Microsoft Power BI 2026: Benefits, Features & Pricing

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Overview
Screenshots
Pricing and Plans
Features
Integrations
User Reviews
Popular Comparisons

Overview

Microsoft Power BI

4.6

(1865)

Pricing

Starting at $10.00 per month

About Microsoft Power BI

Microsoft Power BI is a comprehensive data visualization tool that forms part of the Power Platform suite of products. Power BI enables users to connect to and visualize data from various sources, seamlessly integrating visualizations into everyday applications. With a focus on uncovering valuable insights and translating them into actionable outcomes, Power BI offers a range of features and capabilities to support data-driven decision-making across organizations.

One of the key strengths of Power BI lies in its ability to leverage advanced data-analysis tools, artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities, and a user-friendly report-creation interface. Users can easily turn their raw data into visually appealing charts, graphs, and reports to communicate insights effectively. The platform also facilitates the creation of datasets from diverse data sources, allowing organizations to establish a single source of truth within the OneLake data hub.

Power BI empowers users to make informed decisions by embedding insights directly into the applications they use daily, such as those within the Microsoft 365 suite. By activating Microsoft Fabric within the Power BI experience, organizations...

can reshape how they access, manage, and act on data. The platform offers enterprise-grade ingestion and semantic modeling to handle large datasets and scale across thousands of users seamlessly. Sharing insights generated through Power BI is effortless, as reports can be embedded and distributed within various Microsoft services like Teams, PowerPoint, Excel, and the Power Platform. Additionally, Power BI incorporates artificial intelligence features to find patterns in data, generate reports instantly, and deliver answers promptly, enhancing productivity and decision-making efficiency. To ensure data governance, security, and compliance, Power BI provides robust features that meet regulatory requirements and offer end-to-end visibility into data management. Using conversational language, users can create reports, generate DAX calculations, and derive answers swiftly, simplifying the data exploration process. The platform also allows open access for users without paid licenses to interact with reports and access Microsoft Fabric workloads. Power BI supports self-service analytics, enabling users to create and publish reports effortlessly, fostering a culture of data-driven decision-making within organizations. Users can license individual users with modern analytics capabilities for publishing reports and accessing content. By integrating Power BI Pro with other Microsoft 365 applications, users can leverage industry-leading security features at a competitive price point. For those interested in exploring the capabilities of Power BI, a free account option is available for creating interactive reports with visual analytics features. Additionally, Power BI Desktop offers a free application for connecting, modeling, and visualizing data through a user-friendly report canvas with a wide range of visuals. Users can also sign up for a free trial of the Microsoft Fabric suite to access the full range of services, including Power BI offerings. Power BI caters to a wide range of business needs, allowing organizations to establish a governed source of truth, combine enterprise-scale and self-service BI for insights, seamlessly embed data experiences within applications, empower users with data exploration capabilities, and kickstart their data journey with AI-generated reports and templates. The platform supports reducing time-to-market by customizing BI reports for embedding in applications and branding as your own. In terms of industry recognition, Microsoft Power BI has been lauded in the 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Analytics and Business Intelligence Platforms for its Ability to Execute and Completeness of Vision. Additionally, independent studies like The Total Economic ImpactTM showcase the cost savings and business benefits enabled by Microsoft Fabric, including a significant return on investment over a three-year period. Power BI serves as a valuable tool for organizations looking to extract meaningful insights from their data, foster a data-driven culture, and drive innovation across all levels. With its intuitive interface, advanced analytics capabilities, seamless integration with Microsoft applications, and robust security features, Power BI stands as a prominent solution for businesses seeking to leverage their data effectively for informed decision-making and business growth.

