--- title: "Best Integration Software - 2026 Reviews & Pricing" description: "Find the best Data Integration Tools for your organization. Compare top Data Integration Tools with customer reviews, pricing, and free demos." source_url: "https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/" page_type: "subcategory" language: "en" --- [Home](https://www.softwareadvice.com/) / Integration Software Software Advice offers objective insights based on verified user reviews and independent product and market research. When our advisors match you to a software provider, we may earn a referral fee. # Best Integration Software of 2026 Updated October 21, 2026 On this page 1. FrontRunners 2. Popular Comparisons 3. Buyers Guide 4. Related Software Filter products 557 results ### Compare Products Showing 1 - 25 of 557 products #### Company Size - Self-Employed - 2-10 - 11-50 - 51-200 - 201-500 - 501-1000 - 1000+ #### Pricing Options - $$$$$ - $$$$$ - $$$$$ - $$$$$ - $$$$$ ### Compare Products Sort by **Recommendations**: Sorts listings by the number of recommendations our advisors have made over the past 30 days. Our advisors assess buyers’ needs for free and only recommend products that meet buyers’ needs. Vendors pay Software Advice for these referrals. **Reviews**: Sorts listings by the number of user reviews we have published, greatest to least. **Average Rating**: Sorts listings by overall star rating based on user reviews, highest to lowest. **Alphabetically (A-Z)**: Sorts listings by product name from A to Z. ### [Clockspring](/bi/clockspring-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 1 - Starting price: $300.00/month - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Clockspring is a state-of-the-art Enterprise Automation Platform that provides a fast and flexible no-code integration capability to connect systems together to share and analyze [Read more](/bi/clockspring-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Import/Export: 5/5 - Workflow Management: 5/5 - Audit Management: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/clockspring-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Standard - Price: $300.00/month [See full pricing details](/bi/clockspring-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [SAS Viya](/data-catalog/sas-viya-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.4/5 - Reviews: 12 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview SAS Viya is a cloud-native platform designed for data analytics, machine learning and data management. It supports organizations in industries such as banking, insurance, [Read more](/data-catalog/sas-viya-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Workflow Management: 5/5 - Self-service Analytics: 5/5 - Modeling & Simulation: 5/5 - Configurable Workflow: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Real-Time Analytics: 2/5 - Data Connectors: 2/5 - Visual Discovery: 2/5 - Data Extraction: 3/5 [See all features](/data-catalog/sas-viya-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/data-catalog/sas-viya-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [ePayPolicy](/insurance/epaypolicy-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.9/5 - Reviews: 258 - Starting price: $25.00/month - Best for: Small businesses - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview ePayPolicy is a payment processing solution designed to help businesses in the insurance sector collect credit card and ACH payments from policyholders. The centralized dashboard [Read more](/insurance/epaypolicy-profile/) ##### What users love - Flexible and secure payment options - User-friendly and intuitive platform - Responsive and helpful support team ##### To take in mind - High transaction and service fees #### Features ##### Best rated features - Invoice Management: 5/5 - Recurring/Subscription Billing: 5/5 - Multiple Payment Options: 5/5 - Compliance Management: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Customizable Fields: 4/5 - Recurring Invoicing: 4/5 [See all features](/insurance/epaypolicy-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $25.00/month [See full pricing details](/insurance/epaypolicy-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Skyvia](/data-extraction/skyvia-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.9/5 - Reviews: 116 - Starting price: $6.00/month - Best for: Data Import/Export - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Skyvia is a cloud-based data integration, backup and management platform for businesses of all sizes. Key features include direct data integration between apps, scheduling settings [Read more](/data-extraction/skyvia-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Integrations Management: 5/5 - Application Management: 5/5 - Data Cleansing: 5/5 - Automatic Backup: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Data Visualization: 4/5 - Query Builder: 4/5 - Match & Merge: 4/5 - Compression: 4/5 [See all features](/data-extraction/skyvia-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $6.00/month [See full pricing details](/data-extraction/skyvia-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [BroadPeak](/bi/k3-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.9/5 - Reviews: 39 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview BroadPeak Partners (BroadPeak) is the post trade foundation for trading, risk, and compliance teams at energy and commodity trading firms. With certified