Power BI is one of the most popular business intelligence tools on the market today, used by more than 5 million individuals and businesses. Those just starting with Power BI or small, medium, large, and nonprofit businesses looking to take advantage of its powerful data visualization and analytics capabilities, need to understand its pricing structure. In this blog, we’ll dive into the different Power BI pricing plans available in 2024, highlighting the features and benefits of each option to help you make an informed decision.
Overview of Power BI
Before discussing Power BI’s pricing plans, let’s take a moment to talk a little about Power BI itself.
Power BI, short for Power Business Intelligence, is a data analytics tool whose primary goal is to provide interactive visualization and business intelligence capabilities with a simple interface for users to create reports and analyze data. Currently, the Power BI application is available on the 3 most popular platforms today: website, desktop, and smartphone, ensuring convenience for users.
If you want to know more about Power BI, check it out here.
Who Needs a License?
Within an organization, Power BI users generally fit into one or both of the following license categories:
- Report Viewers – individuals who access and view Power BI reports that have been published and shared with them.
- Report Developers – individuals who design, publish, and distribute Power BI reports.
There are 4 major Power BI pricing levels depending on your data visualization and analytics requirements.
Power BI Pricing Plans
In 2024, Power BI offers several pricing plans tailored to different business needs and budgets:
| Version | Price |
| Power BI Desktop | Free |
| Power BI Pro | $10/user/month |
| Power BI Premium per user | $20/user/month |
| Power BI Premium per capacity SKUs | Starts at $4,995/month |
Let’s zoom into each version for a detailed Power BI cost analysis.
Power BI Free License (Desktop)
Power BI Desktop is a free version provided by Microsoft that allows users to connect to data, transform that data, and create rich, interactive reports.
This free plan is meant for personal use. Publishing and sharing Power BI reports are not available for this plan, so you will not be able to collaborate or share reports with others.
Features of the Power BI Desktop:
- Connect Data from a wide range of data sources
- Create charts and graphs
- Build Data Models and create DAX
- Create Intuitive dashboards
- Create & transform distinct datasets
If you are new to Power BI or you have specific, limited requirements, the Power BI Free version is a great choice to start with.
Power BI Pro License
Power BI Pro is the next step from the free plan, available for $10 per user per month. It offers an enhanced version of Power BI, with features like licensing individual users with modern, self-service analytics for publishing reports and dashboards and viewing content across your organization.
Features of the Power BI Pro:
- Ability to embed Power BI visuals in Microsoft apps, improved data refreshes for on-premises data, etc.
- Access to AI visualizations like Q&A, key influencers’ visuals, and the decomposition tree
- Unrestricted viewing, and sharing of reports, dashboards, and content
- Access to Power BI assets on the phone using the Power BI mobile app
- Create dashboards and reports with Power BI Desktop
- Connect to over 100 data sources
- A data model size limit of 1 GB
It is suitable for businesses that require extensive data analysis capabilities and collaboration among employees. Power BI Pro is made both for small and large organizations needing to share business intelligence content within teams.
Power BI Premium per user
Power BI Premium is designed to provide enhanced analytics capabilities, greater scalability, and more flexible distribution options than Power BI Pro. This plan is available for $20 per user per month. It caters primarily to large organizations and enterprises that need to deploy business intelligence solutions at scale.
Features of the Power BI Premium:
- Model size limit of 100 GB (versus 1 GB for Power BI Pro users)
- 100 TB for storage, Power BI Pro only offers 10 GB.
- Deployment Pipelines
- The ability to refresh datasets 48 times per day (versus 8 for Power BI Pro users)
- Advanced AI
- Dataflows
- Datamart creation
- XMLA endpoint read/write connectivity
Power BI Premium per Capacity
Power BI Premium Capacity is designed for large-scale and enterprise-level analytics. It provides dedicated resources to ensure consistent performance and is ideal for organizations that require extensive data processing and reporting capabilities.
Power BI Premium capacities are available in various tier levels, with each higher tier offering increased processing power and storage. As of the current writing, the capacity tiers include P1, P2, and P3. The cost for a Power BI Premium Capacity starts at $4,995 per month, with the price for each subsequent tier doubling.
- P1: Suitable for small to medium-sized teams, offering 8 v-cores and a substantial amount of storage.
- P2: Designed for larger teams with greater needs, providing 16 v-cores and increased storage capacity.
- P3: Geared towards enterprise-level deployments, offering 32 v-cores and even more storage.
Which Power BI Pricing Plan Fit For You?
When it comes down to selecting the most suitable Microsoft Power BI pricing plan, certain key factors come into play. If you’re unsure which Power BI license is best for you and your team, here are a few important pointers to help guide your decision:
Data Analysis and Reporting Needs
- Power BI Desktop is suitable for individual users.
- For collaborative, real-time analytics and frequent data refreshes across a team, Power BI Pro is more appropriate.
- For organizations requiring advanced features such as AI capabilities, extensive data storage, and higher refresh rates, Power BI Premium is the optimal choice.
Collaboration Requirements
- If your organization relies heavily on collaboration and sharing reports, Power BI Pro or Premium is essential.
- Power BI Desktop won’t meet these needs effectively.
Need for Advanced Features
- Power BI Pro and Premium offer advanced features not available in the Desktop version, making them suitable for organizations with complex analytical requirements.
Budget
- Determine your budget for business intelligence tools. Power BI Pro is a cost-effective option at $10 per user per month.
- Power BI Premium is a larger investment but provides additional capabilities and can be billed per user or per capacity, offering flexibility for organizations with varying budget constraints.
User Count
- Consider the number of users needing access to Power BI and their roles.
- Power BI Pro is cost-effective for small to medium-sized teams, as it’s charged per user.
- For larger organizations or widespread BI use, Power BI Premium might be more economical with its per-capacity pricing model.
The official Power BI pricing can be checked on their website as of 20.03.2024. Visit this page and Click “Buy now” if you’ve chosen the version that fits your requirements and budget.
Power BI Template With Free Plan
With the Power BI Free Plan, you can explore and use the Power BI templates below for personal research needs or solving data problems within the company. We offer various Power BI Templates for business management needs, such as Sales, HR, Marketing, Project, Product, and Inventory management. By interacting with these templates, you can quickly grasp the functionalities of Power BI and begin leveraging its capabilities for business analytics.
Whether you are an individual user or enterprise level, Power BI has an option package to suit your needs. By carefully evaluating the cost and specific features of each plan – whether it’s Power BI free version, Power BI Pro, Power BI Premium Per User, or Power BI Premium Capacity – you can ensure that your business has a deep understanding of data and makes informed decisions based on your data needs and budget. Choose the right Power BI pricing package to unlock the full potential of your data and drive better business results.