Line chart shows multiple lines in Visual Pane when only one measure was selected.

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello everyone, 

I'm having this issue with line charts. I use the dates table in the x-axis and any measure (from the fact table connected to the dates table). Issue is I need to add more measures and do some heavy editing. But in Format -> Visual -> Lines under categories dropdown, multiple lines are shown named as the dates. In the following screenshot you can see all the lines that, supposedly, I have in the chart:

I don't have any other fields, besides the dates and the measure, in the line chart. Also, this behaviour persists regardless of X-axis Type Categorical/Continous. The line chart doesn't show weird behaviours is just in the Lines section.

You should also know that this started to happen randomely today and the behaviour now replicates in other pbix files that were working perfectly. 

Please, kindly assist me in this matter.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Community Forum.

Hi @Shahid12523 , @Ashish_Mathur , Thank you for your prompt responses.

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez , In addition to @Ashish_Mathur and @Shahid12523  responses, I am adding some points.

Please check below things.

1.  Use the Selection Pane to see if any hidden fields are influencing the line chart.

2. Please check the measure is scalar, returns a single value and not a table or array.

3.  If your are on the latest power bi version, try to roll back to previous version. 

4. Toggle between Categorical and Continuous on the X-axis to see if it refreshes properly.

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.

Regards,

Dinesh

[Jhorman_Gomez]

I have uninstalled current version from MS Store, and manually installed July version. But the issue is still there. IDK what to do. I downloaded the report on another computer and the issue is there.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

Please check below things to fix the issue.

1. Please check the date column used on the X-axis is date-only, not datetime. You can create a new column using below DAX.

DateOnly = DATE(YEAR([Date]), MONTH([Date]), DAY([Date]))

2. Disable Hierarchy, If Power BI is using a date hierarchy like Year > Quarter > Month > Day, switch to the flat date field instead of the hierarchy.

3. Please check that your measure is properly aggregated and that the visual is not interpreting each row as a separate series.

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.

Regards,

Dinesh

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Good day, @v-dineshya. 

I have reviewed what you suggested:

1- most of the time I use dates only, and this is no exception. Column Date is date only and the dimension is marked as dates table.

2- As shown in the screenshot below. I'm not using hierarchy. I should say though, that this issue also appears when I'm using the Year, Quarter, Month or any other combination of fields in the x-axis.

3- Not really sure how to how to check whether the viz is interpreting each row as a separate series, but when I'm debuggin a viz I always work with the underlying table. I've put both in the screenshot below. Doesn't seem to be anything strange, just the map between dates and the agg of sales.

I appreciate your help with this issue, it's never happened before in years of working with Power BI.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

Thank you for the update.  Please provide sample PBIX file. It will help us to replicate the scenario.

Regards,

Dinesh

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello, @v-dineshya , this is the link for the file.

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

It is a expected behaviour in Power BI. i have replicated from my side. I have choosed country field in X-axis. In Lines settings --> Categories field shows all the country values. If we place any field on X-axis, it will show all the values. It is a expected behaviour in Line chart. As you mentioned in your question , you had replicated in other PBIX file, it was worked perfectly.  Please share expected output snap. 

Regards,

Dinesh

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello, @v-dineshya , the issue is with time series not other dimensions. Whenever I put dates or YEAR + MONTH on the x-axis the lines format no longer allows me to modify the only measure in the visualization. It shows as many categories as values in the dates dimension, I no longer can edit something so basic as the color of the line because the visualization splits it into multiple categories.

[v-dineshya · Accepted solution]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

The issue comes from how the latest versions of Power BI Desktop are handling the line chart "series" formatting when a date column is on the X-axis. Normally, if you only have one measure in Y-axis, you should see just one line in formatting. But in your case, it is displaying each distinct date value as a separate series. That’s why the format dropdown lists of “lines” named with dates it thinks each point is a separate line.

This started appearing after a recent update Rolling back doesn’t always fix it, because the behavior may be tied to your PBIX file metadata once saved in a newer version.

Please try below workarounds to fix the issue.

1. Instead of dragging Date directly to X-axis, try below measure

MonthYear = FORMAT('Date'[Date], "YYYY-MM")

or use your Year-Month column in the Date table. This groups dates and ensures Power BI doesn’t try to treat each date as its own category.

2. Disable “Show all series”, In the formatting pane Lines --> Show for all series, make toggle it Off. That way Power BI won’t try to render formatting options per series.

3. Use a measure as Legend, Create a calculated column in your Date table:

SingleLegend = "Sales"

Then drop it into the Legend well. That forces Power BI to treat the chart as a single line series, which cleans up the format pane.

4. Even if you are not explicitly using hierarchy, Power BI sometimes forces one. Right-click your Date field in the Fields pane --> uncheck Date Hierarchy, and make sure you are using just the raw column.

5. This looks like a bug introduced in the August/September builds of Power BI Desktop. If possible, test with the June 2025 build.

Note: Best workaround is adding a dummy constant Legend "Sales" or using Year-Month instead of full Date. That way you regain control over the line formatting and can safely add multiple measures later.

I hope this information helps. Please do let us know if you have any further queries.

Regards,

Dinesh

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and was just checking back to see if you have a resolution yet. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Regards,

Dinesh

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and was just checking back to see if you have a resolution yet. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Regards,

Dinesh

[v-dineshya]

Hi @Jhorman_Gomez ,

We haven’t heard from you on the last response and was just checking back to see if you have a resolution yet. And, if you have any further query do let us know.

Regards,

Dinesh

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello @v-dineshya , I don't have any other fields in the visualization. The measure is a simple division that returns scalar values. Toggling between Categorical and Continous has no effect in the Issue but the visualizations updates accordingly.

Lastly, how do I roll back to the july version?

[Shahid12523]

Your line chart is showing multiple lines because Power BI is likely misinterpreting your measure as having multiple series, possibly due to implicit row-level context or a rendering bug. Check that the Legend field is empty, simplify the measure, and try rebuilding the visual. If it’s happening across PBIX files, it might be a version or cache issue — clearing cache or restarting Power BI could help.

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello Sir, I have cleared the cache for this and all reports. The issue persists. I noticed that Power BI updated recently. I'm going to roll back to july version maybe.

[Ashish_Mathur]

Hi,

Have you dragged anything to the Legend by any chance?

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello, Sir. I don't have any other fields in the visualization. Also, I don't have fields or measures filtering the visualization in the filter pane. Just dates and a scalar measure.

[Ashish_Mathur]

Share the download link of the PBI file.

[Jhorman_Gomez]

Hello, @v-dineshya . This is the link to another file with the same issues. The setup is really the same, basic dates table and fact table, and a basic measure. I appreciate your help with this.