What are the Power BI licensing options for small businesses?

Hold on… before you open another spreadsheet and start running some numbers on what it will cost, make sure to read the below.

If you work for a small business or SMB, you do not need a licensing spreadsheet that is overly complex. You need to make one core decision first: who is building the reports and who is only viewing them.

In plain English (quick answer):

Power BI licensing for small businesses is primarily a choice between per-user licences (Power BI Pro or Premium per User (PPU)) and, in some (rare) cases, a capacity. If you need to share reports inside your organisation, viewers generally need a paid licence unless the reports sit in a Fabric capacity (the successor to the old Premium capacity model). Fabric capacity matters only when you specifically need capacity-based compute, Fabric workloads or you have a large enough viewer audience that capacity-based licensing becomes cheaper than buying Pro for everyone. For most small businesses, “normal Power BI” use does not require a Fabric SKU.

Key takeaways (read this first):

• If you are on the free (Fabric Free) setup, you can build a report, but you cannot properly share it with colleagues in a controlled way. That is why the "free" option often feels like a personal tool, not a business reporting platform.
• In small teams, Pro is usually the default because it is simple and predictable. It is the easiest way to enable sharing, collaboration and controlled access without getting dragged into capacity decisions or PPU-only access rules.
• Premium per User (PPU) is for teams that need more premium features, but do not have the budget (or the justification) for a Fabric capacity SKU. The trade-off is simple: if the content sits in PPU-backed workspaces, then everyone consuming it must also have PPU (Pro users cannot access that content).
• Fabric is optional for most small businesses using Power BI (and I mean only Power BI, not all other workloads/experiences that exist with MS Fabric). Only consider Fabric capacity when you have a specific need for capacity-based compute or Fabric workloads. If your goal is simply to share reports internally, start with Pro (or PPU if you need premium features).

Please note, we understand the complexity of the Power BI and Fabric licensing available. However, this is the small business version and we are simplifying the complexity. If you want the full, end-to-end landscape, read our Navigating Power BI & Fabric Licensing. Below is a diagram we put together to show you all the option, however, in this blog we are primarily focuseding on the first three per-user licenses.

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The one decision that drives everything

Think about it like this.

• Builders create semantic models, reports, apps and publish content.
• Consumers view and interact with content that somebody else published.

Licensing gets messy when you blur these roles. If you tell me:

1. How many Builders you have
2. How many Consumers you have

…you are 80% of the way to the right answer.

Beyond that, it comes down to a second set of questions: do you need features that Power BI Pro does not include and are you going to hit Pro limitations that force you up a level (for example, larger data volumes, stricter refresh requirements or premium-only capabilities). But for now, lets keep it simple and focus on how many people will be developing reports (Report Authors), developing the data model with transformations/ingestions/DAX (Model Designers) and of course those just consuming (Report Consumers). If you want to go deeper on these persona types (Report Authors, Model Designers, Report Consumers) and how to train each one, read our blog: Power BI Persona-Based Training. If you want to see our training services and options, see: Metis BI Power BI Training.

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Option A: Fabric Free (previously Power BI Free) and Power BI Desktop

This is the "I just want to get started" option. Power BI Desktop is free to download and install (either from your browser or the Microsoft Store). The Microsoft Store route is handy because it tends to keep you updated automatically.

You build in Power BI Desktop. You can ingest, transform and model your data, write DAX, and build a report locally. For learning, prototyping and solo analysis, it is fine. Here is the thing, it falls over the moment you need collaboration.

Two quick clarifications:

• Fabric Free is not "limited connectors". You can connect to lots of sources in Desktop.
• The number people quote on model size is usually 1GB in the service. Desktop can handle more, but the limit becomes real when you publish.

Side Note: In Desktop you are limited by your own machines spec (memory and CPU). Only when publishing can you hit the limit. One more point, 1GB is after compression so you have more wiggle room then you think.

But the real problem with Fabric Free is simple: you cannot share properly.

