Alation Data Lineage
Alation Data Lineage: A broad lineage system for tracing data from source systems through BI outputs. Ranked #1 of 41 in Data Lineage Tools by our editors (9.2/10); pricing: Pricing on request; best for governed lineage with BI traceability.
At a glance
- Editor score9.2 / 10
- PricingPricing on request
- Best forGoverned lineage with BI traceability
- Free planNo
- Column-level lineageYes
- Founded2012 · Redwood City, California, USA
- Facts checked21 Sep 2026
Where it wins
- Automates lineage discovery from metadata, query logs, and Compose queries
- Traces table, column, pipeline, transformation, and BI report relationships
- Adds governance context with policy, trust, and data-quality overlays
Where it doesn't
- Pricing requires contacting sales and estimating ACU consumption
- No free plan is available
- Column transformations depend on supported connectors and BI SQL sources
Our verdict on Alation Data Lineage
Alation Data Lineage maps data flows, transformations, dependencies, and relationships across an organization’s data ecosystem. It is aimed at data teams, analysts, governance teams, and enterprise stakeholders that need to trace data origins, understand downstream usage, and assess the effect of changes. The product supports web and API access, hybrid deployment, table-level and column-level lineage, and manual lineage creation alongside automated discovery.
Its main strength is breadth across the lineage workflow. Metadata extraction, query-log analysis, connector-based discovery, and Compose queries help identify relationships, while pipeline and dataflow mapping adds transformation context. Users can follow lineage into BI reports and dashboards, review upstream audit and downstream impact reports, and apply business metadata, policy, trust, and data-quality overlays. Integrations include Snowflake, AWS Redshift, Tableau, AWS Glue, Databricks, PostgreSQL, MongoDB, Power BI, AWS S3, Salesforce, Confluent Kafka, and SQL Server. Public lineage APIs also support programmatic access and extension.
Pricing is handled through sales rather than standard published plan prices. The vendor’s pricing page describes a consumption-unit credit pool and requests an ACU estimate, so buyers should expect commercial evaluation before selecting an arrangement. There is no free plan. Alation Data Lineage fits organizations that need governed, cross-system lineage with BI traceability and impact analysis. Teams seeking a small, narrowly focused lineage utility, transparent self-serve pricing, or transformation coverage outside supported connectors should consider those constraints before choosing it.
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Alation Data Lineage pricing
Alation Data Lineage fact sheet
| Free plan | No |
|---|---|
| Paid from | Not verified |
| Automated discovery | Yes |
| Column-level lineage | Yes |
| Impact analysis | Yes |
| Pipeline lineage | Yes |
| Report lineage | Yes |
| Deployment | Hybrid |
| Deployment | Cloud, Self-hosted |
| Platforms | Web |
| Compliance & security | SOC 2, ISO 27001, HIPAA |
| Support | Docs |
| Built for | Mid-market, Enterprise (editorial estimate) |
| Integrations | 120+ integrations: Snowflake, AWS Redshift, Tableau, AWS Glue, Databricks, PostgreSQL … See all → |
| Pricing | Pricing on request (source) |
| Website | alation.com |
| Facts checked | 21 Sep 2026 |
Alation Data Lineage integrations
Alation Data Lineage lists 120+ integrations on its own site — the 12 named here are the ones its pages call out.
- Snowflake
- AWS Redshift
- Tableau
- AWS Glue
- Databricks
- PostgreSQL
- MongoDB
- Power BI
- AWS S3
- Salesforce
- Confluent Kafka
- SQL Server
See all Alation Data Lineage integrations →
Alternatives to Alation Data Lineage
- Informatica Cloud Data Governance and CatalogA broad governance and lineage service for complex cloud, on-premises and hybrid data estates.9.1
- Talend Data CatalogA broad catalog and lineage product for complex enterprise data architectures.9.0
- DataHub CloudA cloud lineage platform with column-level detail, impact analysis, and wide ecosystem coverage.8.9
See all Alation Data Lineage alternatives →
Alation Data Lineage vs the competition
- Alation Data Lineage vs Informatica Cloud Data Governance and Catalog
- Alation Data Lineage vs Talend Data Catalog
- Alation Data Lineage vs DataHub Cloud
- Alation Data Lineage vs OpenMetadata
- Alation Data Lineage vs BigID Data Intelligence Platform
- Alation Data Lineage vs Collibra
Compare Alation Data Lineage with any tool side by side →
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Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
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