connectivity to more than [Read more](/bi/k3-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Dashboard: 5/5 - Metadata Management: 5/5 - Data Management: 5/5 - ETL: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/k3-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/bi/k3-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Iguana](/data-extraction/iguana-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.9/5 - Reviews: 41 - Starting price: $10,000.00one time - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Built for healthcare data environments, Iguana is a data integration platform that enables healthcare organizations to improve all areas of data access including clinical, [Read more](/data-extraction/iguana-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Import/Export: 5/5 - API: 4.9/5 - ETL: 4.8/5 - Data Transformation: 4.8/5 ##### Worst rated features - Workflow Scheduler: 3.5/5 - Reporting/Analytics: 4/5 - Exceptions Management: 4/5 - Archiving & Retention: 4/5 [See all features](/data-extraction/iguana-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Gold Starter Bundle - Price: $10,000.00one time - Starting price, from 2 Integrations. Production & Development licenses included. ##### Platinum - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Customized number of licenses and integrations, tailored to your needs. [See full pricing details](/data-extraction/iguana-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Rivery ](/bi/rivery-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 12 - Starting price: $1.00/month - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Rivery is a cloud-based solution that provides small to large enterprises with business intelligence tools to manage and automate data pipelines. It comes with a centralized [Read more](/bi/rivery-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Reporting & Statistics: 5/5 - Third-Party Integrations: 5/5 - Data Synchronization: 5/5 - Activity Dashboard: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Multiple Data Sources: 4/5 [See all features](/bi/rivery-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $1.00/month [See full pricing details](/bi/rivery-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [APPSeCONNECT](/bi/appseconnect-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 180 - Best for: Value for money - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview APPSeCONNECT is an intelligent integration platform (iPaaS) that connects applications and automates business processes. The platform has an in-built low-code visual integration [Read more](/bi/appseconnect-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Social Media Integration: 5/5 - API Lifecycle Management: 5/5 - User Management: 5/5 - Real-Time Notifications: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/appseconnect-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Starter - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Advanced integration for growing businesses and growing data. ##### Growth - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Complex, scalable integration & full flexibility for any scenario. ##### Enterprise - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Enterprise integration, top performance & advanced support. [See full pricing details](/bi/appseconnect-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Hevo ](/bi/hevo-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 110 - Starting price: $299.00/month - Best for: Ease of use - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Hevo is a no-code, bi-directional data pipeline platform specially built for modern ETL, ELT, and Reverse ETL Needs. It helps data teams streamline and automate org-wide data flows [Read more](/bi/hevo-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Customer Database: 5/5 - Data Analysis Tools: 5/5 - Automatic Backup: 5/5 - Real-Time Reporting: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/hevo-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Free - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - For data teams that want to get started with analytics. Includes 1 million free events. ##### Starter - Price: $299.00/month - For data teams that want to scale up their analytics. Get 5 million events for this starter plan and ##### Business - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - For large data teams with many data sources and high data volume. [See full pricing details](/bi/hevo-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Nexla](/bi/nexla-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.9/5 - Reviews: 9 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Nexla is the data connectivity layer for enterprise AI, connecting agents and applications to data systems, business applications, APIs, documents, and other enterprise sources [Read more](/bi/nexla-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Access Controls/Permissions: 5/5 - Job Scheduling: 5/5 - ETL: 4.5/5 - Alerts/Escalation: 4/5 ##### Worst rated features - Metadata Management: 2/5 - Real-Time Monitoring: 3/5 - Data Connectors: 4/5 - Third-Party Integrations: 4/5 [See all features](/bi/nexla-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Contact us - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Contact Nexla for detailed pricing information. [See full pricing