Here is a breakdown of the three heavy hitters in the APEX reporting world:
1. Interactive Reports (IR)
This is the "gold standard" for internal business applications. It gives the end-user a massive amount of power to customize their view without writing any code.
Best for: Power users who need to filter, sort, pivot, and create charts on the fly.
Key Features: Users can save their own "Private Reports," subscribe to emails, and export data to CSV/PDF.
Developer Effort: Low. You write the SQL; APEX handles the rest.
example
Simple Report - how to create Interactive report
Report with Charts - Interactive report with Charts
2. Interactive Grid (IG)
Think of this as a mix between a spreadsheet and a database table. It’s the most modern reporting tool in APEX.
Best for: Scenarios where you need to edit data directly in the report (multi-row editing) or use fixed headers/columns.
Key Features: Scrollable data (no pagination needed), frozen columns, and built-in CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) operations.
Note: It’s more complex to customize with JavaScript than a standard Interactive Report.
3. Classic Reports
The "old reliable." It’s a straightforward HTML table.
Best for: Simple displays, mobile views, or when you need total control over the HTML layout using Report Templates.
Key Features: High performance, supports "Cards" or "Timeline" layouts, and very lightweight.
Quick Comparison Table
| Feature | Classic Report | Interactive Report | Interactive Grid |
| End-User Filtering | Limited | Extensive | Extensive |
| Editable | No | No | Yes |
| Custom HTML | Easy | Difficult | Difficult |
| Built-in Charting | No | Yes | Yes |
| Performance | Fastest | Fast | Moderate |
Which one should you use?
Need to edit multiple rows at once? → Interactive Grid.
Need to give users analytical tools (Pivots/Filters)? → Interactive Report.
Need a custom look (like a product catalog or list)? → Classic Report with a Template.
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