Snowflake ETL Tools: Top 7 Options to Consider in 2024

Snowflake has restructured the data warehousing scenario with its cloud-based architecture. Businesses can easily scale their data storage and processing capabilities with this innovative approach. It eliminates the need for complex infrastructure management, resulting in streamlined operations.  

According to a recent Gartner survey, 85% of enterprises now use cloud-based data warehouses like Snowflake for their analytics needs. Unsurprisingly, businesses are already adopting Snowflake ETL tools to streamline their data management processes.  

In this blog, we will explore the top Snowflake ETL tools that help businesses extract, transform, and load their data efficiently into the Snowflake Data Platform and derive actionable insights. 

What is Snowflake ETL?

According to a study conducted by Forrester Consulting in 2023, organizations that adopted Snowflake ETL experienced a significant improvement in their analytics capabilities. Specifically, the study found that these organizations achieved a 45% reduction in data integration time and a 60% increase in the speed of generating insights compared to those using traditional ETL processes. Let’s discuss how the Snowflake ETL process works: 

1. Data Extraction with Snowflake 

The first step, extraction, involves collecting data from multiple sources. These sources can range from traditional databases to SaaS platforms and even unstructured data. Snowflake allows direct data ingestion from these sources into its staging area. This is possible through Snowflake’s support for various data formats like JSON, Avro, XML, Parquet, and more.  

The platform’s ability to handle semi-structured data simplifies the extraction process, as it eliminates the need for pre-processing or converting data into a specific format. 

2. Data Transformation with Snowflake 

Once data is in Snowflake, the next step is Transformation. This step is about converting the extracted data into a format or structure that is more suitable for analysis. Snowflake facilitates this process through its SQL interface, enabling users to perform complex transformations using familiar SQL queries. 

Snowflake’s unique architecture, which separates compute and storage, allows these transformations to occur in a highly efficient manner. Users can scale up or down the computational resources (warehouses) as needed, ensuring that transformations are both fast and cost-effective.

3. Data Loading with Snowflake 

The final step is Loading the transformed data into Snowflake’s storage layers for analysis and reporting. Snowflake’s architecture ensures that once data is loaded, it’s immediately available for querying.  

This is facilitated by the automatic handling of indexing and optimization, which removes the traditional administrative overhead associated with managing a data warehouse. 

What are Snowflake ETL Tools? 

Snowflake ETL tools are not a specific category of ETL tools. Instead, the term Snowflake ETL tools refers to using specialized tools, software solutions, and processes in conjunction with the Snowflake data platform for data extraction, transformation, and loading. 

1. Extract  

The first step in the Snowflake ETL process involves extracting data from multiple sources such as databases, cloud storage platforms, APIs, and streaming services. ETL tools for Snowflake provide built-in connectors and APIs that allow organizations to extract data from these sources efficiently. 

Various tools use different techniques for extracting data, such as incremental extraction that fetches only new or updated data since the previous extraction, and full extraction, which retrieves all the available data from the source. Some tools also offer delta extraction, which allows the extraction of only the changed data since the last extraction, thus optimizing the process and reducing resource usage. 

2. Transform 

Once the data is extracted, it undergoes transformation to meet the specific requirements of Snowflake data platform and the analytical use cases. Snowflake ETL tools offer a wide range of transformation capabilities, allowing organizations to tailor their data to suit their analytical needs. Transformations mostly include cleaning, filtering, aggregating, joining, and enriching the data to ensure its accuracy, consistency, and relevance. 

Snowflake ETL tools also assist in data mapping by providing functions to map source data fields to corresponding fields in the Snowflake data platform. This guarantees that data is accurately transferred and aligned with the designated schema within Snowflake, allowing for smooth integration and analysis. By offering intuitive mapping interfaces and features, these tools simplify the mapping process, enabling users to efficiently configure data mappings and maintain data integrity throughout the ETL workflow. 

3. Load 

Finally, the data is loaded into Snowflake database tables, where it can be stored, managed, and analyzed. Snowflake ETL tools provide mechanisms for loading data into Snowflake tables using different techniques, such as bulk and parallel loading. 

Why Incorporate a Third-Party Snowflake ETL Tool?

While Snowflake supports ETL processes natively, incorporating a third-party ETL tool for Snowflake offers several advantages: 

Automation: Many Snowflake ETL tools provide advanced automation capabilities, simplifying the scheduling and management of ETL pipelines. This reduces manual effort and increases efficiency. 

Pre-built Connectors: Third-party ETL tools for Snowflake often come with a wide range of pre-built connectors for various data sources and destinations, streamlining the integration process. 

Transformation Capabilities: Some tools offer powerful transformation capabilities, including visual data mapping and transformation logic, which can be more intuitive than coding SQL transformations manually. 

Monitoring and Error Handling: Snowflake ETL tools typically provide monitoring and error handling features, making it easier to manage the ETL process and ensure data quality. 

Security and Compliance: They often include built-in security features and compliance standards that help protect sensitive data and meet regulatory requirements.  

Benefits of Using Snowflake ETL Tools 

Snowflake ETL tools provide several benefits that help organizations effectively manage their data integration procedures, which in turn enables them to extract valuable insights from their data. 

Seamless Data Integration  

Snowflake readily accepts incoming data from cloud storage solutions, enabling organizations to integrate data from diverse sources seamlessly. For example, a retail company can effortlessly import sales data stored in cloud storage directly into Snowflake for analysis and reporting without the need for complex processes during data movement. 

 Flexible ETL Initiation 

Automation features such as Cloud Messaging and REST API endpoints in Snowflake enable continuous data loading and flexible ETL initiation, enhancing efficiency and coordination.  

For instance, a healthcare provider can automate the extraction of patient data from an external system using Snowflake’s Cloud Messaging feature, checking that the data is continuously loaded into Snowflake for real-time analytics and reporting. 

Simplified Integration  

Integration with existing applications and analytics tools is simplified through Snowflake’s REST API endpoints and intuitive web interface.  

For example, a marketing team can seamlessly connect Snowflake to their preferred analytics tool, using Snowflake’s REST API endpoints, enabling them to visualize and analyze data directly within their familiar analytics environment without requiring manual data exports or imports. 

Transparent Billing Model  

Snowflake’s transparent billing model separates compute and storage costs, enabling businesses to control spending based on their specific needs and usage patterns.  

For instance, a financial services firm can monitor and adjust their compute and storage resources in Snowflake to optimize costs based on fluctuating data processing requirements, making sure that they only pay for the resources they consume. 

Advanced Security Features  

Advanced security features such as encryption and authentication in Snowflake ensure data protection and compliance with industry regulations.  

For example, a government agency can encrypt sensitive citizen data stored in Snowflake to safeguard it from unauthorized access, while also implementing multi-factor authentication to ensure that only authorized users can access the data, thereby maintaining compliance with regulatory requirements. 

Regular Innovation  

Snowflake’s commitment to innovation and regularly adding advanced features provide users with access to cutting-edge capabilities for enhanced data analytics and insights.  

For instance, Snowflake regularly releases updates and enhancements to its platform, such as new data processing algorithms and integrations with emerging technologies, empowering organizations to stay ahead of the curve and leverage the latest advancements in data analytics. 

7 Best Snowflake ETL Tools  

The following ETL tools for Snowflake are popular for meeting the data requirements of businesses, particularly those utilizing the Snowflake data warehouse. 

1. Astera  

Astera is a comprehensive data management platform designed to simplify and streamline enterprise data operations, with a strong focus on compatibility and integration with multiple databases, data warehouses, and cloud platforms, including Snowflake.  

With its unified approach to data management and extensive features, Astera empowers businesses to utilize Snowflake for efficient data processing and analytics. 

Key Features of Astera Data Stack

• You can connect natively to a wide range of data sources and destinations, both on-premises and in the cloud, ensuring flexibility in your data integration efforts. 
• Transform and shape your data according to your business needs using pre-built transformations and functions without writing any code. 
• Automate data quality management to ensure only high-quality data reaches your data warehouses, cleansing, de-duplicating, and validating data based on your business rules. 

• Seamlessly automate and orchestrate your data integration workflows, reducing manual intervention and streamlining operations. 
• Use the visual drag-and-drop interface to easily and quickly build ETL and ELT pipelines, enabling you to set up data pipelines within minutes. 
• Leverage AI-powered data extraction capabilities to pull data from unstructured sources like PDFs, text files, and spreadsheets, enhancing your data collection process. 
• Access built-in connectors for a variety of file formats, databases, cloud storage options, data warehouses including Snowflake, and data lakes, as well as support for various applications through native and custom connectors, broadening your integration capabilities. 
• Benefit from advanced transformations, an AI-powered auto mapper for efficient field mapping, and powerful data quality features to cleanse and ensure the integrity of your data, all through simple drag-and-drop operations in the data flow designer.  

2. Matillion  

Matillion is an ETL tool, offering seamless integration with platforms like Amazon Redshift, Google BigQuery, and Snowflake. It provides data transformation capabilities and orchestration for data loading. 

Pros 

• With Matillion ETL, users can perform complex data transformations using custom SQL or by creating transformation components via an intuitive GUI. 
• Matillion supports multiple data sources including databases, CRM platforms, ERPs, and more.  
• Customer support is available through online ticketing and phone assistance, ensuring prompt assistance whenever you need it. 

Cons  

• Setting up some connections can be complex, and upgrades often necessitate creating a backup instance, complicating the process further. 
• The lack of direct documentation for new features forces you to search through FAQs or discover them independently, hindering your ease of use.  
• It lacks pre-made templates, so users must start building everything from scratch, which can be time-consuming. 

3. Stitch  

Stitch is a cloud based ETL platform that aims to simplify data ingestion from various SaaS applications and databases into data warehouses and data lakes. Stitch also offers solutions for non-technical teams to quickly set up data pipelines. 

Pros 

• Users can define transformations required for compatibility with Snowflake destinations, such as denesting data and translating data types, using Python, Java, SQL, or a graphical user interface. 
• The platform allows users to schedule data loading at predefined times, maintaining timely updates of tables within Snowflake. 

• Users can add new data sources to the system autonomously. 

Cons

• It offers limited data transformation capabilities and requires a Singer tap for on-premises SQL Server support, restricting flexibility. 
• It supports a restricted number of destinations, capped at one, three, or five, depending on the subscription tier, limiting scalability.  
• Replication of data from a single source to multiple destinations is difficult with Stich.  

4. Apache Airflow  

Apache Airflow is a widely used open-source ETL tool for Snowflake, offering powerful capabilities for monitoring, scheduling, and managing workflows through a web application interface.  

Pros 

• DAG visualizations and task trees offer you insights into the logical flow of your workflows, enabling you to monitor and manage your pipelines effectively. 
• The open-source nature of Apache Airflow allows you to leverage a vast community and extensive documentation for setup, troubleshooting, and support. 
• You can enhance your Airflow workflows with custom functionality using Python, enabling seamless integration with Snowflake and other systems. 

Cons  

• Requires extensive user setup and technical expertise, making it challenging for a non-technical user. 
• Mandates Python knowledge for creating data pipelines in Airflow, limiting accessibility if users lack programming skills.  
• It’s difficult to modify pipelines once they’re created. 

5. Integrate.io 

Integrate.io is a data integration tool designed to provide an integration layer for data warehouses, including Snowflake. Offering a no-code data pipeline platform, Integrate.io supports various data integration techniques such as ETL, ELT, CDC, and Reverse ETL.  

Pros 

• Integrate.io offers the ELT data replication functionality, enabling real-time data synchronization with updates as recent as 60 seconds ago. 
• The drag-and-drop, no-code interface simplifies the process to define transformations and connect data sources, making it accessible to users who have varying levels of technical expertise. 

• Integrate.io provides a support team to assist users with any queries or issues they may encounter during implementation and operation.  

Cons  

• Error messages during setup may be unclear for users, making it difficult to diagnose and fix issues without detailed guidance. 
• The software requires development experience for users to use effectively, posing challenges especially if they are a beginner.  
• As the user creates additional pipelines or increases their complexity, the interface becomes more complicated 

6. Fivetran 

Fivetran allows users to replicate applications, databases, events, and files into high-performance cloud warehouses, including Snowflake. 

Pros 

• Offers easy setup and automated data pipelines that require minimal maintenance, enabling users to focus on analytics. 
• Supports SQL modeling with defined schemas and Entity-Relationship Diagrams (ERDs). 
• Fivetran can be run in fully managed, hybrid, or self-hosted environments, accommodating different organizational needs and policies.  

Cons

• Lacks support for Kinesis stream as a data source and serverless Aurora, limiting its applicability for specific use cases. 
• Does not support “before delete” triggers, restricting flexibility in data management and automation.  
• It’s tricky to determine the final cost of the platform. 

7. StreamSets 

StreamSets is a cloud-first, fully managed ETL tool that allows users to build enhanced data ingestion pipelines for continuous data delivery required for analytics, including Snowflake.  

Pros  

• Provides an intuitive user experience with a drag-and-drop GUI for performing data transformations before loading into Snowflake. 
• Allows to add new data sources and write custom data processors in JavaScript, Groovy, Scala, etc., providing users with flexibility and extensibility in data processing. 

• Offers extensive product and operational documentation on its website, along with customer support through online ticketing and call-based assistance.  

Cons

• Logging may seem complicated and copying the same pipeline to a different server often leads to library dependency issues, complicating the deployment process. 
• Establishing connectivity between a local Docker instance and external applications can be challenging, hindering seamless integration.  
• When trying to diagnose issues, it can be challenging to sift through complex logging and error messages. 

Choosing the Right Snowflake ETL Tool 

When choosing a Snowflake ETL tool, several factors and features should be considered to ensure the tool meets the specific requirements: 

Paid or Open Source  

When deciding on a Snowflake ETL tool, the first thing to think about is whether to pay for it or use a free, open-source option. Paid tools usually come with more features and support. Open-source tools are free and can be a good choice for those just starting out with Snowflake ETL. 

Ease of use 

Ease of use is another important factor to consider. Some Snowflake ETL tools are made for tech experts, while others are designed for people with less technical know-how. Picking a tool that matches the team’s skill level can make setting up data warehouse quicker and easier. 

Ability to move Data  

When an organization uses a variety of data sources, it is important to select a Snowflake ETL tool that can handle data from different sources. Certain tools work well with specific types of data, while others can manage multiple sources. Selecting a tool that supports diverse data sources guarantees comprehensive data integration, which enables better data analysis. 

Option for Adding/Modifying Data Sources  

As the organization grows, it should look for a Snowflake ETL tool that enables easy addition and modification of data sources. This flexibility ensures that the data warehouse can adapt to the changing needs of the organization over time. 

Ability to transform the Data 

It is imperative to find the right tool that can handle specific transformation needs. The Snowflake ETL tools offer a wide range of options, making it easy to tailor the data to suit specific analytical needs.  

A tool with sturdy data transformation capabilities can deliver accurate insights and enable businesses to make informed decisions.   

Pricing 

When selecting an ETL tool, businesses must consider the cost of the tool. While some ETL tools are available for free, others come with a price tag. To manage financial resources effectively while still securing necessary ETL functionalities, businesses should choose a tool that fits their budget and provides the features they require.  

Product documentation 

When a user is trying to implement a new tool, one of the most important factors that can impact their success is the quality of the documentation available. Tools that have clear and helpful documentation make it easier for users to get started quickly, reducing the time needed to learn how to use them. 

 Customer support 

When evaluating a Snowflake ETL tool, it’s important to consider the quality of customer support. Reliable support is key in resolving any issues while using the tool.  

Therefore, it’s essential to look for a tool with a reputable and responsive customer support team that can help resolve any problems promptly. This ensures that operations can continue without any interruption and data remains protected.  

Concluding Words  

The increasing reliance on cloud-based data warehouses like Snowflake highlights the importance of effective ETL tools. Among the leading solutions, Astera stands out for its user-friendly interface and advanced features.  

Businesses can explore Astera’s data integration capabilities firsthand with a complimentary 14-day trial. Experience how Astera streamlines data processes, enabling efficient insight extraction.  

Explore Astera today and schedule a demo to enhance your data management journey.