• You can only publish to My Workspace.
• You cannot publish to a proper workspace/app for colleagues to access.
• People end up emailing PBIX files or dumping them in SharePoint, which turns into version chaos - please do not do this.

Use this option when:

• One person is learning or prototyping.
• You are evaluating Power BI in compariosn to other tools such as Tablea, Qliuk, Looker, etc.
• You are not sharing reports with others yet.

Move on from this option when:

• More than one person needs access.
• You need a single, controlled version of the report in the Power BI Service (refresh, access, ownership).

Option B: Everyone on Power BI Pro

This is the most common small business answer because it is simple.

Let me be clear, if a user views shared Power BI content in your organisation, they usually need Power BI Pro (unless that content is hosted in a Premium/Fabric capacity). Power BI Pro price (as stated in our detailed guide): £10.80 per user/month.

That one sentence removes most confusion.

Why Pro works well for small businesses:

• Straightforward: you buy Pro for the people using Power BI.
• Collaboration works: you can share, publish apps and manage access.
• Predictable cost: per-user pricing is easy to budget.

Also, its worth noting that if your business has Microsoft 365 E5, well that includes Power BI Pro. Yippee!

Common small business pattern:

• 2 to 5 Builders (report Authors/Model Designers) and a wider group of Consumers.
• Everyone who touches the report in the Power BI Service has Pro.

One more thing. Pro is where governance starts to matter, because you are now sharing content properly. If you want a simple way to avoid workspace chaos, duplicate reports and “who owns this” problems, have a look at our Governance and Adoption Framework to avoid the chaos.

Option C: Premium Per User for advanced features

Premium Per User (PPU) is the "I need more capability, but I am not buying capacity" option. PPU price (as stated in our detailed guide) is around £18.50 per user/month.

If your reports and models live in PPU workspaces, then consumers need PPU too. A Pro user cannot access that PPU content. Many businesses get surprised here. They buy a single PPU licence so one person can use premium-only features (for example, deployment pipelines), then publish the reports to a PPU workspace/app. At that point, the wider report consumers cannot access the content because they do not have a PPU licence, they only have Pro.

So if you are on Power BI Pro, you should only look at Premium per User (PPU) when you have a real reason to move up, for example:

• You need to remove Pro limitations such as model size, refresh requirements or other Pro limits that are getting in your way.
• You need premium-only features such as deployment pipelines, XMLA endpoint connectivity, enhanced automatic page refresh and other.

If you need none of that, start on Pro. Think of PPU as the middle ground between Pro and buying a Fabric capacity (F SKU). But again, please remember the access rule, if the content sits in a PPU workspace/app, the report consumers need PPU too (Pro users cannot access it).

Quick summary of the three options

In most small UK businesses, it comes down to three routes.

Option A is Fabric Free and Desktop. It is great for early days when you are evaluating Power BI, getting comfortable and comparing it to other tools. But it is not where you should stay once you are serious about rolling reports out to colleagues, because sharing and collaboration are the first things that break.

Option B is Power BI Pro. This is what most small businesses use day to day because it is simple, it unlocks proper sharing and the pricing is predictable. If you want the clean default answer, it is usually Pro.

Option C is Premium per User (PPU). This is the step up when Pro is limiting you or you need premium-only features, and you cannot justify a Fabric capacity. Just remember the access rule, if you publish into PPU workspaces/apps, your report consumers need PPU too.

If you are unsure, start with Pro, then move up only when you hit a real limitation or just book a call (or book a meeting) with us and we can guide you through the process.

Do we need Microsoft Fabric to use Power BI?

I get this all the time, "Do we need Fabric to use Power BI?". So, I am generalising but in reality most small businesses do not need a Fabric SKU, especially from day one. If you are doing normal Power BI work, so just building models, publish reports, share them with colleagues, you are choosing between Pro and PPU most of the time. Fabric is not a default requirement for this. Also, another concern, is Power BI going to dissapear now? Absolutely not, Microsfot have not ever said this and my opinion it does not make sense. Power BI is one of the experiences within Fabric.