Microsoft Power BI Screenshots

Microsoft Power BI Pricing and Plans

Starting price: $10.00 per month

Free Trial

Free Version

Power BI in Microsoft Fabric free account

$0.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

Create reports with Power BI Desktop5
Data security and encryption

Power BI Pro

$10.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

1 GB Model Size Limit
AI Visuals
Create Reports and Visualizations
Data Security and Encryption
Embed Apis and Controls
Mobile App Access
Publish Reports
Refresh Rate - 8/Day
Create Power BI Pro workspaces
Share datasets, dashboards, and reports

Power BI Premium - Per User

$20.00

per user, per month

Plan includes:

100 GB Model Size Limit
Advanced AI
AI Visuals
Application Lifecycle Management
Create Reports and Visualizations
Dataflows
Data Security and Encryption
Embed Apis and Controls
Mobile App Access
Paginated (RDL) Reports

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Microsoft Power BI Features

Popular features found in Data Visualization
Data Connectors
Data Import/Export
Drag & Drop
Multiple Data Sources
Relational Display
Scheduled/Automated Reports
Search/Filter
Third-Party Integrations
Visual Analytics
More features of Microsoft Power BI
Activity Dashboard
Ad hoc Analysis
Ad hoc Query
Ad hoc Reporting
AI/Machine Learning
API
Collaboration Tools
Customizable Dashboard
Customizable Reports
Dashboard
Dashboard Creation
Data Blending
Data Cleansing
Data Discovery
Data Management
Data Synchronization
Data Transformation
Data Visualization
Geographic Maps
High Volume Processing
Integration into Third Party Applications
Interactive Reports
KPI Monitoring
Mobile Access
Natural Language Search
Real-Time Analytics
Real-Time Reporting
Real-Time Updates
Reporting/Analytics
Reporting & Statistics
Self-service Analytics
Self Service Data Preparation
Single Page View

Microsoft Power BI Integrations

Microsoft Excel

Integration rated 4.7 from 223 reviews

Microsoft 365

Integration rated 4.7 from 94 reviews

Microsoft SQL Server

Integration rated 4.6 from 37 reviews

Salesforce Sales Cloud

Integration rated 4.4 from 24 reviews

Microsoft SharePoint

Integration rated 4.5 from 18 reviews

Microsoft Teams

Integration rated 4.5 from 15 reviews

See all 11 integrations

Microsoft Power BI User Reviews

Overall Rating

4.6

Ratings Breakdown

63%

32%

Secondary Ratings

Ease of Use

4.1

Value for money

4.4

Customer support

4.2

Functionality

4.5

Mauro F.

Verified reviewer

Automotive

10000+ employees

Used monthly for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed December 2024

Data from power BI

I use to make charts to understand volumes, timelines and get important data to conduct te manegement of proje

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

The easy way to build visible smart charts, starting from the excel file.

Cons:

The update function with excel files could be easier.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

It´s more easy to build dashboards with power BI

Ayobami S.

Verified reviewer

Financial Services

51-200 employees

Used weekly for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed June 2025

Powerful Business Intelligence for Data-Driven Teams

Power BI has made data insights more accessible, helped us make faster decisions, and reduced manual reporting.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

I love the rich visualizations, ease of data integration, and ability to share interactive reports with teams.

Cons:

There are some advanced features require Power BI Pro or Premium, and DAX formulas can have a learning curve.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

We needed more advanced modeling, better dashboard customization, and tighter integration with Microsoft tools.

Joe C.

Verified reviewer

Warehousing

51-200 employees

Used weekly for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed November 2023

Get Awesome Looking Dashboards and reports.

Previously 4

Overall its a great tool to use in your arsenal if you great at analytics and want to impress with dashboards and visuals. Takes some time to getting used to, but there's tons of community support online.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Previously 3

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Previously 3

Pros:

After using many other reporting tools, Power BI stands because it does a fantastic job of having powerful analytics from multiple data sources displayed using beautiful data visualization components.

Cons:

Great for more simple reports and data visualization but not designed for heavy data processing (dependent on data source). Also huge learning curve to make things look the way you want them to look.