details](/bi/nexla-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [ActiveBatch](/bi/activebatch-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 56 - Starting price: $10,000.00one time - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview ActiveBatch is a cloud-based and on-premise workflow management solution designed on helping businesses implement low-code IT workflow automation. The time it takes to manage [Read more](/bi/activebatch-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Mobile Access: 5/5 - Third-Party Integrations: 5/5 - Monitoring: 5/5 - Graphical Workflow Editor: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/activebatch-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $10,000.00one time [See full pricing details](/bi/activebatch-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Logical Data Warehouse](/bi/data-virtuality-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 4 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Data Virtuality is a data integration solution that centralizes data from multiple sources. It can be hosted either in the cloud or on-premise. Key features include pre-built [Read more](/bi/data-virtuality-profile/) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/bi/data-virtuality-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [9Spokes](/bi/9-spokes-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.8/5 - Reviews: 10 - Starting price: $10,000.00/month - Free trial: Not available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview 9Spokes is a data platform that aggregates meaningful data inputs across your business. Think of 9Spokes as a virtual advisor, here to motivate and guide businesses so they not [Read more](/bi/9-spokes-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Visualization: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/9-spokes-profile/#key-features) --- ### [DigitalRoute](/data-management-platforms/digitalroute-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.8/5 - Reviews: 13 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview DigitalRoute is a data management platform that helps businesses integrate the platform with any system within a company's IT infrastructure to gather, process, enhance, and [Read more](/data-management-platforms/digitalroute-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Invoice History: 5/5 - Data Extraction: 5/5 - Online Invoicing: 5/5 - Workflow Management: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Reporting/Analytics: 3.8/5 [See all features](/data-management-platforms/digitalroute-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/data-management-platforms/digitalroute-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Funnel](/bi/funnel-dashboards-reports-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 19 - Starting price: $120.00 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Funnel is a marketing intelligence platform designed to aggregate data from various marketing channels and provide tools for reporting, measurement, and data export. It is used by [Read more](/bi/funnel-dashboards-reports-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - API: 5/5 - Website Analytics: 5/5 - Data Import/Export: 4/5 - Ad hoc Reporting: 4/5 ##### Worst rated features - Job Scheduling: 1/5 - Data Analysis Tools: 3/5 - Dashboard Creation: 3/5 - Keyword Tracking: 3/5 [See all features](/bi/funnel-dashboards-reports-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Starter - Price: $120.00 - Begin your journey to data-driven marketing with Funnel's Free plan. ##### Business - Price: $750.00/month - Experience rock-solid business intelligence and powerful connectivity. ##### Enterprise - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request - Designed for organizations operating at scale with personalized, advanced onboarding. [See full pricing details](/bi/funnel-dashboards-reports-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Datorios](/bi/datorios-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 2 - Starting price: $1.50 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Datorios is a streaming data processing hub, enabling seamless building, deployment, and monitoring of contextual data pipelines in minutes. Our engineering-centric solution [Read more](/bi/datorios-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Capture and Transfer: 5/5 - Access Controls/Permissions: 5/5 - Job Scheduling: 5/5 - Data Synchronization: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/datorios-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $1.50 [See full pricing details](/bi/datorios-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Zuar Runner](/bi/mitto-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 7 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Zuar Runner is a powerful, end-to-end data pipeline and orchestration platform that automates the flow of data from virtually any source — CRMs, ERPs, cloud applications, file [Read more](/bi/mitto-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Connectors: 5/5 - Integrations Management: 5/5 - Access Controls/Permissions: 5/5 - High Volume Processing: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Customer Database: 4/5 - Accounting Integration: 4/5 [See all features](/bi/mitto-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/bi/mitto-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Zapier](/cloud-management/zapier-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.7/5 - Reviews: 3,083 - Starting price: $29.99/month - Best for: Email Management - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Zapier is a cloud-based workflow automation platform that serves individuals, small businesses, and large enterprises across marketing, sales, HR, finance, IT, customer support, [Read more](/cloud-management/zapier-profile/) ##### What users love - Vast integration ecosystem coverage - Flexible workflow automation options - Broad app connection capabilities ##### To take in mind - Expensive scaling and limited free plan - Complexity and reliability of zaps - Steep learning curve for beginners #### Features ##### Best rated features - Project Management: 5/5 - Data Management: 5/5 - Templates: 5/5 - Data Security: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - QuickBooks Integration: 2/5 - SMS Messaging: 4/5 [See all features](/cloud-management/zapier-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Free - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request ##### Professional - Price: $29.99/month ##### Team - Price: $103.50/month [See full pricing details](/cloud-management/zapier-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [AtScale](/bi/atscale-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 1 - Starting price: $50,000.00 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview AtScale is a data warehouse virtualization solution that creates a live connection between people and data without moving it, regardless of where it is stored or how it is [Read more](/bi/atscale-profile/) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $50,000.00 [See full pricing details](/bi/atscale-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [MSIGHTS Platform](/data-management/msights-platform-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 1 - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview MSIGHTS Platform is a data management software that helps marketers centralize marketing and data operations, providing an objective view of overall marketing performance. The [Read more](/data-management/msights-platform-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Import/Export: 5/5 - Multiple Data Sources: 5/5 - Data Visualization: 5/5 - Customizable Dashboard: 5/5 [See all features](/data-management/msights-platform-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: Custom - Pricing available upon request [See full pricing details](/data-management/msights-platform-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Tranzactor](/bi/tranzactor-profile/) - Overall rating: 5/5 - Reviews: 1 - Starting price: $5,995.00 - Free trial: Not available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Tranzactor is an integrations tool for the logistics and trucking industry, which allows businesses to integrate data from a range of third party applications including TMW Suite, [Read more](/bi/tranzactor-profile/) --- ### [The SmartIntegration Platform for CRM](/crm/the-smartintegration-platform-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.5/5 - Reviews: 2 - Starting price: $1,499.00/year - Free trial: Not available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview InterWeave provides SmartSolutions®, which allows customers to easily connect to any combination of cloud and on-premises applications without software; InterWeave is [Read more](/crm/the-smartintegration-platform-profile/) --- ### [SnapLogic](/bi/snaplogic-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.5/5 - Reviews: 15 - Starting price: $9,995.00/year - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview SnapLogic provides self-service applications and data integration platform. It improves business activities, drives better business result and accelerates decision-making by [Read more](/bi/snaplogic-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Multiple Data Sources: 4.8/5 - Pre-built Connectors: 4.8/5 - Cloud Data Integration: 4.7/5 - Data Management: 4.6/5 ##### Worst rated features - Application Management: 4/5 - Dashboard: 4/5 [See all features](/bi/snaplogic-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $9,995.00/year [See full pricing details](/bi/snaplogic-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Integrate.io](/bi/xplenty-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.6/5 - Reviews: 17 - Starting price: $1,200.00/month - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview Unify Your Data Stack: Experience the first no-code data pipeline platform and power enlightened decision making. Integrate.io is the only complete set of data solutions & [Read more](/bi/xplenty-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Data Management: 5/5 - Integrations Management: 5/5 - Multiple Data Sources: 5/5 [See all features](/bi/xplenty-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $1,200.00/month [See full pricing details](/bi/xplenty-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- ### [Analogyx BI](/bi/analogyx-bi-profile/) - Overall rating: 4.5/5 - Reviews: 8 - Starting price: $8,500.00/month - Free trial: Available - Free demo: Not available #### Overview A Web-Based, Self-Service, Real-time Data & Analytics Platform, with a built-in data warehouse that has the ability to consolidate & centralize data from any environment (SaaS or [Read more](/bi/analogyx-bi-profile/) #### Features ##### Best rated features - Collaboration Tools: 5/5 - Profitability Analysis: 5/5 - Data Connectors: 5/5 - Metadata Management: 5/5 ##### Worst rated features - Predictive Analytics: 3/5 - Dashboard: 4/5 [See all features](/bi/analogyx-bi-profile/#key-features) #### Pricing ##### Basic - Price: $8,500.00/month [See full pricing details](/bi/analogyx-bi-profile/#pricing-and-plans) --- 1 [2](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/?