What are the differences between Platform Analytics & Performance Analytics?

[marloii]

Hello.

Could anyone please clarify the difference between Platform Analytics and Performance Analytics?

Is my understanding correct that Platform Analytics is available by default in the base system, while Performance Analytics (with paid subscription) provides additional capabilities on top of Platform Analytics?

If there is any related documentation you could share, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thank you very much.

[Mark Manders]

Docs provides tons of information on the topic and so does NowUniversity.

And you are (almost) correct. Previously you had reporting/dashboarding which was separate from Performance Analytics. There are indeed subscriptions and content packs for PA, depending on the requirements. However, there is a subset of PA content available on the base system that can be used be anyone (without a PA premium subscription). You just can't add new stuff to it, so you can just use what is there.

With Tokyo Platform Analytics was introduced and until Washington it was it's own workspace. Then it was added to the normal navigation and became the standard. As of Australia it will be the default. The Platform Analytics Experience will contain all reporting and dashboard content, including Performance Analytics. And the 'old' stuff will also be managed from there.

[Tanushree Maiti]

Hi @marloii 

There are lots of post are in place in this community on the same query. Refer those as well.

In this link Difference between Performance and platform analytics , you will get the difference in tabular format.

Performance Analytics
Focus: Key business process metrics (such as Incident, Change, and Request)
Features: Interactive scorecards, dashboards, historical data tracking, forecasting capabilities, and threshold-based alerts
Use Case: Enables data-driven decision-making and continuous service improvement

Platform Analytics
Focus: End-to-end analytics across the entire platform, beyond just ITSM
Features: Analytics Center, advanced data visualizations (replacing traditional widgets), system health monitoring, and user behavior insights
Use Case: Supports cross-functional analysis, including platform performance and usage trends

Refer: Difference between Performance and platform analytics 

     Key Differences Between Performance Analytics and Platform Analytics in ServiceNow 

[SohamTipnis]

Hi @marloii,

Yeah, you’re on the right track; it just needs a small correction to make it fully accurate.

Platform Analytics is basically the modern analytics interface in ServiceNow. It gives you a single place to build dashboards, view reports, and work with data. This is generally available in the base system and focuses more on the experience and visualization side.

Performance Analytics, on the other hand, is a separate paid module. It goes deeper by letting you track KPIs over time using historical data (called indicators), set targets, monitor trends, and even do forecasting. So it’s more about measuring performance and continuous improvement, not just displaying data.

So instead of thinking, “Performance Analytics is on top of Platform Analytics,” it’s better to think:

👉 Platform Analytics is the UI/experience layer.
👉 Performance Analytics is the data engine for advanced insights that plugs into it.

In short, your understanding is mostly correct; Platform Analytics comes by default, and Performance Analytics adds more powerful capabilities, especially for tracking trends and KPIs over time.

You can refer to the below articles for more understanding:

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/now-intelligence/performance-analytics/implementing-pa.html

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/now-intelligence/indicator-data-sources-pa.html

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/now-intelligence/performance-analytics/c_Widgets.html

https://www.servicenow.com/docs/r/now-intelligence/performance-analytics/update-pa-scripts.html

If you find my answer useful, please mark it as Helpful and Correct. ‌‌‌‌😊

Regards,
Soham Tipnis
ServiceNow Developer || Technical Consultant
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/sohamtipnis10

[AndersBGS]

Hi @marloii 

Sure

Platform analytics is the new OOTB reporting capability from ServiceNow available for all ServiceNow instances.

Platform analytics is advanced reporting and analytics where calculation, data snapshots etc. can be done. Furthermore, this is a paid product.