Modeling is fast becoming one of the most important tools for modern finance teams. Effective financial modeling is a must, especially for businesses that are growing and scaling at a quick pace, allowing teams and stakeholders to better understand potential performance and possible risks. But high-quality, accessible modeling isn’t easy to find, and it all depends on the software that you choose to invest in.
Not all modeling tools are made equally. To give you the opportunity to make a fully informed decision on your choice of software, we’ve put together a comprehensive listing of the best financial modeling software on the market using verified third-party reviews as well as our expertise. See the shortlist below and explore how we determined our rankings, as well in-depth information on each of the tools.
The Best Modeling Tools Shortlist
Casual
Jirav
Cube
Planful
Mosaic
Oracle BI
Microsoft Excel
Anaplan
Jedox
Our rankings were determined using a combined matrix of unaffiliated 3rd party reviews from the G2 platform combined with experience and expertise in modeling software provided by our industry experts.
What is Financial Modeling Software?
Financial modeling software is predictive software that creates complex models on different facets of business performance, as well as informative models about how performance may change in different situations.
These models are created using complex and adaptive algorithms, often with the help of AI, by drawing on a vast wealth of data. It can draw on historical performance data around business performance, on user-created spreadsheets, data relating to different aspects of the makeup and efficiency of the business, and information around future economic circumstances.
All of this is then processed to create a relevant, informative model, with the aim of providing analysis or insights to stakeholders on the decisions they should make to improve efficiency.
Why is Modeling Software Important for Businesses?
Accurate and effective modeling is becoming increasingly important for all types of business for a variety of reasons:
Models provide a picture of current and future financial health. Finance teams and investors get a better understanding of the financial health of the business in its current state by understanding what future performance is likely to look like. This allows them to make more informed decisions around
Determine project or product viability. Product and finance teams can achieve a greater understanding how well new products, services or projects are likely to perform, and how that will impact the business, through accurate financial modeling. Teams can then adapt the plans to achieve better results.
Conduct scenario analysis for different possible situations. Modeling tools can be used to assist in scenario planning by accurately simulating different scenarios and situations. This helps improve business planning by giving teams better and more relevant information on possible performance.
Improve efficiency and accuracy through complexity. Financial modeling software uses complex algorithms to create models, allowing for better accuracy, while simultaneously taking the burden away from finance teams who no longer have to create the models themselves by using traditional spreadsheet methodology. The result is a faster process with better models.
What Features and Modeling Functions Should These Tools Include?
An effective modeling tool hinges on good modeling functionality. The platform should be capable of scalable modeling to adapt to business size and growth, with pre-set modeling functionalities that can be quicky and easily implemented. Scenario and multi-scenario functionality should also be a part of the set-up. Most tools will have model customisation, but the best tools will enable customisation that is both easy and clear, with an insight into the syntax of how the model will work. In-built analysis tools and AI insights into the models and what they are predicting is also very useful, as is the number of dimensions the software allows. More dimensions means more models, better analysis, and the opportunity to scale models.
While modeling is the focus, a platform with a good user experience is paramount for improving efficiency and visibility – in other words, getting the most out of the models themselves. A user-friendly interface that’s easy to navigate and includes accessibility features is key, as is a straightforward set-up process. Integrating the tool into existing tech stacks should also seamless.
The Best Financial Modeling Tools
1. Abacum
Abacum’s modeling software boasts premier functionality and usability in a tool that is designed for accuracy, efficiency and collaboration. The Abacum platform allows for modeling that suits a variety of business requirements, with both pre-set functionalities and scenarios that are quick to use, and unique models built with custom drivers that can be scaled and iterated for better accuracy. There’s also specific functionality that makes it ideal for FP&A teams – all in a comfortable, collaborative interface that is easy to use and integrate into existing tech-stacks.