__ai_markdown=true&page=2)[3](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/?__ai_markdown=true&page=3)[4](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/?__ai_markdown=true&page=4)[5](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/?__ai_markdown=true&page=5) ... [23](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/data-integration-tools-comparison/?__ai_markdown=true&page=23) ## Popular Comparisons [ viaSocket vs Zapier ](https://www.softwareadvice.com/compare/163639-zapier/vs/520083-viaSocket/)[ Microsoft Power Automate vs UiPath ](https://www.softwareadvice.com/robotic-process-automation/microsoft-power-automate-profile/vs/uipath/)[ Albato vs MuleSoft Anypoint Platform ](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/albato-profile/vs/anypoint/)[ APPSeCONNECT vs Make ](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/appseconnect-profile/vs/integromat/)[ Apify Custom Web Scraping & RPA Solutions vs Boomi ](https://www.softwareadvice.com/data-extraction/apify-profile/vs/dell-boomi/) ## Your Guide to Top Integration Software, August 2025 Software Advice uses reviews from real software users to highlight the top-rated Integration products in North America. [Learn how products are chosen](https://www.softwareadvice.com/legal-page/frontrunners-methodology/) #### Explore FrontRunners - [Albato](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/albato-profile/) - [APPSeCONNECT](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/appseconnect-profile/) - [Commercient SYNC](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/commercient-sync-profile/) - [Coupler.io](https://www.softwareadvice.com/ipaas/coupler-io-profile/) - [Domo](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/domo-profile/) - [eZintegrations](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/ezintegrations-profile/) - [Hevo](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/hevo-profile/) - [Make](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/integromat-profile/) - [Power My Analytics](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/power-my-analytics-profile/) - [Skyvia](https://www.softwareadvice.com/data-extraction/skyvia-profile/) - [SSIS PowerPack](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/ssis-powerpack-profile/) - [Workato](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/workato-profile/) - [Zapier](https://www.softwareadvice.com/cloud-management/zapier-profile/) “Usability” includes user ratings for Functionality and Ease of Use. “Customer Satisfaction” includes user ratings for Customer Support, Likelihood to Recommend and Value for Money. Reviews analysis period: The reviews analysis period spans two years and ends the 15th of the month prior to publication. The data universe is expanding. It's no secret that the data businesses create, capture and analyze has been growing in volume and diversity, with no signs of slowing down. The ubiquity of data in today's business environment dictates that even small businesses should be thinking of how they can use data for a competitive advantage. Increasingly, tools are becoming available to help with the collection and analysis of this data. In this guide, we'll cover: - [What Are Data Integration Tools?](#WhatAreDataIntegrationTools) - [Common Features of Data Integration Software](#CommonFeaturesofDataIntegrationSoftware) - [What Type of Buyer Are You?](#WhatTypeofBuyerAreYou) - [Benefits of Data Integration Tools](#BenefitsofDataIntegrationTools) - [Market Trends to Understand](#MarketTrendstoUnderstand) ## What Are Data Integration Tools? Data integration is simply the process by which data is collected from multiple sources, normalized and prepared for analysis. Data integration software are tools that collect and transform the data for common storage, typically in a data warehouse, from which it can be extracted for analysis, as depicted in the diagram below: Traditionally, this is done through the [extract, transform, load](https://www.softwareadvice.com/resources/etl-vs-elt-for-your-data-warehouse/) (ETL) process by a database administrator (DBA), who sets up the criteria the data should adhere to prior to storage. The criteria the DBA sets up, or defines for the data, are based on the most critical insights a business seeks to derive from the data. The ETL process is an involved one in which data is collected, or "extracted" from the original sources, which often exist in widely varying formats. These include not only .CSV and XML files, but also online sources such as social media. Once the data is extracted from the original source, it is "transformed" into a format that fits the parameters the DBA has defined for the data warehouse, or wherever the data will reside. Conversely, the ELT (extract, load, transform) process manages the process in a different order—one in which the data is loaded into the database, where it's transformed (as opposed to having predetermined rules set up within the database, such as a [data cube](https://www.softwareadvice.com/resources/data-warehouse-problems/)). _Data integration environment