Reduce PBIX file size

1) Reduce rows (this has the biggest impact)

Column removal helps, but row count matters much more.

Do this in SQL, not in Power BI:

• Filter by date (e.g. last 2–3 years instead of full history)

• Aggregate in SQL if you don’t need transaction-level detail

• Avoid SELECT *

2) Check cardinality killers

Certain columns explode memory usage even if they look harmless:

• Replace text keys with integer surrogate keys

• Split datetime into Date (keep) and Time (remove if not needed)

• Move long text columns to a detail table or remove them entirely

3) Disable Auto Date/Time

Auto Date/Time silently creates hidden date tables per column, increasing size.

Power BI Desktop → Options → Data Load

• Uncheck Auto Date/Time

Then refresh and save again.

4) Remove unused tables, measures, and visuals

Often overlooked:

• Unused tables still consume memory

• Hidden columns still consume memory

• Complex visuals don’t affect PBIX size much, but calculated columns do

• Replace calculated columns with measures