Microsoft Power BI Reviews

Name: Microsoft Power BI
Brand: Microsoft
Rating: 4.0 (319 reviews)

Vendor: Microsoft

4.0 out of 5

319 reviews
93% willing to recommend

13K followers

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What is Microsoft Power BI?

Microsoft Power BI is a powerful tool for data analysis and visualization. This tool stands out for its ability to merge and analyze data from various sources. Widely adopted across different industries and departments, Power BI is instrumental in creating visually appealing dashboards and generating insightful business intelligence reports. Its intuitive interface, robust visualization capabilities, and seamless integration with other Microsoft applications empower users to easily create interactive reports and gain valuable insights.

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Microsoft Power BI is the #1 ranked solution in top Business Intelligence Tools and top Reporting Tools. PeerSpot users give Microsoft Power BI an average rating of 8.0 out of 10. Microsoft Power BI is most commonly compared to Tableau: Microsoft Power BI vs Tableau. Microsoft Power BI is popular among the midsize enterprise segment, accounting for 49% of users researching this solution on PeerSpot. The top industry researching this solution are professionals from a educational organization, accounting for 43% of all views.

Helped 832,891 peers since 2012

Featured reviews

James Balbach

Executive Director, Decision Support at Community Health Network

Power BI is a general-use visualization system. I can express the performance of our network through high-level key performance indicators. It allows me to show detailed improvements in quality and safety and patient experience. I create improvement dashboards for task forces and work teams. I have built analytic dashboards that guide analytics, enabling research and dataset manipulation.

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Shoury Priyanshu

Senior Manager, Strategy & Consulting at Viacom18 Media Pvt Ltd

One of the key factors why I use Power BI is because it's very flexible with other Microsoft tools. The entire ETL process is easy and supports many databases, allowing data pipelines from multiple sources to be gathered in one place for visualization. This is the key aspect I like about it.

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PedroNavarro

BI Development & Validation Manager at JT International SA

If you try to have a big enterprise data model, it doesn't scale so well. You wouldn't get results similar to some of the other on-premises tools. In terms of its users, I don't know the exact number, but we have about 10,000 to 20,000 users. Its usage is increasing.

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Microsoft Power BI mindshare

Product category:

As of February 2025, the mindshare of Microsoft Power BI in the BI (Business Intelligence) Tools category stands at 21.4%, down from 22.6% compared to the previous year, according to calculations based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

BI (Business Intelligence) Tools

PeerAnalyst reports

Type	Title	Date
Category	BI (Business Intelligence) Tools	Feb 11, 2025	Download
Product	Reviews, tips, and advice from real users	Feb 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	Microsoft Power BI vs Tableau	Feb 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	Microsoft Power BI vs Amazon QuickSight	Feb 11, 2025	Download
Comparison	Microsoft Power BI vs Oracle OBIEE	Feb 11, 2025	Download

Title	Rating	Mindshare	Recommending
Tableau	4.2	18.2%	89%	295 interviews Add to research
Teradata	4.1	0.8%	87%	76 interviews Add to research

Valuable Features

Power BI excels in data integration and visualization, offering seamless integration with Microsoft products. Users appreciate ease of use, customizable visualizations, and drag-and-drop functionality. It provides powerful self-service analytics, allowing users to create interactive reports and dashboards without needing extensive technical knowledge. The tool supports a wide range of data sources, real-time data processing, and AI capabilities. Additionally, Power BI is praised for its affordability, user-friendly interface, and robust community support.

"Power BI allows me to show detailed improvements in quality and safety and patient experience."
"Power BI is a general-use visualization system. I can express the performance of our network through high-level key performance indicators."
"The ROI is high for small teams or basic use cases with limited datasets."

Room for Improvement

Microsoft Power BI faces challenges such as limited real-time data integration and inadequate customizability in visualizations, often lagging behind rivals like Tableau. Users report issues with its user interface, slow performance when handling large datasets, and a complex learning curve for non-technical individuals. Pricing remains a concern, with licensing perceived as expensive. Enhanced data source connectivity and improved integration with non-Microsoft products are necessary, while real-time updates and error messaging need refinement. Additionally, its mobile capabilities require significant enhancement.

"It is not leading the charge on scalability, but it meets expectations."
"Visualization systems are still relatively young."
"Real-time data integration is an area for improvement. Although I've worked on several solutions involving real-time integration, it's not very user-friendly and often lags, especially with over a million data rows."

ROI

Companies report high returns from Microsoft Power BI due to time savings and increased efficiency. It is a cost-effective tool that has led to improved reporting and analytics. The cost savings help justify the investment, with many businesses seeing returns quickly. Power BI's ease of use, scalability, and accessibility are praised. Significant data insights and reduced manual work have positively impacted operations, making it a strategic choice for small teams and larger organizations alike.

Pricing

Enterprise users perceive the cost of Microsoft Power BI as affordable with pricing tiers suiting diverse user needs. Basic version is free, while Pro costs around $10 per user monthly, offering extensive features. Premium licenses, ideal for larger enterprises, start at $5,000 monthly or $20 per user. Many users highlight its competitive pricing compared to alternatives like Tableau. Licensing offers flexibility, allowing organizations to manage costs based on user count and specific requirements.

"The solution's costs are quite reasonable given the range of features provided."
"I rate the product pricing a ten."
"Downloading Power BI Desktop is free."

Popular Use Cases

Organizations primarily use Microsoft Power BI for data visualization and analytics, creating dashboards, and producing detailed reports. It facilitates budget analysis, financial reporting, healthcare analysis, and management of P&L and revenue logistics. It supports enterprise-level reporting, project analytics, and data integration, serving diverse sectors like health, finance, IT, and education. Users appreciate its self-service capabilities, cloud accessibility, and powerful analytics, allowing them to consolidate data and generate actionable insights across various departments.

Service and Support

Microsoft Power BI customer service is mostly praised by users for its responsiveness and quality, with ratings often exceeding 8 out of 10. Technical support receives varied feedback; some find it knowledgeable and responsive, while others experience delays and inconsistent communication. Many rely on the extensive community support and resources available online. Users appreciate Microsoft's regional and community-based support options but note that accessing specific change requests can be challenging due to Microsoft's scale.

Deployment

Microsoft Power BI's initial setup is generally straightforward, with ease experienced by those familiar with Microsoft tools. Many appreciate its cloud deployment and quick installation process. Challenges occur with complex configurations, data source integration, or lack of prior knowledge. Training and research alleviate difficulties, with numerous resources available for guidance. Users often find setup intuitive, benefiting from Power BI's familiar interface for those with Excel or SQL knowledge. Complex features may require expert assistance.

Scalability

Microsoft Power BI is generally considered scalable by users, capable of handling large numbers of users and extensive data sets. Users report good performance and integration, particularly within Microsoft environments. Some challenges exist with certain data sizes and data sources, occasionally requiring vertical scaling or adjustments. The tool's cloud-based nature and frequent updates contribute to its scalability, though some users note licensing complexities and pricing considerations. Scenarios may vary based on specific use cases and organizational needs.

Stability

Microsoft Power BI exhibits strong stability, being reliable for most users. Occasional instability arises with large datasets or real-time processing, but updates have improved performance over time. Many users appreciate its reliability, mentioning minor slowdowns rather than critical failures. Some concerns about integration and data refresh exist, yet the general consensus is positive, rating it highly in stability. It’s favored for its robustness, although connectivity and data handling present sporadic challenges.

These insights are based on the in-depth reviews provided by peers to help you make a better buying decision.

Download our Microsoft Power BI Buyer's Guide for additional reliable information.