Home › Compare › BI Report Testing Tools › SemanticOps vs Spectacles

SemanticOps vs Spectacles

Checked Nov 15, 2026How we score

Verdict: SemanticOps scores 8.9/10 against 8.4/10 for Spectacles on our data score for BI report testing tools.

Both have a free plan.

Spectacles leads on 2 checks and SemanticOps on 1; 5 are even, out of 8 checks (yes/no, price and seats) where we have data for both.

Choose SemanticOps for power BI developers who edit semantic models with AI assistants and want regression tests. Choose Spectacles for looker teams that want pull-request checks on LookML.

Scoreboard: 8 checks

CheckSemanticOpsSpectacles
Free planEvenEven
Free trialLeads
Smaller seat minimumEvenEven
Power BILeads
TableauEvenEven
Other BI tools (Qlik, Looker, Cognos, MicroStrategy...)Leads
Report regression testingEvenEven
CI/CD integrationEvenEven
Total12

At a glance

SemanticOpsSpectacles
Score8.9/10 (#2)8.4/10 (#5)
Best forPower BI developers who edit semantic models with AI assistants and want regression testsLooker teams that want pull-request checks on LookML
Free planYesYes
Paid from (annual)$29.08/moSee vendor
Paid from (monthly)$39/mo—
Free trial—14-day free trial of the hosted service (per terms of service)
Minimum seats11
PlatformsWindows, macOSCloud (SaaS), CLI (Python)

Features

ToolScorePower BITableauOther BI tools (Qlik, Looker, Cognos, MicroStrategy...)Report regression testingCI/CD integration
SemanticOps8.9/10YesNoNoYesYes
Spectacles8.4/10NoNoYesYesYes

Pros and cons

SemanticOps

Pros
  • Low published price: Pro is $39/month or $349/year, with a free tier
  • Test Runner includes regression snapshots, query duration budgets and row-level and object-level security tests
  • Exports JUnit XML, Markdown, HTML and JSON so CI pipelines can fail builds on regressions
  • Runs locally with no telemetry, per the vendor
Cons
  • Tests semantic models against expected values, not against the source database
  • Does not run CI itself; execution must be wired into an existing pipeline
  • Built by an independent developer; Teams pricing is quote-only
SemanticOps pricing →

Spectacles

Pros
  • Finds SQL errors in Explores by running queries in the database, which Looker's built-in validator does not
  • Content validator checks that LookML changes do not break saved dashboards and Looks
  • Integrates with GitHub, GitLab and Azure DevOps pull requests, plus an API and a dbt Cloud integration
  • Open-source CLI (MIT license) on GitHub, last released July 2026
Cons
  • Looker only; no Power BI or Tableau support
  • Hosted app pricing is not published
  • Checks report definitions and queries, not report values against a separate source system
Spectacles pricing →

Frequently asked questions

How do SemanticOps and Spectacles compare on features and price?

Spectacles leads on 2 checks and SemanticOps on 1; 5 are even, out of 8 checks (yes/no, price and seats) where we have data for both.

Is SemanticOps better than Spectacles?

SemanticOps scores 8.9/10 against 8.4/10 for Spectacles on our data score for BI report testing tools. SemanticOps is best for power BI developers who edit semantic models with AI assistants and want regression tests; Spectacles is best for looker teams that want pull-request checks on LookML.

Which is cheaper, SemanticOps or Spectacles?

Check each vendor's pricing page; one of them does not publish an entry price.

Do SemanticOps and Spectacles have free plans?

SemanticOps: yes. Spectacles: yes.

See the full BI Report Testing Tools ranking for other options.

Sources