In this article, we explore the top 5 open source big data analytics tools, detailing their introduction, advantages, disadvantages, and more. Gain insights into how tools like Helical Insight, Apache Hadoop, Spark, and others can enhance your data analysis capabilities.

What are Big data analytics tools

Big data analytics tools are software applications designed to process, analyze, and extract valuable insights from vast amounts of data. As technology progresses, the volume of data generated worldwide reaches approximately 175 zettabytes daily by 2025. Without proper analysis, this data remains unusable. These tools help businesses collect, organize, and interpret data efficiently, enabling them to make informed decisions. By leveraging big data analytics, companies can identify trends, improve customer experiences, optimize operations, and maintain a competitive edge in the market. In essence, big data analytics tools transform raw data into meaningful, actionable intelligence.

Benefits of Using An Big data analytics tools

In today’s data-driven world, leveraging big data analytics tools has become essential for businesses aiming to thrive and innovate. These powerful tools transform vast amounts of data into actionable insights, fostering smarter decision-making and enhanced operational efficiency. Here are the key benefits of integrating big data analytics into your business strategy.

  • Enhanced Decision Making
  • Increased Operational Efficiency
  • Better Customer Insights
  • Predictive Analytics
  • Improved Product Development
  • Risk Management
  • Cost Reduction
  • Competitive Advantage
  • Enhanced Marketing Strategies
  • Scalability
  • Data Integration
  • Improved Customer Experience
  • Enhanced Compliance
  • Real-Time Monitoring
  • Collaboration and Data Sharing

Open Source Big data analytics tools

1. Helical Insight: Your Easy-to-Use Open Source BI Tool!

Open Source Alternatives To Tableau

Helical Insight is like a magic wand for your data. It helps you turn your messy numbers into clear, easy-to-understand insights. Below highlighted are some of the prominent features of Helical Insight BI product

  • self service interface for creating reports, dashboards, info-graphs and map based analytics
  • Plenty of visualization options with drill down, drill through and inter panel communication options
  • NLP (GenAI) based data analysis under development
  • support for document kind of printer friendly canned reports also
  • exporting
  • email scheduling / report bursting
  • white labeling
  • embedding
  • support of various methods of Single Sign On
  • Completely browser based application
  • On premise installation
  • Cloud and mobile support
  • Support of various kind of DB, flat files, columnar DB and more
  • Caching and pagination
  • Support for containers like docker, kubernetes
  • Extensive API support
  • Extremely developer friendly BI framework
  • Flat pricing with various pricing options like perpetual, subscription etc

To download and try for free, plz register here. Reach out to support@helicalinsight.com for any more questions.

Alternative to Quicksight

2. Apache Spark

Apache spark logo

Apache Spark is a unified analytics engine known for its speed and ease of use. It extends the MapReduce model to efficiently use more types of computations, including interactive queries and stream processing. Key features include:

  • In-memory computation: Enhances the processing speed of applications.
  • Advanced analytics: Includes support for SQL queries, machine learning, and graph processing.
  • Flexible deployment: Can run on Hadoop, Apache Mesos, Kubernetes, standalone, or in the cloud.

3. Druid

Apache spark logo

Apache Druid is a high-performance, column-oriented, distributed data store. It is well-suited for real-time analytics on large datasets. Druid’s key attributes are:

  • Real-time ingestion: Supports real-time data ingestion and querying.
  • Fast query performance: Optimized for OLAP (Online Analytical Processing) queries.
  • Scalability and fault tolerance: Designed to handle high throughput and scale horizontally.

4. Elasticsearch

Apache spark logo

Elasticsearch is a distributed, RESTful search and analytics engine capable of solving a growing number of use cases. It is part of the Elastic Stack, which includes tools like Kibana, Logstash, and Beats. Features include:

  • Full-text search: Advanced search capabilities on large volumes of data.
  • Real-time indexing: Allows for the near real-time search and analytics.
  • Scalability: Easily scales to hundreds of servers and petabytes of data.

5. Presto

Apache spark logo

Presto, originally developed by Facebook, is an open-source distributed SQL query engine. It allows running interactive analytic queries against data sources of all sizes. Key aspects of Presto are:

  • Interactive querying: Executes queries with low latency, even over large datasets.
  • Pluggable architecture: Can query data from multiple sources like HDFS, Amazon S3, and traditional databases.
  • High performance: Optimized for running fast, ad-hoc queries at scale.

Make customer-facing dashboards 10X faster with Helical Insight.