in_ [TIBCO Jaspersoft](https://www.softwareadvice.com/bi/tibco-jaspersoft-profile/) Increasingly for large enterprises, data lakes are becoming a popular data storage strategy for those dealing with big data. The data is then integrated with other transformed data for like comparisons and analysis. ## Common Features of Data Integration Tools As a baseline, data integration tools should offer the following: | Feature | Description | | --- | --- | | ETL (extract, transform, load) | Collects data from outside sources, transforms it and then loads it into the target system (a database or warehouse). Because primary data is often organized using different schemas or formats, analysts can use ETL tools to normalize it for useful analysis. | | ELT (extract, load, transform) | Collects data from outside sources, loads it into the database or warehouse and then transforms it to conform to requests for analysis. This feature allows the data to be manipulated/integrated within the warehouse itself, rather than prior to migration. | | Data capture/connection | Allows software to "connect" to multiple—and sometimes disparate—data sources (including relational databases, XML, .CSV, data lakes, Hadoop, SQL etc.) for the purposes of data extraction. | | Data transformation | Normalizes data across disparate sources by standardizing data, converting values and correcting numeric values to conform to minimum and maximum values. | | Data quality management | Helps organizations maintain clean, standardized and error-free data. Standardization is especially important for BI implementations that integrate data from diverse sources, as this ensures that later analyses are correct. | --- Some data integration software offers additional features, including more self service options (such as drag-and-drop development for citizen data analysts). ## What Type of Buyer Are You? Typically, data integration resides in the realm of the DBA, who sits in the IT department. **Small businesses.** These are businesses with little to no IT department. While traditionally, they have less need to manage vast amounts of data in a data warehouse, this trend is shifting, given the explosion of data in recent years. More and more tools designed to help "citizen" data administrators extract, integrate and manage data without the need for extensive programming knowledge are becoming available today. **Midsize businesses.** These buyers are still likely to benefit from data integration tools that offer some level of self-service functionality, so that a robust IT department isn't required to architect complex data storage solutions. Real-time data demands and ad hoc granular data analysis are becoming the norm. **Enterprise businesses.** These buyers will have a robust IT department capable of handling the traditional ETL process, which involves time and effort. Ironically, these larger enterprises may have more of a demand for real-time delivery of multistructured data as opposed to the “batch" delivery methods ETL is associated with. Increasingly, tools are becoming more and more sophisticated, with broader functionality sets from delivery to governance, to meet these demands. ## Benefits of Data Integration Tools Data Integration software provides two clear benefits to users: - **Single source of truth.** The principal benefit of data integration software is arriving at a single source of truth for businesses, especially those that deal in a variety of data sets from multiple, and often incongruous, sources. The "truth," or insight sought after, is typically a key performance indicator (KPI) defined by the business. Data integration aligns the data to best reveal this truth. - **Apples to apples.** The additional benefit is that organizations both large and small can not only define what they need from the data to make the most important business decisions, but confidence in those insights. Integration of data into a consistent, predetermined view ensures to some degree that like-comparisons are being made. In short, integration allows for the best "apples-to-apples" comparison disparate data sources can provide. ## Market Trends to Understand Data integration as a field is undergoing some change. According to [Gartner](https://www.gartner.com/document/3765364), data integration and quality tools as a market grew 2.5 percent in 2016 to $4.4 billion, though more traditional data integration tools, which serve merely as "connectors" for batch movement of data, had slower growth (report available to Gartner clients). This is due in large part to the increasing "[mass proliferation](https://www.gartner.com/document/3803563)" of data according to Gartner, which has put greater demand on data integration tools to expand their offerings to serve various data delivery speeds, deployments and types. Essentially, slow, plodding, structured data delivery is on the outs. More and more, enterprises are seeing the need for data integration flexibility, including virtual and real-time data delivery, as well as the ability to deal with hybrid data sources (cloud and on-premise). Also, businesses are looking more and more for data integration tools that can handle "multistructured" data, or data that comes in a diverse array of structures. ### Related Integration Software - [Application Development Software](https://www.softwareadvice.com/app-development/) - [Embedded Analytics Software](https://www.softwareadvice.com/embedded-analytics/)