Category: Business CentralRead time: 7 MinsPublished on: 12 Jan 2026

Integrating Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central with Power BI

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Integrating Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central with Power BI enables organizations to turn ERP data into real-time, decision-ready insights.

This integration connects finance, sales, inventory, and operations data into interactive dashboards that go beyond static reports. Executives gain visibility into key metrics, trends, and exceptions as they happen.

By combining Business Central’s structured data with Power BI’s analytics capabilities, businesses improve transparency, strengthen performance monitoring, and support faster, more confident decisions across teams

Many organizations work with experienced partners offering Business Central consulting to ensure accurate data modelling, secure access, and scalable Power BI reporting aligned with business goals.

1. How Business Central Connects to Power BI

Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central connects to Power BI through secure, cloud-based data services designed for analytics and reporting.

At the core of this architecture are standard Business Central APIs. These APIs expose structured ERP data such as finance, sales, items, and inventory in a format Power BI can consume.

When a user connects Power BI to Business Central, Power BI authenticates using Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD). Access is controlled by Business Central permissions and company-level security.

Once connected, Power BI creates a semantic model (dataset) in the Power BI service. This dataset defines which Business Central tables are available, how they relate, and how measures are calculated.

Data is typically imported into Power BI using a scheduled refresh model. Power BI periodically pulls updated data from Business Central APIs and refreshes dashboards based on the defined schedule.

For most reporting needs, this import model provides strong performance and stable reporting. It also reduces load on the Business Central environment compared to real-time queries.

In scenarios with complex reporting or custom requirements, organizations may extend the architecture using custom APIs, OData endpoints, or Azure-based data pipelines. These options allow greater control over data shape, history, and refresh logic.

This architecture balances security, performance, and scalability. It allows Business Central to remain the system of record, while Power BI handles analytics and visualization without disrupting ERP operations.

2. Dynamics 365 Business Central – Power BI integration

Integrating Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central with Power BI provides organizations with a unified, data-driven foundation for decision-making. This connection enables real-time visualization of key metrics across finance, sales, inventory, and operations, allowing teams to move beyond static reports and gain actionable insights through interactive dashboards. By leveraging this integration, businesses can strengthen transparency, improve performance monitoring, and make informed strategic decisions with greater confidence.

Navigation & Setup:

  • Sign up or purchase Power BI as an individual by using this official link from Microsoft, if not already signed up.
  • Once signed in, click ‘New Report’ button to create new report.
  • Use ‘Get Data’ option to use the data from business central for creating a report.
Power BI interface showing the initial 'Add data to start' screen with the 'Get Data' icon highlighted.
  • Search ’Business Central’ and choose the option to link Business Central environment with Power BI.
Power BI 'New source' search interface with 'business central' entered and the Dynamics 365 Business Central online service connector selected.
  • Use the ‘Sign-in’ option to successfully link the business central environment with Power BI using business central credentials. If Multi Factor Authentication enabled, an approval using Microsoft authenticator application will be needed.
Power BI 'Connect to data source' screen for Dynamics 365 Business Central showing organizational account authentication and the sign-in prompt.
  • Once it’s linked in the next page, the credentials’ list of environments and its related companies will be listed to create a report.
Power BI 'Choose data' navigation pane showing a connected Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central environment with folders for various production and test instances.
  • Choose the appropriate company from which you wish to retrieve data. And choose the standard API from which you will configure the report.
Navigation pane in Power BI showing the connection to Dynamics 365 Business Central environments, highlighting 'CRONUS USA, Inc.' and 'Standard APIs v2.0.'
  • Choose the appropriate API. From the data source, the table’s data will be shown appropriately. And use the ‘Create Report’ option to configure further using this data source.
The 'Choose data' screen in Power BI showing a list of Dynamics 365 Business Central tables, with the 'items' table selected for report creation.
  • Choose the workspace and give this semantic model a name and click ‘Create’.
Create new report screen in Power BI workspace showing a semantic model named 'Item Price v1' linked to Dynamics 365 Business Central data.
  • Here, I am creating a simple report based on ‘Item’ table. The purpose is to show the item with price ordered by highest priced items.
Power BI service interface showing a bar chart titled 'Sum of unitPrice by number' with the 'number' field on the X-axis and 'unitPrice' on the Y-axis.
  • Use the ‘Save’ option to save this report under appropriate workspace.
Close-up of the Power BI File menu highlighting the 'Save this report' option during the Business Central report creation process.
A 'Save your report' dialog box in the Power BI service workspace, with the report name 'Item Price Chart' highlighted for a Business Central integration project.
  • Once saved, the report with appropriate data will be rendered in full view. Also, we can navigate to the report using ‘Browse’ tab and ‘Workspaces’ tab as well.
A Power BI bar chart titled 'Sum of unitPrice by number' showing a distribution of unit prices across various item numbers.

3. Common Challenges and Best Practices while integrating Power BI with Business Central

Integrating Business Central with Power BI delivers strong value, but results depend on design discipline. The issues below are common in real deployments.

Challenge: Large Datasets Impact Refresh Performance

Transaction tables such as ledger entries and value entries grow fast. Pulling full history into Power BI can slow refresh times and hit API limits.

Best Practice: Transaction tables such as ledger entries and value entries grow fast. Pulling full history into Power BI can slow refresh times and hit API limits.
Challenge: Poor Data Models Create Confusing Reports

Flat table imports often lead to duplicated measures, slow visuals, and inconsistent results across dashboards.

Best Practice: Build a star schema with fact and dimension tables. Define measures once using DAX. Reuse semantic models across reports.
Challenge: Overuse of DirectQuery or Near-Real-Time Models

DirectQuery is often assumed to be better, but it can strain Business Central and reduce report performance.

Best Practice: Use import mode for most scenarios. Schedule refreshes based on business needs, not technical curiosity. Reserve near-real-time approaches for narrow use cases.
Challenge: Uncontrolled Access to Financial Data

Without proper role design, users may see data they should not access.

Best Practice: Align Power BI workspace roles with Business Central permissions. Use company isolation and avoid shared datasets without governance.
Challenge: Manual Report Maintenance

One-off reports increase support effort and create data inconsistency.

Best Practice: Standardize datasets. Document field usage. Treat Power BI as an extension of your ERP, not a standalone tool.

Power BI integration transforms Business Central from a transactional system into a strategic reporting platform. When implemented correctly, the integration provides real-time visibility, reduces manual reporting effort, and aligns decision-making across finance and operations. However, data modelling, security, and performance considerations must be handled carefully to ensure reliable outcomes.

If you need help designing dashboards, optimizing APIs, or setting up a scalable reporting architecture, our experts can help. Contact our Business Central and Power BI specialists to build secure, insight-driven analytics tailored to your business.

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