Pros: Few tools are able to match Abacum’s modeling functionality, customisability, and visibility. Models can be built to be incredibly granular or easily set up to be iterated and built upon. Better yet, the entire modeling process is visible using Abacum’s unique formula and syntax methodology that lets you understand the logic, levers and sensitivity that’s being used – and edit in an easy way. The software is also collaborative by nature, allowing different teams, decision makers and stakeholders to view the right models and plan modeling workflows together. Their onboarding and customer help services make adding it to your setup a seamless process.
Cons: The platform is not suited for small businesses without dedicated Finance teams, as the functionalities are best suited for organisations with the data complexity and business size to get the most out of platform. Abacum is ideal for medium-to-large businesses with dedicated FP&A and Finance teams who want to understand how they can improve their business planning to drive performance.
G2 rating: 4.8/5
Website: Abacum
2. Casual
Casual is a dedicated modeling platform that is focused on providing teams with an enhanced modeling solution with forecast visualisation. The software does have limited functionalities outside of model visualisations and integrating it into workflows requires more work than competitors.
Pros: The modeling features of Casual are complex, easy to use, and provide a range of options for customisation and visualisation. The software itself comes with a range of intuitive templates to adapt the models into data that can better inform budgets and forecasts with a formula-based system and the ability to run scenario analysis.
Cons: The Casual platform’s modeling functionality is the flagship service but the software does not offer further features, which may leave serious finance teams lacking in the scaling or capabilities they need to drive performance – especially if they need aspects of collaborative working with other teams. The software also lacks onboarding tools and is aimed specifically at very small teams.
G2 rating: 4.6/5
Website: Casual
3. Jirav
A fast financial reporting platform, Jirav has modeling facilities to improve plans and reports for finance teams that want cross-business collaboration in their tool capabilities.
Pros: Jirav has solid modeling functionalities that are designed to provide finance teams with models to support with financial planning and reporting templates – amongst others. Their collaborative platform is easy to set up and enables teams across businesses to work together on models, with the options to create dashboards with non-financial data.
Cons: While there are useful templated modeling options the model functionality has limited dimension management, meaning less model customisation, limited visualisation options and limited scalability – despite these drawbacks it comes at a very high price point.
G2 rating: 4.7/5
Website: Jirav
4. Cube
Website: Workday Adaptive Planning
With Cube’s platform users get flexible financial model capabilities in a robust platform that offers an easy-to-manage solution for finance teams without significant resources.
Pros: The modeling facilities on Cube are flexible, reliable, and contain useful functionalities that teams need such as scenario modeling and in-built audit trails. Easy to integrate into tech-stacks and export to popularly used spreadsheet formats, Cube also features a level of AI-powered data automation and actualization.
Cons: Like other modeling tools, Cube suffers from the number of dimensions that it can offer in its models. This results in a natural lack of scalability within the platform, meaning it is not suitable for businesses that are growing and scaling quickly or already operate internationally.
G2 rating: 4.5/5
Website: Cube
5. Planful
A well-established name for modeling and finance teams, the Planful platform has been around for over 20 years and within that time have been slowly improving and upgrading their product. The current iteration is a cloud-based all-round solution for finance teams with modeling built in.
Pros: Planful provides a set of complex modeling capabilities and functionalities, such as headcount planning and consolidation features that can be utilised by teams for quick modeling of business-critical elements, as well as customisable forecasting features. The platform is built for both mid-market and enterprise level businesses, with the capability for dimension scaling.
Cons: The complexity of Planful’s modeling comes at exchange of flexibility, with a difficult to navigate user interface and a set-up process that is lengthy and handled by third parties, not Planful themselves. While the modeling they provide is complex, it is also handled outside of the platform within excel spreadsheets before being displayed within the software.
G2 rating: 4.3/5
Website: Planful
6. Mosaic
The Mosaic Tech software tool provides modeling within its suite of financial functionalities and collaborative tools that connect customer, accounting, workforce and financial aspects within a business.
Pros: Mosaic Tech provides real-time data integration for up-to-date modeling, with their modeling functionalities themselves being known for how quick and intuitive they are. Combined with pre-set templates and variables, their collaboration features, and quick set-up time, the platform is a streamlined solution for businesses.
