling later, when data volume and viewer count justify it.
Learn more
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Let us compare your real numbers before you commit
Tell us how many people need access, which systems must connect, and the budget in mind. We'll build a three-year cost comparison for both routes with a recommendation for your case.
Chiang Mai team — we build both, so the comparison isn't a sales pitch for one side.