Forum Discussion
Azure Maps reference layer transparency behaves differently after publishing to Power BI Service
Hello danielpmaximo27 & powerbiuser__34,
Thank you both for sharing your findings and for the detailed testing the observations around the initial render vs post-interaction behavior in Power BI Service are very helpful.
Please consider raising a Microsoft support ticket for further investigation. You can create a Microsoft support ticket using the link below: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/power-bi/support/create-support-ticketBest regards,
Ganesh Singamshetty.
Hello danielpmaximo27,
Thank you for posting your query in the Microsoft Fabric Community Forum.
I reproduced this scenario in Power BI Desktop and published the same report to Power BI Service for validation.
- Created an Azure Maps visual using latitude and longitude data for school locations.
- Added a GeoJSON reference layer representing administrative/district boundaries.
- Configured the reference layer with lighter fill colors and higher transparency.
- Used a simple GeoJSON structure and a single reference layer.
In my test, the reference layer transparency is respected in both Power BI Desktop and Power BI Service, and the base map (roads, labels, and POIs) remains visible as expected after publishing.
This suggests the behavior may be scenario-dependent, potentially influenced by GeoJSON complexity, fill colors or map configuration, rather than a general limitation of the Azure Maps visual.
try to testing with simpler GeoJSON polygons, Lighter fill colors and fewer reference layers. For your reference, I have attached the PBIX file I used to reproduce.
Best regards,
Ganesh Singamshetty.
Hi Ganesh,
I found something interesting while testing the PBIX file you shared.
After publishing the report to Power BI Service, the reference layer initially appears fully opaque. However, as soon as I click anywhere on the map (just a single click), the reference layer immediately updates and the transparency is applied correctly.
So it seems the transparency does work in the Service, but only after a user interaction with the map. Before that first click, the reference layer renders incorrectly and hides the base map details.
I recorded a short video showing this behavior to make it clearer.
This makes me think it could be a rendering or refresh issue in Power BI Service rather than something specific to the GeoJSON itself.
Thanks again for looking into this!
I am having the same issue with the transparency of reference layer is seemingly defaulted to 0% even though it is defined to different percentages of transparency in the KML file I am using in PBI. For some reason, there is no issue on PBI Desktop but when it is uploaded to PBI Service there is an issue.
I suspect that unfortunately PBI does not seem to be synced between the desktop version and Service version as I noticed in the Visualization Pane had different options for Azure Maps which was causing a different issue. This issue has subsequently resolved and the desktop version was updated after the Service version and is now in sync.
I am mentioning this to identify that this may potentially be related to visual updates to Azure Maps. Does anyone know if there is a contact that can be contacted to verify or bring this bug to the dev team?
