Forum Discussion
access Power BI reports
In my organization, we have 50 users who need to access Power BI reports. Currently, we only have 2 Power BI Pro licenses. Reports are being shared from the Pro accounts, but the free users are unable to access them.
How can we enable free users to view the shared reports?
Is there a way to allow report access without assigning Pro licenses to every user?
Hi rajasekaro ,
The answer above is spot-on—just to add some extra clarity and practical details:
Why can’t free users view shared reports from Pro users?
- Power BI Pro licenses allow users to create, publish, and share reports, but for others to view shared content, they also need a Pro license—unless the content is published to a Premium workspace.
How does Premium Capacity help?
- With Power BI Premium Capacity (P SKUs or Fabric F SKUs), you can publish your reports to a Premium workspace.
- Anyone in your organization with a free (Power BI) license can then view and interact with the reports—no Pro license needed for viewers.
- Only the report creators/publishers need a Pro license.
Quick summary of what you need to do:
- Purchase a Power BI Premium (P1 or higher) or Fabric Capacity (F SKU).
- Move your reports to a Premium workspace.
- Share the reports from there—your 50 free users will be able to view them without extra licenses.
Reference:
Note:
- Power BI Premium Per User (PPU) is another licensing model, but it still requires all users (including viewers) to have a PPU license. For your scenario, Premium Capacity is the best fit.
Let us know if you need steps for assigning Premium capacity or moving workspaces—happy to help!
translation and formatting supported by AI
7 Replies
Hello rajasekaro
To let 50 free users access Power BI reports, you need to purchase Power BI Premium Capacity (e.g., P1 or Fabric F SKU). This allows free users to view reports published in a Premium workspace. Pro licenses are only needed for report creators. Sharing from a Pro license alone won’t work for free users.
Power BI service features by license type - Power BI | Microsoft Learn
Thanks,
Pankaj Namekar | LinkedInIf this solution helps, please accept it and give a kudos (Like), it would be greatly appreciated.
P1 or Fabric F SKU - price detils
Hi rajasekaro ,
The answer above is spot-on—just to add some extra clarity and practical details:
Why can’t free users view shared reports from Pro users?
- Power BI Pro licenses allow users to create, publish, and share reports, but for others to view shared content, they also need a Pro license—unless the content is published to a Premium workspace.
How does Premium Capacity help?
- With Power BI Premium Capacity (P SKUs or Fabric F SKUs), you can publish your reports to a Premium workspace.
- Anyone in your organization with a free (Power BI) license can then view and interact with the reports—no Pro license needed for viewers.
- Only the report creators/publishers need a Pro license.
Quick summary of what you need to do:
- Purchase a Power BI Premium (P1 or higher) or Fabric Capacity (F SKU).
- Move your reports to a Premium workspace.
- Share the reports from there—your 50 free users will be able to view them without extra licenses.
Reference:
Note:
- Power BI Premium Per User (PPU) is another licensing model, but it still requires all users (including viewers) to have a PPU license. For your scenario, Premium Capacity is the best fit.
Let us know if you need steps for assigning Premium capacity or moving workspaces—happy to help!
translation and formatting supported by AIHi rajasekaro ,
In Power BI, to allow users to view shared reports, everyone who needs access typically must have a Power BI Pro license, unless you are using Power BI Premium. With only two Pro licenses, your free users won't be able to view reports shared from Pro accounts.If purchasing a Pro license for every user isn't feasible, you might consider Power BI Premium Per Capacity, which allows you to assign reports to a Premium workspace. In this setup, free users within your organization can view the content as long as the reports are published to a Premium workspace. This is usually the most cost-effective solution for organizations with many report viewers. Otherwise, each user would need their own Pro license to access shared reports outside of Premium workspaces.
Hi rajasekaro
We are following up to see if you have had the chance to review the information provided. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. Could you confirm whether your query has been resolved by the solution provided by burakkaragoz and rohit1991 ? If so, kindly mark the helpful response and accept it as the solution to assist other community members in resolving similar issues more efficiently. If not, please provide detailed information so we can better assist you.
Thank You.Hi rajasekaro
I wanted to check if you had the opportunity to review the information provided. Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions. If my response has addressed your query, please accept it as a solution and give a 'Kudos' so other members can easily find it.
Thank you.Hi rajasekaro
It's been a while since we last heard from you regarding the query and were following up to check if you have found a resolution. If you find the response helpful, please mark it as the accepted solution and provide kudos, as this will help other members with similar queries.
Thank You!
