When you say “Looker”... do you mean “Looker Studio,” “Looker Studio Pro” or "Looker"?
Google’s data visualization tool Data Studio launched in 2016. Then, Google acquired Looker in 2019. In 2022, they rebranded Data Studio as Looker Studio. Both Looker and Looker Studio remain separate in look, functionality and use cases. They are only similar in name. Google also added Looker Studio Pro to the mix, the paid version of Looker Studio.
Depending on when you entered the analytics field you might get these products mixed up or use the names interchangeably. And others may do the same. We’re here to clear things up by breaking down the differences between the platforms and highlighting their benefits.
Looker Studio: Data-Visualization Made Easy
Looker Studio is a free, highly customizable, easy-to-use data visualization tool. It allows users to connect to a wide range of data sources like databases, social media platforms, spreadsheets and, of course, Google products.
It’s ideal for many customers, from small businesses to enterprises. It has powerful data visualization options, offers the ability to create custom fields and transformations and supports most common reporting needs. More advanced data transformations can happen outside of Looker Studio in BigQuery (or other data warehouses) and then be visualized in Looker Studio later. If you aren’t already using Looker Studio, we highly recommend it.
Due to its user-friendly interface and cost-effectiveness, it’s very popular with marketers, analysts and anyone interested in interactions and learning from data. The most common use case is pulling in Google Analytics 4 (GA4) data and visualizing it in various formats that aren’t available in the GA4 UI, blending it with other data sets and customizing fields that aren’t possible in the GA4 UI. Plus, it can complement and supercharge the reports you already have in the GA4 UI.
You can also share Looker Studio reports with others and schedule them for email delivery in PDF format.
TL;DR Takeaway - Looker Studio: Easily integrate multiple data sources, create custom fields & transformations and visualize your metrics with ease—all at no cost. Best of all, you can share reports widely and schedule them for convenient PDF delivery.
Looker Studio Pro: Enterprise Version
Looker Studio Pro has all the same reporting features as Looker Studio and more enterprise-level capabilities related to sharing and scheduling.
- Organizations can now own Looker Studio Pro reports like they own Google Drive so reports don’t break or disappear when employees leave.
- Team workspaces are shared locations for collaboration, access management and Looker Studio content sharing at scale. If a user is part of a team, they’ll get access to reports without being individually added.
- A personal report link creates a unique copy of your report that is only accessible to the person who opens the link. Personal reports empower your team to explore data without changing the original report, making it an excellent tool for data governance.
- Automate Report Delivery: Looker Studio has automated report-sharing capabilities, but the Pro subscription has more customizations and expanded limits.
- Chart-level alerts enable your team to identify and troubleshoot data anomalies faster and more effectively.
- The Looker Studio mobile app enables users to access reports and data while on the go.
- Note: You can only view existing reports; you can’t edit or create new reports.
- Looker Studio Pro customers have access to Google Cloud Customer Care
- Looker Studio had no customer support option
- Note: Customers must pay for a Google Cloud support plan AND have a Looker Studio Pro subscription.
- Gemini in Looker provides AI assistance to help Looker Studio Pro users ask questions about their data, create custom fields and transformations and add Looker Studio content to a Slides presentation.
- Note: This is a limited-time offer with current pricing. Gemini may incur additional costs in the future.
- Note: This is a limited-time offer with current pricing. Gemini may incur additional costs in the future.
Looker: For Powerful Data Modeling and Analysis
While Looker Studio is great for quickly building dashboards, Looker is a more advanced platform built for deeper analysis and complex data setups. It’s perfect for teams who need to manage large, varied datasets and maintain strict control over how data is accessed and shared.
Looker uses LookML, a modeling language that defines how data is organized and related. Although this requires a bit more technical work upfront, it unlocks smoother, more intuitive exploration down the line. Even non-SQL users can navigate data drawn from multiple tables without worrying about how the joins and relationships work. Looker handles that complexity behind the scenes, making it easier to trust your metrics and keep your analysis consistent.
