Choice of data type to optimize

[bboy0009]

Hi guys,

Let's admit I have some transformations that could be applied on a text column or on a number column. In this case, which type of data should I take to optimize the treatment time ? text type require more than number type ? 

Could you please give an explanation if possible ?

Thank you in advance !

[v-yangliu-msft]

Hi  @bboy0009 ,

As far as I know, it is indeed the numeric type column that consumes less resources and time in handling data conversion and contributes more to resource conservation, because according to my research in the official documentation, the integer - represents a 64-bit (eight-byte) integer value and the text is a Unicode character data string. It can be a string, a number or a date expressed in text format. The maximum string length is 268, 435, 456 Unicode characters (256 megacharacters) or 536, 870, 912 bytes.

You can refer to this official documentation for details.

Data types in Power BI Desktop - Power BI | Microsoft Learn

Best Regards,

Liu Yang

If this post helps, then please consider Accept it as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly.

[amitchandak · Accepted solution]

@bboy0009 , the Number data type is always better for join columns. Number takes less space compare to text and work faster in case of joins