Cons: While the software tool is designed for quick, out-of-the-box set up and integration, this is accompanied by some drawbacks. Their custom metrics are simple and the software lacks multiple dimension modeling which means it is not compatible for scaling businesses. Furthermore, there is a 12-month limit on imported data which limits the ease of historical analysis.
G2 rating: 4.7/5
Website: Mosaic
7. Oracle BI
A well-known solution that can be used by businesses of different sizes and niches, Oracle BI is hampered by its determination to be suitable for a large number of use cases while still providing functional and complex modeling.
Pros: Oracle BI software integrates easily with other Oracle products to allow collaborative working and takes the burden off the user by providing their own data warehousing facilities. The modeling functionality contains a number of advanced features, such as machine-learning led predictions and data insights, and different visualisation options.
Cons: If users do not already have an existing Oracle platform, or lack experience with Oracle products, the learning curve for the tool is steep and integration is often a costly process. The user interface and visualizations are aged, the latter resulting in difficulties in presenting data.
G2 rating: 4.1/5
Website: Oracle
8. Microsoft Excel
Excel is the original modeling program – and likely still the most-used platform for financial modeling and forecasting worldwide. It’s popularity and use means almost all users will have some experience with it, but adopting Excel as the primary provider for modeling carries with it a heavy workload.
Pros: The Excel platform is incredibly intuitive, and most users who want to conduct modeling will have had experience with it in the past meaning set-up should be simple. Almost all platforms will have integrations with excel, and the functionality of it means features are practically unlimited.
Cons: Utilising Excel as a modeling tool in a comparable way to other competitors requires a huge amount of manual work and technical expertise both for initial set-up and continuous running. Building the same tools that competitors have out-of-the-box could take weeks, if not months, and the more complexity you need the more work is required. Really only suitable for very small businesses.
G2 rating: 4.7/5
Website: Microsoft Excel
9. Anaplan
Alike to other tools in this list, Anaplan also provides a comprehensive software tool for numerous business aspects – with financial modeling just one offered. The platform features data management as one of its leading facets.
Pros: The modeling functionalities are intricate and can be tailored and customised to the specific needs of customers, with integrated granular analytics features to provide users with actionable insights on the models that have been built.
Cons: As a comprehensive financial platform, Anaplan has large set-up costs and a lengthy training process that needs to be completed before full functionality can be achieved. Once this is completed, the modeling functionalities offered by Anaplan are not more complex or advanced as any of the competitors higher up in our rankings.
G2 rating: 4.6/5
Website: Anaplan
10. Jedox
A pre-configured modeling tool, Jedox is a finance-focused platform that runs with and through Excel to create actionable reports across all areas of finance.
Pros: Jedox simplifies the process with its preconfigured options, the ability to adapt templated models, and the required dimensions for scaling. Data and systems from a number of sources can be easily integrated and the cross-collaboration features in the tool enable faster workflows.
Cons: A large amount of training and setup time is required, and once this is done the system is still best ran using its preconfigured templated and models, rather than with the complexity needed from dedicated financial modeling tools. Integrations are possible but can prove difficult, undermining one of Jedox’s core features.
G2 rating: 4.4/5
Website: Jedox
Choosing a Modeling Tool that is Right for Your Business and Team
Our rankings are indicative of the strength of the modeling capabilities of each of these platforms and their suitability for different business sizes. If you’re a mid-market business or larger, with a finance team who needs modeling software to power performance and scale with the business as it grows, Abacum is the perfect choice. Smaller businesses, on the other hand, may find that their requirements are better suited by Microsoft Excel or a simplified modeling tool.
When choosing your modeling software, be aware of the main functionalities behind the modeling and whether it’ll meet your needs. Take specific care to choose a tool that has multiple dimension modeling and can therefore scale with your business, and that has some form of scenario modeling and analysis to aid adaptive business planning.
Learn more about how Finance and Revenue Leaders use scenario planning or discover the true breath of Abacum’s modeling capabilities.
