Azure Map - Performance issue

[riccardo_]

Dear Community, We have been facing some issues with the new Azure Map and we would like to know if Microsoft is working on optimizing the performance for Azure map. The visual freezes Power BI in the Desktop and in Service (both open through Report or App). Performance difference in load and filtering time comparing old Bing map (being decommissioned) vs Azure is considerable, given the same setup and filters/fields applied.

[v-tejrama]

Hi @riccardo_ ,

Thank you @Jaywant-Thorat for the response provided!

Has your issue been resolved? If the response provided by the community member addressed your query, could you please confirm? It helps us ensure that the solutions provided are effective and beneficial for everyone.

Thank you.

[v-tejrama]

Hi @riccardo_ ,

I wanted to follow up and see if you had a chance to review the information shared. If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to reach out.

Thank you.

[danextian]

It is indeed a slower than Bing Maps and, based on experience, it is much slower if you use conditional formatting involving a large dataset.

[Jaywant-Thorat · Accepted solution]

Hi @riccardo_ 

Yes! Azure Maps is currently heavier and slower than the old Bing Map.
What you’re seeing is known and widely experienced, not a misconfiguration.
Azure Maps is still evolving and has not reached performance parity with Bing Map yet. There’s no public timeline for full optimization.
What you can do now (practical fixes):
1. Reduce data points aggressively

• Pre-aggregate in Power Query
• Avoid row-level plotting
• Group by:
  • City / Region instead of Lat-Long
  • Buckets instead of raw points

2. Limit interactions

• Turn off unnecessary visual interactions
• Avoid cross-filtering Azure Map from many slicers

3. Use filters BEFORE the map

• Page / report filters
• Don’t rely on Azure Map to handle large result sets dynamically

4. Consider alternatives (very common)

• Icon Map (certified custom visual) → much faster
• ArcGIS Map → better performance for large datasets
• Keep Azure Map only for low-volume, high-detail use cases

Always Remember:

• Azure Maps = better features, worse performance (for now)
• If performance is critical:
  • Don’t do row-level or high-cardinality maps
  • Aggregate first, then map
  • Or switch visuals

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