Business Analyst vs. Data Analyst: What’s the Difference?
Learn how data analysts and business analysts work with data to drive better business decisions (and find out which might be a better career fit for you).
![[Featured image] A female business analyst interviews a female employee. Both have their laptops in front of them.](https://d3njjcbhbojbot.cloudfront.net/api/utilities/v1/imageproxy/https://images.ctfassets.net/wp1lcwdav1p1/5vfQELyaDvsspcLpsigHEy/ec1810ecd32ac851a47d952a4f5d1e5d/dat_analyst_vs_business_analyst.png?w=1500&h=680&q=60&fit=fill&f=faces&fm=jpg&fl=progressive&auto=format%2Ccompress&dpr=1&w=1000)
Data analysts and business analysts both help drive data-driven decision-making in their organizations. Data analysts work more closely with the data itself, while business analysts are more involved in addressing business needs and recommending solutions. Both are highly sought-after roles that are typically well-compensated.
In this article, we’ll look closer at what makes each role unique and why you might choose to pursue either as a career. Afterward, if either path intrigues you, consider enrolling in the Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate or the Microsoft Business Analyst Professional Certificate to start building job-relevant skills today.
professional certificate
Microsoft Business Analyst
Launch your career as a business analyst. Build job-ready skills for an in-demand career in business analysis in as little as 3 months. No prior experience required to get started.
4.6
Beginner level
Average time: 3 month(s)
Learn at your own pace
Skills you'll build:
Requirements Elicitation, Process Flow Diagrams, Power BI, Excel Formulas, Quality Management, Microsoft Visio, Scrum (Software Development), Data Analysis, Requirements Analysis, Stakeholder Management, Business Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Pivot Tables And Charts, Software Development Life Cycle, User Story, Business Process Modeling, Microsoft Power Platform, Business Requirements, Microsoft Power Automate/Flow, Data Modeling, Application Development, Business Process Automation, Data Integration, Interactive Data Visualization, Dashboard, Business Process, ChatGPT, Data Visualization, Business Workflow Analysis, Gap Analysis, Needs Assessment, Process Analysis, Project Documentation, Functional Specification, Problem Management, Analysis, Interviewing Skills, Business Process Improvement, Project Management, Process Mapping, Dataflow, Database Design, Agile Methodology, Risk Management, User Acceptance Testing (UAT), Project Planning, Requirements Management, Project Risk Management, Data Presentation, Data Manipulation, Data Cleansing, Spreadsheet Software, Business Metrics
Business analytics vs. data analytics
Business analysts and data analysts have similar roles, and some companies might use the terms interchangeably. Yet, while both types of analysts use data to improve business decisions, they do so in different ways.
What do business analysts do?
Business analysts help identify problems, opportunities, and solutions for their organizations. They do this by:
Evaluating a company’s current functions and IT structures
Reviewing processes and interviewing team members to identify areas for improvement
Presenting findings and recommendations to management and other key stakeholders
Creating visuals and financial models to support business decisions
Training and coaching staff in new systems
What is a business intelligence (BI) analyst?
BI analysts are somewhat of a hybrid between business and data analysts. They use analysis, modeling, and visualization of industry trends and the competitive landscape to help businesses cut losses and increase profits.
professional certificate
Tableau Business Intelligence Analyst
Launch your career in Data Analytics. Build in-demand skills and gain credentials to go from beginner to job-ready in 8 months or less. No degree or prior experience required.
4.7
Beginner level
Average time: 8 month(s)
Learn at your own pace
Skills you'll build:
Tableau Software, Data Management, Requirements Elicitation, Data Visualization, Spatial Data Analysis, Data Analysis, Extract, Transform, Load, Data Governance, Business Analysis, Business Metrics, Data Visualization Software, Data Quality, Data Presentation, Data Warehousing, Dashboard, Exploratory Data Analysis, Data Literacy, Data Storytelling, Statistical Visualization, Data Ethics, Box Plots, Correlation Analysis, Histogram, Predictive Analytics, Descriptive Statistics, Scatter Plots, Regression Analysis, Statistical Analysis, Data Cleansing, Trend Analysis, Data Manipulation, Data Processing, Interactive Data Visualization, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Business Intelligence, Business Reporting, Storytelling, Stakeholder Engagement, Presentations, Geospatial Mapping, Geospatial Information and Technology, Stakeholder Communications, Business Analytics, Data Integration, Performance Tuning, Heat Maps, Tree Maps, Data Mapping, Data Architecture, Data Lakes, Spreadsheet Software, Data Modeling, Database Management, Data Integrity, Databases, Data Infrastructure, Relational Databases, Data Storage, Business Requirements, Requirements Analysis, Stakeholder Management, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Business Process Modeling, Business Process, Process Analysis, Solution Delivery, Project Management, Descriptive Analytics, Analytics
What do data analysts do?
Data analysts gather, clean, analyze, visualize, and present existing data to help inform business decisions. An effective data analyst uses data to answer a question and empower decision-makers to plot the best course of action. Common tasks for a data analyst might include:
Working with business leaders and stakeholders to define a problem or business need
Identifying and sourcing data
Cleaning and preparing data for analysis
Analyzing data for patterns and trends
Visualizing data to make it easier to understand
Presenting data in such a way that it tells a compelling story
Learn more about the job of a data analyst in this lecture from Google's Data Analytics Professional Certificate:
Educational background
Business and data analysts can come from various academic backgrounds, though many companies look for candidates with at least a bachelor’s degree. Generally speaking, business analysts might have a degree in a business-related field, while data analysts often have degrees in STEM fields like statistics, math, or computer science.
Earning a graduate degree focusing on data analytics could open opportunities for advancement in either field.