Here’s a list of key capabilities in Looker that you won’t find in Looker Studio:
- Data Modeling With LookML: Define data once and reuse it across all reports, ensuring consistent metrics and relationships
- Advanced Governance and Permissions: Control exactly who can see what, giving you secure, centralized data management.
- Advanced-Data Transformation: Handle complex calculations and transformations inside Looker, without having to alter your original data
- Row or Column-Level Security: Restrict access at a very detailed level, protecting sensitive information
API for Data Access and Integration: Use Looker’s API to connect with other tools, automate workflows, or embed data into other apps - Version Control With Git: Collaborate on LookML models using Git, so everyone can track and manage changes easily
- Custom Visualization and Extensions: Go beyond standard charts by creating your own visual elements or using pre-built templates to extend Looker’s capabilities
These capabilities make Looker especially suited for data-centralized organizations needing consistent, governed insights across teams and use cases that require complex, multi-dimensional analysis.
Additionally, you can feed LookML models into Looker Studio for visualization or leverage Looker’s own “Studio in Looker” feature to keep all reporting and insights in a single, integrated environment.
TL;DR Takeaway – Looker: While it requires a bit more technical setup upfront, Looker unlocks deeper analysis and streamlined exploration at scale.
Still Unsure? Keep Reading.
Depending on your team structure and technical capabilities, each platform offers unique advantages. If having a consistent source of truth is a concern, remember that both Looker and Looker Studio can pull from the same underlying datasets to keep results consistent. Consider these questions as you evaluate:
Who are you?
For the average marketer, Looker Studio is a more accessible option. Its drag-and-drop functionality, pre-built templates and customizable charts make it easy to quickly build and adjust reports, highlight performance trends and extract actionable insights at a glance.
However, if you have the technical support to set up a structured data model and you want a flexible, scalable platform for exploration, Looker could be the better fit. By investing upfront in the LookML modeling layer, you establish a strong data foundation. From there, non-technical users can confidently navigate multiple data sources without worrying about the “how” behind the scenes. You’ll also benefit from integrated governance, version control and customizable extensions.
What’s your company's main goal(s)?
If your organization wants to empower a broad range of employees with easy data access, Looker Studio (and especially Looker Studio Pro) can help kickstart a data-driven culture with minimal technical overhead. It’s great for departments that want straightforward, accessible insights in an intuitive interface, while Looker Studio Pro adds enhanced governance, robust collaboration tools and enterprise-level support. This means your team can scale reporting efforts more securely, ensure consistent data usage across departments and confidently grow your analytics practice over time.
If your organization is focused on building a robust, long-term data strategy with flexibility and governance at its core, Looker offers the structure to maintain data consistency, the depth to handle complex questions and the adaptability to grow with your needs. Looker supports a wide range of capabilities under a single, consistent data model, whether it's basic reporting or more involved analysis. This approach sets the stage for reliable insights, smoother collaboration between data and business teams and a scalable framework that can tackle both everyday reporting and more sophisticated analytics as your data maturity evolves.
But how do you KNOW you have the right platform?
That’s not something we can easily answer for you in a blog post, but it’s something we can help uncover during a discovery session. Adswerve can help you determine ways to make the tech stack you’ve already invested in work for you or recommend changes to empower you and resolve reporting problems.
Below is a simplified comparison of the platforms:
What’s Next
If you have any questions or want to consult with one of our experts, just reach out. We offer new and existing clients Data Visualization Sessions to discuss reporting pain points, needs and solutions.
As a Google Cloud Platform and Google Analytics reseller, Adswerve can advise you from collection to reporting or modeling — and everything in between. And as your trusted partner, Adswerve is here to help you determine which reporting platform is best for you (hint: it doesn’t have to have “Looker” or “Google” in its name) and how to get the most value out of the platform of your choice.
If you’d like to learn more about data viz, check out the following blog series about data visualization.