Meet the Perfect Matillion Alternative

Matillion’s drag-and-drop interface is a good alternative for UI based ETL workflows. However, it may be harder to customize, more expensive than others, and has a higher switching cost due to its proprietary nature.

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Datacoves

Matillion uses traditional UI based ETL, but Datacoves empowers all users

Matillion’s low-code, drag-and-drop interface follows a traditional UI based ELT pattern. However, it can be difficult for those not familiar with complex ETL tools. It can handle data ingestion and transformations, but is typically only available to IT data engineers.

Datacoves is the alternative that gives anyone with SQL knowledge the full power of dbt. Coupled with its seamless Airflow integration and fully configurable VS Code IDE, Datacoves offers the flexibility to handle more complex workflows with precision and scalability.

If you’re looking for a low-code platform that prioritizes ease of use over customization, Matillion might suit your needs. But if you need a developer-first platform that maximizes control and adaptability, Datacoves is the better fit without increasing vendor lock-in.

Why choose Datacoves?

End-to-end ELT

With Matillion
Matillion promotes a GUI approach to the EL process with built-in tools and a drag-and-drop interface. However, this approach limits the team's ability to customize and optimize SQL. Over time teams may choose to use their own code in SQL or dbt components, but this can become harder to manage as pipeline complexity grows. Matillion does offer pipeline orchestration, but it lacks the community and ecosystem of more established tools like Airflow.

Flexibility for the organization

With Matillion
Matillion’s low-code approach is accessible to trained ETL developers coming from similar tools, but can be limiting for teams needing to customize their workflows. While it may appear simpler to use at first glance, it may not offer the level of flexibility as organizations needs evolve.

Scalability as you grow

With Matillion
Matillion handles scalability well by pushing data operations down to the warehouse. However, organizations dealing with larger-scale operations might encounter limitations in Matillion’s native orchestration capabilities.

DataOps compatibility

With Matillion
Matillion’s GUI-based ETL can act like a "black box," limiting visibility into the underlying processes and making it difficult to do code reviews and ensure consistent standards. This can make debugging more difficult, as it’s harder to trace issues or pinpoint errors compared to a more transparent, code-based tool.

Vendor lock in

With Matillion
Matillion’s proprietary platform may appear to be user-friendly and effective, but it can lead to vendor lock-in, especially for teams relying on its built-in orchestration tools. While this isn’t an issue for all organizations, teams prioritizing long-term flexibility may need to consider how easily they can transition away from proprietary solutions. The higher per-user licensing and training requirements will limit the reach to all parts of the organization leading to siloed disconnected tools.

What our clients have to say

Nice end-to-end system

Datacoves brings a very well-thought-out devlopment to deployment system. The project structure and workflow you inherit by working with them saves a ton of work.

Craig Lathrop
IT & Data Operating Partner
Cold Bore Capital Management LLC

Thought leadership on data engineering

Datacoves allowed us to switch to more modern technology stack but most of all adopt a different mindset and approach to building and maintaining data pipelines and working with data as an asset.

Tobias Temmink
Data Management Lead
The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson