The Macabacus Alternative for Consultants
If you need consulting charts and AI slides without banking-grade Excel tools, Deckary delivers the features you actually use—at 40% less cost.
TL;DR: Macabacus excels at Excel modeling, auditing, and enterprise brand compliance but lacks AI slide generation and is overkill for non-finance teams. Deckary offers consulting-focused with AI Slide Builder, Mekko charts, and 40% lower cost. Choose Macabacus if you build complex financial models daily and need Excel auditing. Choose Deckary if you're a consultant who needs charts, shortcuts, and AI slides without Excel complexity.
No credit card required. 14-day free trial.
Our users work at companies like
Deckary helps consulting & industry firms to build better presentations
How Deckary compares
Consulting-focused features vs. banking-focused tools
| Feature | Deckary | Macabacus |
|---|---|---|
| Charting | ||
| Waterfall charts | ||
| Mekko (Marimekko) charts | Limited | |
| Gantt charts | ||
| Excel linking | ||
| Stacked bar charts | ||
| AI & Productivity | ||
| AI Slide Builder | ||
| AI text polish | Limited | |
| Consulting templates | Enterprise only | |
| Keyboard shortcuts | 20+ PowerPoint | 100+ Excel-focused |
| 1000+ icons & flags | 22M+ logos only | |
| Use Case Fit | ||
| Consulting slide building | Optimized | Limited |
| Financial modeling | Basic | Best-in-class |
| Excel auditing | ||
| Brand compliance | ||
Feature comparison based on publicly available information as of March 2026. Verify current features at Macabacus.
With user, you save $81/yr vs Macabacus — and get AI slides, Mekko charts & consulting focus
*Based on Macabacus list price as of March 2026. Verify current pricing at macabacus.com.
Pricing comparison
Transparent pricing vs Macabacus's approach
| Deckary | Macabacus | |
|---|---|---|
| Free tier | 14-day trial | Yes |
| Starting price | From $9/mo | $200/yr |
| Premium tier | From $15/mo | Custom |
| Lifetime option | $199 once | Not available |
| Enterprise | Custom | Custom |
*Macabacus: Annual subscription, volume discounts available, free Lite version with limited features
Pricing accurate as of March 2026. Competitor pricing may change — verify at macabacus.com.
What consultants say
Professionals who chose Deckary over Macabacus
I don't build Excel models daily—I build decks. Deckary fits how consultants actually work.
Brian
Strategy Consultant
I didn't need a heavy Excel-focused tool. Deckary gives me the charts and shortcuts I actually use.
Lauren
Management Consultant
The AI Slide Builder sold me. I hadn't seen anything like it in other tools.
Michael
Senior Associate
I needed better Mekko chart support. Deckary delivered exactly what I was looking for.
Priya
Principal Consultant
Left banking for consulting. Don't need Excel auditing anymore—just need good charts.
Christopher
Strategy Manager
Saved $80/year and got features I actually use. Win-win.
Sarah
Independent Consultant
I don't build Excel models daily—I build decks. Deckary fits how consultants actually work.
Brian
Strategy Consultant
I didn't need a heavy Excel-focused tool. Deckary gives me the charts and shortcuts I actually use.
Lauren
Management Consultant
The AI Slide Builder sold me. I hadn't seen anything like it in other tools.
Michael
Senior Associate
I needed better Mekko chart support. Deckary delivered exactly what I was looking for.
Priya
Principal Consultant
Left banking for consulting. Don't need Excel auditing anymore—just need good charts.
Christopher
Strategy Manager
Saved $80/year and got features I actually use. Win-win.
Sarah
Independent Consultant
I don't build Excel models daily—I build decks. Deckary fits how consultants actually work.
Brian
Strategy Consultant
I didn't need a heavy Excel-focused tool. Deckary gives me the charts and shortcuts I actually use.
Lauren
Management Consultant
The AI Slide Builder sold me. I hadn't seen anything like it in other tools.
Michael
Senior Associate
I needed better Mekko chart support. Deckary delivered exactly what I was looking for.
Priya
Principal Consultant
Left banking for consulting. Don't need Excel auditing anymore—just need good charts.
Christopher
Strategy Manager
Saved $80/year and got features I actually use. Win-win.
Sarah
Independent Consultant
I don't build Excel models daily—I build decks. Deckary fits how consultants actually work.
Brian
Strategy Consultant
I didn't need a heavy Excel-focused tool. Deckary gives me the charts and shortcuts I actually use.
Lauren
Management Consultant
The AI Slide Builder sold me. I hadn't seen anything like it in other tools.
Michael
Senior Associate
I needed better Mekko chart support. Deckary delivered exactly what I was looking for.
Priya
Principal Consultant
Left banking for consulting. Don't need Excel auditing anymore—just need good charts.
Christopher
Strategy Manager
Saved $80/year and got features I actually use. Win-win.
Sarah
Independent Consultant
Why consultants choose Deckary over Macabacus
The right tool for how you actually work
All the charting features you need
Create consulting-grade charts in minutes, not hours
Waterfall Charts
Create bridge charts with automatic totals, subtotals, and connecting lines. Perfect for financial bridges and variance analysis.
Mekko Charts
Build Marimekko charts for market sizing and share-of-wallet analysis. Variable-width bars show both size and composition.
Gantt Charts
Project timelines with task bars, milestones, dependencies, and swimlanes. Link to Excel for dynamic updates.
Excel Linking
Charts link directly to Excel. Update your data, and the chart updates automatically. No manual re-work.
The honest comparison
Macabacus is the gold standard for investment banking productivity. It's trusted by 80,000+ professionals at 3,000+ firms, including leading banks, PE firms, and Fortune 500 companies. If you build complex financial models in Excel daily, Macabacus is excellent.
Where Macabacus wins: Excel auditing and error detection. Industry-leading Excel-PowerPoint linking. 22M+ logo library for pitch books. Enterprise brand compliance and shared libraries. 100+ Excel shortcuts for financial modeling.
Where Deckary wins: AI Slide Builder for generating consulting slides from text. Full Mekko and Gantt chart support. 40% lower price ($119/year vs $200/year). Consulting-focused templates and workflows. PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts for slide building.
The bottom line: Macabacus is built for investment bankers who live in Excel. Deckary is built for consultants who live in PowerPoint. If you spend more time on financial models than slides, Macabacus fits. If you spend more time building decks than models, Deckary is the better choice.
Choose Macabacus if you:
- • Investment bankers building financial models and pitch books
- • Private equity and venture capital professionals
- • FP&A teams needing Excel auditing and error detection
- • Enterprise firms requiring brand compliance tools
- • Teams that rely heavily on Excel-to-PowerPoint linking
Choose Deckary if you:
- • Strategy consultants who don't build complex Excel models
- • Individuals paying out of pocket
- • Teams who want AI slide generation
- • Occasional presentation builders (weekly/monthly use)
- • Mac-first users who primarily work in PowerPoint
Switching from Macabacus
What transfers seamlessly
- Existing PowerPoint files work immediately
- No data migration needed—Deckary is additive
- Both add-ins can run simultaneously
What needs adjustment
- •Different keyboard shortcut system
- •Deckary's chart workflow differs from Quick Charts
- •New icon and template libraries to explore
Our recommendation: Install Deckary alongside Macabacus during your 14-day trial. Use Deckary for charting and slides, Macabacus for Excel modeling if needed.
Ready to try the consulting-focused alternative?
Deckary gives you the charts, shortcuts, and AI features consultants actually need—without paying for banking tools you won't use.
Also Compare
Gantt charts & timelines
Marimekko & waterfall charts
AI slide generation
AI presentations
Web-based AI slides
Design platform AI slides
Template library
Productivity add-in
AI PowerPoint add-in
Google Slides AI tool
AI presentation generator
AI workspace & slides
Microsoft AI for PowerPoint
Shortcuts & formatting
General AI agent for slides
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about choosing between Deckary and Macabacus