Power BI most economic formula

[PBIDev01]

Hello everyone,

I'm working in a company where I should implement Power BI in an organization.
The actual number of developers is 4, the actual number of consumers (users of reports) is  about 30.

What is the most economic formula of license I can apply in order to implement a good experience of development and sharing of Power BI reports? (I know that the premium capacity starts from 4900 $/month, so is there any better plan for this situation?)

Thank you.

[rajendraongole1 · Accepted solution]

Hi @PBIDev01 - For your organization with 4 developers and 30 consumers, the Power BI Pro licensing model may be the most cost-effective option, avoiding the high costs of Premium Capacity, while still offering a robust development and sharing experience. Here’s why and link: Power BI: Pricing Plan | Microsoft Power Platform

Power BI Pro Licensing:
Power BI Pro costs $10/user/month.
Developers (4): Each developer needs a Pro license for report development and sharing.
Consumers (30): Every consumer also needs a Pro license to view shared reports in Power BI Service, unless you upgrade to Power BI Premium.
Cost Calculation:

Developers (4): 4 Pro licenses = 4 x $10 = $40/month.
Consumers (30): 30 Pro licenses = 30 x $10 = $300/month.
Total: $40 + $300 = $340/month.
This is far more affordable than the Power BI Premium capacity starting at $4,995/month.

Power BI Premium Per User (PPU) costs $20/user/month and provides some features from Premium capacity (e.g., larger dataset sizes, AI capabilities, Paginated Reports). If the organization needs advanced Premium features but cannot afford full Premium Capacity, this can be a good middle ground.

For 4 developers + 30 consumers:

PPU Cost: 34 users x $20 = $680/month.If your consumer count grows significantly in the future or your data complexity increases, Premium Capacity might become more viable.Pro and Premium Per User (PPU) both allow sharing reports with other Pro or PPU users, but not with free users.

Hope this information helps.