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Helical Insight’s self-service capabilities is one to reckon with. It allows you to simply drag and drop columns, add filters, apply aggregate functions if required, and create reports and dashboards on the fly. For advanced users, the self-service component has ability to add javascript, HTML, HTML5, CSS, CSS3 and AJAX. These customizations allow you to create dynamic reports and dashboards. You can also add new charts inside the self-service component, add new kind of aggregate functions and customize it using our APIs.
Helical Insight’s self-service capabilities is one to reckon with. It allows you to simply drag and drop columns, add filters, apply aggregate functions if required, and create reports and dashboards on the fly. For advanced users, the self-service component has ability to add javascript, HTML, HTML5, CSS, CSS3 and AJAX. These customizations allow you to create dynamic reports and dashboards. You can also add new charts inside the self-service component, add new kind of aggregate functions and customize it using our APIs.
Helical Insight, via simple browser based interface of Canned Reporting module, also allows to create pixel perfect printer friendly document kind of reports also like Invoice, P&L Statement, Balance sheet etc.
Helical Insight, via simple browser based interface of Canned Reporting module, also allows to create pixel perfect printer friendly document kind of reports also like Invoice, P&L Statement, Balance sheet etc.
If you have a product, built on any platform like Dot Net or Java or PHP or Ruby, you can easily embed Helical Insight within it using iFrames or webservices, for quick value add through instant visualization of data.
If you have a product, built on any platform like Dot Net or Java or PHP or Ruby, you can easily embed Helical Insight within it using iFrames or webservices, for quick value add through instant visualization of data.
Being a 100% browser-based BI tool, you can connect with your database and analyse across any location and device. There is no need to download or install heavy memory-consuming developer tools – All you need is a Browser application! We are battle-tested on most of the commonly used browsers.
Being a 100% browser-based BI tool, you can connect with your database and analyse across any location and device. There is no need to download or install heavy memory-consuming developer tools – All you need is a Browser application! We are battle-tested on most of the commonly used browsers.
We have organization level security where the Superadmin can create, delete and modify roles. Dashboards and reports can be added to that organization. This ensures multitenancy.
We have organization level security where the Superadmin can create, delete and modify roles. Dashboards and reports can be added to that organization. This ensures multitenancy.
We have organization level security where the Superadmin can create, delete and modify roles. Dashboards and reports can be added to that organization. This ensures multitenancy.
We have organization level security where the Superadmin can create, delete and modify roles. Dashboards and reports can be added to that organization. This ensures multitenancy.
A first-of-its-kind Open-Source BI framework, Helical Insight is completely API-driven. This allows you to add functionalities, including but not limited to adding a new exporting type, new datasource type, core functionality expansion, new charting in adhoc etc., at any place whenever you wish, using your own in-house developers.
A first-of-its-kind Open-Source BI framework, Helical Insight is completely API-driven. This allows you to add functionalities, including but not limited to adding a new exporting type, new datasource type, core functionality expansion, new charting in adhoc etc., at any place whenever you wish, using your own in-house developers.
It handles huge volumes of data effectively. Caching, Pagination, Load-Balancing and In-Memory not only provides you with amazing experience, but also and does not burden the database server more than required. Further effective use of computing power gives best performance and complex calculations even on the big data even with smaller machines for your personal use. Filtering, Sorting, Cube Analysis, Inter Panel Communication on the dashboards all at lightning speed. Thereby, making best open-source Business Intelligence solution in the market.
It handles huge volumes of data effectively. Caching, Pagination, Load-Balancing and In-Memory not only provides you with amazing experience, but also and does not burden the database server more than required. Further effective use of computing power gives best performance and complex calculations even on the big data even with smaller machines for your personal use. Filtering, Sorting, Cube Analysis, Inter Panel Communication on the dashboards all at lightning speed. Thereby, making best open-source Business Intelligence solution in the market.
With advance NLP algorithm, business users simply ask questions like, “show me sales of last quarter”, “average monthly sales of my products”. Let the application give the power to users without knowledge of query language or underlying data architecture
With advance NLP algorithm, business users simply ask questions like, “show me sales of last quarter”, “average monthly sales of my products”. Let the application give the power to users without knowledge of query language or underlying data architecture
Our application is compatible with almost all databases, be it RDBMS, or columnar database, or even flat files like spreadsheets or csv files. You can even connect to your own custom database via JDBC connection. Further, our database connection can be switched dynamically based on logged in users or its organization or other parameters. So, all your clients can use the same reports and dashboards without worrying about any data security breech.
Our application is compatible with almost all databases, be it RDBMS, or columnar database, or even flat files like spreadsheets or csv files. You can even connect to your own custom database via JDBC connection. Further, our database connection can be switched dynamically based on logged in users or its organization or other parameters. So, all your clients can use the same reports and dashboards without worrying about any data security breech.
Our application can be installed on an in-house server where you have full control of your data and its security. Or on cloud where it is accessible to larger audience without overheads and maintenance of the servers. One solution that works for all.
Our application can be installed on an in-house server where you have full control of your data and its security. Or on cloud where it is accessible to larger audience without overheads and maintenance of the servers. One solution that works for all.
Different companies have different business processes that the existing BI tools do not encompass. Helical Insight permits you to design your own workflows and specify what functional module of BI gets triggered
Different companies have different business processes that the existing BI tools do not encompass. Helical Insight permits you to design your own workflows and specify what functional module of BI gets triggered