Changing Dim_date from regional settings to us

[jaryszek]

Hi Guys,

I have created Dim_date table (which is imported to power bi) in this format:

but power bi is converting "Date" column automatically to my regional settings which is polish...:

Why? I want to have this in en-Us format. It is causing issues because when I am creating visuals and showing to manager in usa it is shown as polish dates...

Best,
Jacek

[v-tsaipranay]

Hi @jaryszek ,

As correctly said by @MasonMA and @ronrsnfld , Power BI does not embed fixed regional settings in .pbip or .pbix files. Visuals always reflect the viewer’s regional format, which is why the date reverts to Polish when opened locally.

To ensure your date always appears in MM/dd/yyyy format regardless of region, the best solution is to convert it to a text column using one of the following:

for Dax use the following : 

US Date = FORMAT('Dim_Date'[Date], "MM/dd/yyyy", "en-US")

In power query M:

Table.AddColumn(#"Previous Step", "US Date", each Date.ToText([Date], [Format="MM/dd/yyyy", Culture="en-US"]))

Thank you @ronrsnfld and @MasonMA for providing the information. Hope this help you out resolving your issue.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any further questions. If the response has addressed your query,  please mark the helpful reply and accept it as the solution. This will be helpful for other community members who have similar problems to solve it faster.

Thank you.

[ronrsnfld]

For a long date, you will need to add a properly formatted text column.

This can be done in either Power BI or Power query

//DAX in Power BI 
US Date = FORMAT('Table'[Column1],"MMMM d, yyyy","en-US") 

//M-Code in Power Query 
Table.AddColumn(#"Previous Step", "US Date", each Date.ToText([Column1],[Format="MMMM d, yyyy", Culture="en-US"]))

 For a short date, you can merely set the format (in Power BI) to "MM/dd/yyyy" or similar

[jaryszek]

thank you, 

i do not want to add new column if i am creating source Dim_Date table outside power bi. 
I want to just import table and see visuals in proper language which i set up. 

I tried to convert Date column using Local settings in power query but it is not working. Still shows Date column as polish one even i have this step added:

= Table.TransformColumnTypes(DateColumn, {{"Date", type date}}, "en-US")

This is possible at all?

Best,
Jacek

[ronrsnfld · Accepted solution]

That PQ function does not convert a date in a column from one type to another. (It exists to allow PQ to properly interpret a date that is presented in a format different from your local computer settings).

If you do not want to add a new column, but you still want to see dates (as actual dates and not as text representations), another option is to change your Windows Regional Settings to reflect the desired locale (US-English in this case).

You may also be able to change the locale of the file in Power BI options, but I have not tested that method.

[jaryszek]

Hi,

sorry didnt work. 
Still automatically this is converted into polish ones:

how to keep this regional setting while sharing report with bpip format?

Best,
Jacek

[MasonMA]

@jaryszek 

Power BI does not embed strict, enforced locale metadata in .pbix or .pbip files that overrides the viewer’s regional settings in Power BI Service or Power BI Desktop on a different machine.

So If you send the .pbix to someone in the US, Power BI may render visuals (like date formats) using their system or Power BI regional settings — which is usually what you want.

For the earlier one you tried, you can refer to this link from SQLBI. 

Changing the culture of a Power BI Desktop file - SQLBI

or you still worry you can hard-code formatting using Calculated column. 

Date_Formatted = FORMAT('Dim_Date'[Date], "MM/DD/YYYY")

[v-tsaipranay]

Hi  @jaryszek ,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum.

To make sure Power BI always displays dates in the US format (MM/DD/YYYY), use a locale-specific conversion in Power Query. Right-click your date column, choose Change Type → Using Locale, pick Date as the type, and set the locale to English (United States). This ensures dates are interpreted and shown correctly, no matter your system or default Power BI settings. You can also adjust the file-level locale under File → Options → Regional Settings by selecting English (United States) to keep visuals consistent. These steps should prevent the date format from changing unexpectedly.

Please refer the below image for your undersatanding

Hope this helps. Please reach out for further assistance.

If this post helps, then please consider to Accept as the solution to help the other members find it more quickly and a kudos would be appreciated.

Thank you.