Reasons for choosing Microsoft Power BI

I still use both, but I use Power BI mostly for dashboards and visuals

Verified

Reviewer

Higher Education

5001-10000 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed January 2025

Power BI: Immersive BI Platform Experience in Review

Overall the experience with Microsoft Power BI has gone well. After learning the flow of development and how to transform/model data, a real hands-on experience becomes easier to navigate. Power BI is also connected to the Office 365 suite, so sharing and automating reports is a breeze.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Of the well-known BI platforms, I think Power BI excels in connecting the user to an immersive experience through data modeling, transformation, and visualization within the Microsoft environment.

Cons:

I think the learning curve for Power BI is steep, mostly because of the ability to utilize DAX and M-language well. There are built-in low-code/no-code alternatives, but to do some extraordinary visualizations, you must have some basic understanding of DAX.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

One of our strategic goals as an organization was to re-imagine our analytics enablement and SAS Visual Analytics did not meet some of the technical requirements we thought were important as we mature our analytics program.

Johnathan T.

Verified reviewer

Farming

51-200 employees

Used daily for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed June 2025

PBI Review

Powerful tool for reporting and analytics; intuitive and improves data clarity. Overall experience is amazing.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Power BI is easy to use, great visuals, and integrates well with Microsoft tools and data sources. Love it.

Cons:

Limited flexibility in formatting; performance can lag with large datasets or complex models. That load time is bad with large models.

Reasons for choosing Microsoft Power BI

We have Microsoft Office 365 suite, and no salesforce infrastructure.

Shreyas K.

Verified reviewer

Law Practice

201-500 employees

Used daily for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed April 2025

Amazing software for data visualization

Overall I am very happy with this product. Power BI has helped the team tremendously to streamline operations and minimize decision making time with quick reporting functionality.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

The quick and dynamic way of data visualization and the versatility of data sourcing from various inputs.

Cons:

It is lagging at times, especially when the screen is being share on a MS Teams call. Other than that I like all other features.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

The advanced features of Power BI and the ability to connect datasets from a variety of input sources was crucial for our business processes.

Daniel L.

Verified reviewer

Automotive

1001-5000 employees

Used weekly for more than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed April 2025

Very good system to share nice looking dashboard and report in a controlable way

Good experience. We can now share reports and dashborads easily. Not a flat experience like using SSRS (SQL reporting service) or Excel.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Very good system to share dashboard and report in a controlable way.

Cons:

Not that easy to learn by yourself unless you are a very good learner.

Reasons for choosing Microsoft Power BI

Possibility to have really nice looking dashboard and users can play with filters and data and PowerBI is fully integrated to MS tools.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

We can now create nice looking and profesionnal dashboard. Better than excel or Crystal report.

Mitchell D.

Verified reviewer

Health, Wellness and Fitness

51-200 employees

Used daily for less than 6 months

Review source

Reviewed May 2025

incredible program for creating figures

amazing experience, this software made it so seemless to create figures for data analysis

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

This software is so helpful when creating charts or diagrams for presentation purposes

Cons:

it can be difficult to understand how to load data in accordingly and change the pre determined formulas

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

PowerBI is more useful for creating figures easily and analyzing data quickly

Jordan M.

Verified reviewer

Electrical/ Electronic Manufacturing

51-200 employees

Used monthly for less than 2 years

Review source

Reviewed June 2025

Powerful Data Visualization Tool

Microsoft Power BI is a well-designed and powerful tool for visualizing your data. Microsoft does a great job with providing professional tools for business.

Ratings Breakdown

Ease of use

Value for money

Customer support

Functionality

Pros:

Power BI offers great dashboards that help better visualize and filter your data. It is a great upgrade if you are used to taking Excel exports and creating pivot tables each time you want to manipulate data.

Cons:

Power BI can be a bit hard to learn when first starting. We did a couple of training courses which helped, but ideally you need to get a good use case with actual data you can spin into a report.

Reasons for switching to Microsoft Power BI

Power BI takes the best of Excel and upgrades it for superior data analysis and visualization.