Let’s Talk About Power BI Direct Query

Exploring the Hidden Gem for Data Analysis and Visualization in Power BI

Boyega
3 min readNov 14, 2023
Let’s Talk About Power BI Direct Query | Image by PixelPlex

If you want to use data analysis and visualizations, you’ve heard of Power BI. It’s a helpful tool that helps people understand data better. But there’s a cool feature in Power BI that not many people know about called Power BI Direct Query. In this article, we’ll take a close look at this feature, from what it is to how you can use it in real-life situations.

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What is a Direct Query?

Power BI Direct Query is a cool tool that lets you connect to your data source and analyze it right away. Unlike when you put your data into Power BI, Direct Query doesn’t keep a copy of the data in Power BI. Instead, it asks for the data from the source every time you make a chart or update your data.

Direct Query is one of the three ways to connect data in Power BI. The other two are Import and Live Connection. Importing data is the most common way and it uses Power BI’s fast data processing engine.

Benefits of Power BI Direct Query

1. Real-time Data Updates: With Power BI Direct Query, you always have the most up-to-date information. No more manual data updates are needed because it keeps your data current.

2. Enhanced Performance: Direct Query is great when you’re dealing with big sets of data. It makes things run faster and smarter, making your work more efficient. It’s like a turbo boost for your data analysis.

3. Cost-Efficiency: By using Direct Query, you save money on storage. You don’t need to duplicate your data, which can be expensive. You only keep the data where you actually need it, which is a smart way to save on costs.

How to Use Power BI Direct Query

1. Connect to Your Data Source: In Power BI, choose the “Direct Query” option when you’re connecting to your data source. This sets up a live connection to your data, so you always have the most current information.

Use DirectQuery in Power BI Desktop — Power BI | Microsoft Learn

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Boyega
Boyega

Written by Boyega

Data Scientist, Technical Writer and a Content Creator. I simplify complex Data Science/ML, Analyst & Statistics topics through articles & videos.

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