Power BI Licensing: Choosing the Right License for Your Business

Power BI Licensing Overview

Let’s start with the basics. In Power BI you have the following licenses:

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Power BI Licensing

Each of them is either:

• User Based – you pay per a single user
• Capacity based – you pay per a capacity node

Keep in mind that the main development tool – Power BI Desktop – is free of charge and requires a Windows machine to run.

In Power BI you pay for:<

1. Consumption of the reports
2. Better performance of the reports
3. Higher data-volume capacity
4. Speed of development
5. More advanced features

The flexibility of the licensing caters to different needs and budgets while being a perfect up-sell mechanism for Microsoft. Just look at this flow I’ve seen many times:

1. Robert creates a sales report in free Power BI Desktop
2. Robert wants to share his report with 3 District Managers: Anna, Mehdi and Giovanni via Power BI Service
3. They all use Power BI Pro for free during the first 30 days
4. During the trial, they procure 4 Power BI Pro Licences at a cost of 33,6€ per month
5. Robert’s reports are a success; after 4 months there are 46 Power BI Pro users. Total cost: 386,4€ per month

This is a typical scenario. Consumption of reports is the cost-driver in this case.

Let’s continue this story with two new variants:

Moving to Power BI Premium Per User

1. EMEA Sales Director wants to spread the reports across all European countries – 148 users in total
2. Dataset exceeds 1GB – Power BI Pro limit is reached
3. Robert recommends Power BI Premium Per User
4. Total monthly cost: 2501,2€‍

Higher data volume is the cost-driver in this case.

Moving to Power BI Premium Per Capacity

Now, change the parameters a little:

1. 300 Power BI users across Europe
2. Dataset still exceeds 1GB
3. Cost comparison: 300×16,90€ = 5070€ vs Premium Capacity = 4212€
4. Robert selects Premium Capacity. Total monthly cost: 4212€

Data volume and number of users are the main cost-drivers here.

You can easily increase Power BI capacity… and spending. Choose wisely.

Power BI Licences – Walkthrough: Which One to Choose

Pick Power BI Premium Per User if:

1. You have a dataset larger than 1 GB that cannot be optimized
2. You want to use XMLA endpoint for DevOps
3. You rely heavily on Power BI/Power Query development
4. You have fewer than 250 users

Pick Power BI Premium Capacity if:

1. You have at least 250 Premium users or 501 users in total
2. You need deployment in multiple geographies
3. You rely heavily on modelling/ETL
4. You want to share reports with undefined users
5. Your data model will exceed 100 GB

Pick Power BI Embedded if:

1. You want to share data with external users
2. You need to show reports to a large audience for short periods
3. You are building a PoC requiring Premium access
4. You need custom authentication
5. You build a solution with embedded Power BI for external users

In other cases, it’s generally recommended to stick with Pro licences. However, every case is different and should be analyzed individually.

A crucial factor is the size of your development team. Working in parallel on the same Power BI Products is easier with Premium because of:

• XMLA endpoint read/write connectivity
• Datamarts
• Enhanced Data Flow capacities

Note: With Power BI Embedded, you lose access to all Power BI Service features. That can seriously impact adoption. It’s also the only licence that appears on your Azure billing.

Comparison of the Features Between the Licences

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https://powerbi.microsoft.com/en-us/pricing

Power BI Premium vs Analysis Service

An alternative to Power BI Premium is using Azure Analysis Services. It can be much more cost-effective. You should always compare it before choosing Premium Capacity.

Power BI Licences – 7 Last Tips

• 🎯 PBI Premium Capacity and Embedded require developers to also have a Pro licence
• ⚡ PPU allows 100 GB data model storage, like P3 Capacity
• 💣 Prices may be lower with Microsoft Customer Agreement
• ✨ Prices may also be lower through your CSP
• 🔱 Power BI Pro is included with Office E5
• 💥 You don’t need Embedded licence to embed reports

 💡 You can get Premium Capacity with monthly commitment via CSP

Thanks for reading! If you have suggestions or questions, feel free to reach out.

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