Satellite and ground-based retrievals of a number of (low) cloud characteristics are compared in this paper in order to assess the performance of the techniques and identify potential synergies. Centred on the COST720 International Comparison Campaign for Temperature, hUmidity and Cloud profiling (TUC), four cases with different meteorological situations are analysed in detail. Parameter agreement (for cloud presence, liquid water path, cloud geometrical thickness and cloud top temperature) is good in general. It is shown that satellite retrievals of liquid water path and cloud thickness could be improved using liquid water content derived from ground-based measurements, while ground-based retrievals can profit from the spatial component in satellite data. Taken together, the combination of instruments and techniques presented in this paper allows for a detailed assessment of complex cloudy atmospheres.