So when does Fabric come into it?

• When you have a specific reason to use Fabric workloads (data engineering, lakehouse/warehouse style work).
• When you have a big enough viewer audience that capacity pricing starts to make more sense than buying Pro/PPU for everyone.

Now, the capacity misconception. People hear, “If we buy capacity, viewers do not need licences". That is only true under certain conditions. Here is the small business version:

• The F64 SKU threshold is often mentioned because it is where the "free read-only viewing" story can start to apply for content hosted on that capacity.
• Below F64, you do not get that benefit, so report consumers still need Pro or PPU. Either way, the people publishing content still need Pro or PPU.

So do not buy capacity as a shortcut. Buy it because you have a real platform reason or because you have enough consumers that it is actually the cheaper model.

Quick Scenarios

No waffle. Just the numbers you care about. So, when writing this blog the pricing was: Pro is £10.80 per user/month and PPU is £18.50 per user/month.

Scenario 1: 10 users (everyone builds and everyone consumes)

You have 10 users and all 10 people build reports and view each other’s reports in the Power BI Service.

• Data volume stays within Pro limits.
• Refresh is once per day, every morning.
• No premium-only features needed (no deployment pipelines, no PPU-only capabilities).

In this scenario, keep it simple: all 10 need Power BI Pro.

• 10 × £10.80 = £108.00 per month

Scenario 2: 35 users (2 builders, everyone else only views)

You have 35 users total.

• A core reporting team of 2 people builds all reports.
• The other 33 users only view reports and never self-serve.
• Everything stays within Pro limits (data volume and refresh).
• No PPU-only features needed.

Even though only 2 people are building, the moment you share reports internally, the viewers still need a licence.

So the clean answer is: all 35 users need Power BI Pro.

• 35 × £10.80 = £378.00 per month

Scenario 3: 50 users (PPU for a premium group, Pro for everyone else)

You have 50 users total. Most people just need standard reporting, but a smaller group needs premium-only capability (for example, deployment pipelines) and you still cannot justify a Fabric capacity. A sensible setup looks like this:

• 12 users get PPU (the reporting team plus a small set of stakeholders who need access to the premium content).
• 38 users get Pro (everyone else consuming the standard Pro content).

Why the split works:

• You keep premium content in a PPU workspace/app and limit it to the people who genuinely need it.
• You keep standard business reporting in Pro workspaces/apps for the wider audience.

The important rule (do not miss this), anyone consuming content from a PPU workspace/app needs PPU. Pro users cannot access that content.

Costs:

• 12 × £18.50 = £222.00 per month
• 38 × £10.80 = £410.40 per month
• Total = £632.40 per month

Common mistakes we see in small businesses

In workshops we run, the same issues usually pop up:

• Buying PPU for everyone because it sounds “more premium”.
• Assuming all MS Fabric capacity SKUs removes per user licence needs (its only F64 and above).
• Treating My Workspace as production, usually with Shareable Links.
• Mixing Pro and PPU without a workspace strategy, then wondering why some users cannot see content.
• Not understanding the limitations Pro offers on data model size and refreshes.
• Thinking MS Fabric is a must with Power BI or that Power BI will somehow be "replaced".

A small business checklist before you buy anything

Use this as your sanity check:

• Who are your Builders, so your report authors and data model designers?
• Who are your Consumers, so your report consumers or end users from the business?
• Do any of those people need PPU-only features?
• Do you need anything beyond Power BI, such as Fabric workloads?

Want the right answer in 30 minutes?

Here is the thing. Licensing is easy when you stop guessing. If you send us the number of Builders, the number of Consumers, whether you need any premium features, and whether you are considering Fabric capacity for a specific workload, we will tell you the cleanest option for your team and what to avoid so you do not paint yourself into a corner. Book your free Power BI licensing call now.