Lightdash vs Google Data Studio
Lightdash and Google Data Studio are both BI & dashboards tools. Lightdash is aimed at developers and small businesses, while Google Data Studio is aimed at small businesses and agencies. Google Data Studio costs less, from $9/mo versus $3000/mo for Lightdash. Both have a free plan.
BI built on dbt metrics
Free dashboards from Google data sources
| Pricing | Open source · $3000 | Freemium · $9 |
| Starting price | $3000/mo | $9/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | 21 days | — |
| Built for | Developers, Small businesses | Small businesses, Agencies |
| Platforms | web | web |
| Country | GB · 2020 | US · 2016 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Lightdash if
Data teams using dbt who want a semantic-layer BI.
- Governed metrics in code
- Tight dbt integration
- Unlimited viewers
Look elsewhere if: Teams without dbt (Metabase).
Choose Google Data Studio if
Marketers and agencies reporting on Google data.
- Free
- Seamless with Google marketing data
- Easy sharing like Google Docs
Look elsewhere if: Complex business intelligence across many systems (Power BI, Metabase).
Lightdash vs Google Data Studio pricing
Lightdash
- Open Source$0Self-hosted, core BI features, community Slack support
- Cloud Pro$3,000/moNo per-seat pricing, unlimited users, AI agents, onboarding
- EnterpriseCustomCloud or on-prem, SSO/SAML/SCIM, SOC 2, HIPAA
Google Data Studio
- Data Studio$0Self-service reports and dashboards, no charge
- Data Studio Pro$9/user/project/moTeam content management, Google Cloud support, CMEK
Lightdash · Key features
- Metrics defined in dbt YAML
- Self-serve exploration for business users
- Dashboards and scheduled deliveries
- AI analyst for natural language queries
- Embedding
- Open source and cloud
Cons
- Requires dbt
- Cloud pricing starts high
- Visualization less rich than Tableau
Google Data Studio · Key features
- Native Google connectors (GA4, Ads, GSC, BigQuery)
- Drag-and-drop report builder
- Filters, date ranges and interactive controls
- Data blending across sources
- Scheduled email delivery
- Templates gallery
Cons
- Slow on complex reports
- Limited data modeling
- Third-party connectors often paid
Lightdash vs Google Data Studio: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Lightdash or Google Data Studio?
Google Data Studio starts at $9/mo and Lightdash at $3000/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Lightdash and Google Data Studio have a free plan?
Yes, both Lightdash and Google Data Studio have a free plan; paid plans add more usage and features.