Skills: Business vs. data analyst
Data analytics and business analytics require similar interpersonal skills but slightly different technical skill sets. Whichever path you choose, for example, you can set yourself up for success by being a good:
Oral and written communicator
Problem solver
Critical thinker
Organizer
Collaborator
While both occupations work with data, they do so in different ways. Here’s a look at some common skills for each.
| Data analyst | Business analyst |
|---|---|
| Data analysis | Needs analysis |
| Statistics | Prototyping |
| Knowledge of data structures | Knowledge of business structures |
| SQL and statistical programming | Microsoft Visio and software design tools |
professional certificate
Meta Data Analyst
Launch your career in data analytics. Build job-ready skills – and must-have AI skills – for an in-demand career. Earn a credential from Meta in 5 months or less. No degree or prior experience required.
4.7
Beginner level
Average time: 5 month(s)
Learn at your own pace
Skills you'll build:
Statistical Hypothesis Testing, Data Management, Data Visualization, Pandas (Python Package), Information Privacy, Data Analysis, Data Collection, Bayesian Statistics, Data Governance, Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), Business Metrics, Data Visualization Software, Python Programming, Data Presentation, SQL, Exploratory Data Analysis, Data Cleansing, Data Storytelling, Spreadsheet Software, Descriptive Statistics, Statistical Modeling, Statistics, Sampling (Statistics), Time Series Analysis and Forecasting, Quantitative Research, Marketing Analytics, Analytics, Data Analysis Software, Descriptive Analytics, Probability & Statistics, Statistical Inference, Data Modeling, Statistical Methods, Statistical Analysis, Tableau Software, Data Manipulation, Programming Principles, Matplotlib, Scripting, Jupyter, Data Processing, Google Sheets, Correlation Analysis, Dashboard, Pivot Tables And Charts, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Data Validation, Business Analysis, Data Quality, Marketing, Generative AI, Data Storage, Data Security, Machine Learning, Big Data, Data Architecture
Build your data career on Coursera
Business and data analysts use their knowledge of data to help organizations make better, more informed decisions. Prepare for your data career with one of these job-relevant programs on Coursera:
To prepare for a career as a data analyst, consider taking Google's Data Analytics Professional Certificate. In as little as six months, you'll gain an immersive understanding of the practices and processes used by junior data analysts, build key analytical skills, and learn how to visualize and present data findings in dashboards.
To launch your career as a business analyst, enroll in Microsoft's Business Analyst Professional Certificate. Learn how to identify and analyze business problems, use Microsoft Excel for data analysis and visualization, and model business processes in as little as three months.
To advance your data or business analyst career , explore the Google Business Intelligence Professional Certificate. In this advanced-level program, you'll practice data modeling and ETL processes, create dashboards that communicate insights, and design data visualization that answers business questions.
professional certificate
Google Data Analytics
Get on the fast track to a career in Data Analytics. In this certificate program, you’ll learn in-demand skills, and get AI training from Google experts. Learn at your own pace, no degree or experience required.
4.8
Beginner level
Average time: 6 month(s)
Learn at your own pace
Skills you'll build:
Tableau Software, Applicant Tracking Systems, Stakeholder Communications, Data Visualization, Ggplot2, Data Analysis, Interactive Data Visualization, Data Visualization Software, Data Presentation, Sampling (Statistics), Presentations, Rmarkdown, Data Validation, LinkedIn, Data Literacy, Data Cleansing, Interviewing Skills, Data Storytelling, Spreadsheet Software, Data Ethics, SQL, Data Transformation, Data Integrity, Data Quality, Sample Size Determination, Data Processing, Analytical Skills, Data-Driven Decision-Making, Data Sharing, Google Sheets, Data Management, Professional Development, Prompt Engineering, Generative AI, Problem Solving, Personal Attributes, Communication, Data Manipulation, R Programming, Programming Principles, Statistical Programming, Integrated Development Environments, Tidyverse (R Package), Data Structures, Dashboard, Business Analysis, Quantitative Research, Expectation Management, Business Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Portfolio Management, Research Reports, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, Data Security, Data Collection, Data Storage, Unstructured Data, Relational Databases, Databases, Pivot Tables And Charts, Excel Formulas, User Feedback, Analytics, Data Compilation, Data Integration
professional certificate
Microsoft Business Analyst
Launch your career as a business analyst. Build job-ready skills for an in-demand career in business analysis in as little as 3 months. No prior experience required to get started.
4.6
Beginner level
Average time: 3 month(s)
Learn at your own pace
Skills you'll build:
Requirements Elicitation, Process Flow Diagrams, Power BI, Excel Formulas, Quality Management, Microsoft Visio, Scrum (Software Development), Data Analysis, Requirements Analysis, Stakeholder Management, Business Analysis, Microsoft Excel, Pivot Tables And Charts, Software Development Life Cycle, User Story, Business Process Modeling, Microsoft Power Platform, Business Requirements, Microsoft Power Automate/Flow, Data Modeling, Application Development, Business Process Automation, Data Integration, Interactive Data Visualization, Dashboard, Business Process, ChatGPT, Data Visualization, Business Workflow Analysis, Gap Analysis, Needs Assessment, Process Analysis, Project Documentation, Functional Specification, Problem Management, Analysis, Interviewing Skills, Business Process Improvement, Project Management, Process Mapping, Dataflow, Database Design, Agile Methodology, Risk Management, User Acceptance Testing (UAT), Project Planning, Requirements Management, Project Risk Management, Data Presentation, Data Manipulation, Data Cleansing, Spreadsheet Software, Business Metrics
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Article sources
Glassdoor. "Business Analyst Salaries, https://www.glassdoor.com/Salaries/business-analyst-salary-SRCH_KO0,16.htm." Accessed February 1, 2025.
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