shouldiuse.io

VERDICT

Should I use Power BI?

Sign in to Microsoft Power BI for intuitive data visualization, detailed analytics, and interactive dashboards. Unlock your data's full potential. - powerbi.com

Depends. Buy it if you run on Microsoft 365 and have someone who can own datasets, workspaces, and licenses. Skip it if you're a small team that just needs a few charts — a spreadsheet or free tool does that job.

Confidence

Medium. Based on 14 public sources: pricing guides, Reddit threads, G2 reviews, and CVE feeds.

Ratings

  • Value for money
  • Ease of use
  • Feature depth
  • Support qualityNo support-quality evidence in reviewed sources.
  • Security posture

Pricing

$0

Free

ModelNot disclosed
Monthly feesNot disclosed
HardwareNot disclosed
Free tierYes
Pro$14/user/mo
Premium Per User$24/user/mo
Premium/Fabric capacity~$5k+/mo (reported)

Best for

  • Microsoft 365 shops
  • Corporate reporting teams
  • Organizations with dedicated analysts
  • Drill-down data exploration

Not for

  • Small teams needing a few simple charts — overkill
  • Non-technical users without IT support
  • Companies avoiding Microsoft lock-in
  • Teams with nobody to admin licenses and capacity

Gotchas - check before you buy

high

Premium capacity reportedly ~$5k/month; Pro vs PPU vs Fabric licensing confuses experienced buyers.

high

Default report sharing can leak sensitive data; row-level security must be deliberately configured.

medium

Deep Microsoft lock-in makes later migration to Tableau, Qlik, or Domo painful.

medium

On-prem Report Server and data gateway carry their own CVE patching burden.

Pros and cons

Pros

  • Deep Microsoft ecosystem integration
  • Great corporate reporting tool at scale
  • Strong for drilling down into data
  • Cheap per-user entry at $14/month
  • Massive adoption: 332,681+ companies

Cons

  • Users call dashboard building clunky
  • Power Query frustrates experienced users
  • Premium capacity pricing confuses even product managers
  • On-prem Report Server has had RCE CVEs
  • Reports can leak sensitive data without careful setup

Sources & method

Analyzed 9/20/2026 - 14 sources - No major cloud-service breach in reviewed sources; on-prem Report Server and gateway have CVEs, and misconfigured reports can leak data.

official x2review x7security x4news x1
  • CVE-2026-21229 — Power BI Report Server RCE, Remote code execution vulnerability in Power BI Report Server disclosed February 2026; affects on-prem deployments, not the cloud service.
  • CVE-2025-10750, Power BI-related vulnerability detail published by NVD in October 2025.
  • OpenSSL vulnerability in On-Premises Data Gateway, Microsoft identified an OpenSSL vulnerability in the on-premises data gateway, January 2025.
  • Report data-leak exposure, Security researchers warn misconfigured Power BI reports can expose sensitive data, February 2026.

Key stats

  • Value for money: 4/5

    Rating

  • $0

    Starting price

  • 14

    Sources

  • Analyzed

  • Value for money: 4/5. Pro is cheap; capacity-tier pricing confuses buyers.
  • Ease of use: 3/5. Users report clunky dashboard building and Power Query friction.
  • Feature depth: 4/5. Deep Microsoft integration, enterprise-scale reporting.
  • Support quality. No support-quality evidence in reviewed sources.
  • Security posture: 3/5. Report Server RCE CVEs; misconfigured reports leak data.
  • $14/user/mo Starting price Power BI Pro license
  • $24/user/mo Premium per user PPU tier
  • Yes Free tier Single-user use only
  • 332,681+ companies Adoption Per Enlyft tracking

Pricing

Free

$0

  • Desktop authoring, single user
  • No sharing or collaboration

Pro

$14/user/mo

  • Publish and share reports
  • Workspace collaboration

Premium Per User

$24/user/mo

  • Bigger datasets, advanced features
  • No capacity management needed

Premium/Fabric capacity

~$5k+/mo (reported)

  • Org-wide sharing without per-user Pro licenses
  • Capacity commitment required

Security

No major cloud-service breach in reviewed sources; on-prem Report Server and gateway have CVEs, and misconfigured reports can leak data.

  • CVE-2026-21229 — Power BI Report Server RCERemote code execution vulnerability in Power BI Report Server disclosed February 2026; affects on-prem deployments, not the cloud service.⁹
  • CVE-2025-10750Power BI-related vulnerability detail published by NVD in October 2025.10
  • OpenSSL vulnerability in On-Premises Data GatewayMicrosoft identified an OpenSSL vulnerability in the on-premises data gateway, January 2025.11
  • Report data-leak exposureSecurity researchers warn misconfigured Power BI reports can expose sensitive data, February 2026.12

Companies that use it

  • Yale University
  • Imperial College London
  • Ascent Funding
Full analysis

Based on 14 public sources: pricing guides, Reddit threads, G2 reviews, and CVE feeds.

Powerful, cheap-per-seat enterprise BI — but clunky to build, Microsoft-locked, with licensing that gets confusing fast.

Methodology

Based on 14 public sources: pricing guides, Reddit threads, G2 reviews, and CVE feeds.

Sources

  1. What is Power BI? - Microsoft Learnlearn.microsoft.com
    official
  2. Power BI Pros & Cons in 2026: Straight-Talk Reviewdashboardfox.com
    review
  3. Power BI Pricing 2026: $14/Usermammoth.io
    review
  4. Power BI license types (Fabric included)polestaranalytics.com
    review
  5. Opinions on Power BIreddit.com
    review
  6. Anyone here also hate Power BI?reddit.com
    review
  7. Power BI Premium for $5k/month?reddit.com
    review
  8. Microsoft Power BI Reviews - G2g2.com
    review
  9. CVE-2026-21229: Power BI Report Server RCEsentinelone.com
    security
  10. CVE-2025-10750 Detail - NVDnvd.nist.gov
    security
  11. OpenSSL Vulnerability in On-Premises Data Gatewaycommunity.fabric.microsoft.com
    security
  12. Power BI Reports Expose Sensitive Datakanopysecurity.com
    security
  13. Companies using Microsoft Power BI and its marketshareenlyft.com
    news
  14. Power BI security white paperlearn.microsoft.com
    official

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