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DATA & BI

Microsoft Power BI

RecommendedFree planAPI8/10 overall

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Pricing

We do not reprint prices. They change too often for that to be honest, and a number on our page with no date is worse than sending you to the source.

Official pricing pageLast checked 2026-09-06

How we rated it

Product quality8/10Editorial assessmentValue for money8/10Editorial assessmentEase of use5/10Editorial assessmentAutomation8/10Editorial assessmentIntegrations9/10Editorial assessmentReliability9/10Editorial assessmentBeginner friendly5/10Editorial assessment

What it is

Microsoft's business intelligence platform: connects to a wide range of sources, models data and builds dashboards, tightly integrated with Excel and the rest of Microsoft 365.

Who it is for

Organisations already on Microsoft, especially where the analysis currently lives in large Excel files.

Where it is strongest

Replacing a critical spreadsheet. The Excel familiarity means people who already do the analysis can keep doing it, which is usually the blocker.

Where it falls short

Steep to learn properly; DAX is a language of its own and most users never get past the basics. Sharing requires licences for every viewer, which surprises people. And the Mac experience is poor.

Our verdict

Recommended inside Microsoft environments. Outside one, Metabase or Looker Studio get you to a dashboard with far less friction.

Editorial assessment. We earn a commission on some links; it does not change the ranking.