Find where a measure is used
Power BIPower BI Desktop does not list the visuals that use a measure, and lineage in the service stops at whole reports. Reading the project is the way to find them.
Power BI Desktop has no list
Power BI Desktop does not show which visuals use a measure. Answers accepted as the solution on the forum, from 2018 and 2020, say there is no built-in way to tell.
Source: Determine which measures are used in a report, How to find Impact Analysis that measure/dimension is used in which report?.
What the service shows
Lineage view shows how dashboards, reports, semantic models, dataflows and data sources connect. It needs a Pro license and the Admin, Member or Contributor role.
Impact analysis counts the reports and dashboards that a change to a semantic model might affect, and needs write permission on the model.
Both work on whole items. Neither says which measures a visual uses.
Source: Data lineage, Semantic model impact analysis.
Check a project in your browser
The Power BI Report Doctor reads a PBIP folder or .zip and lists the file and line to fix. Nothing is uploaded.
Open the project in Power BI Studio. Calculations lists each measure with the number of visuals that use it, directly or through other measures. Click one and it says how many visuals on how many pages use it, or that no visual does. It runs in your browser, so it works on a Mac with nothing installed.
Other guides
- What is a PBIP project, and what is TMDL?A Power BI project (PBIP) saves a report and its semantic model as plain text files in folders, instead of one
.pbixfile. - Power BI Desktop can't open a PBIPWhen Power BI Desktop refuses a project, the message usually names a file.
- PBIR vs PBIR-LegacyPBIR saves a report as a folder with a file for each page, visual and bookmark.
- PBIP and Git: what to commit and what to ignoreA PBIP project is plain text, so Git can track it.
- Rename a measure or column without breaking visualsReports connected live to a semantic model are not told about a rename.
- Turn a .pbix into a PBIP projectPower BI Desktop converts a .pbix to a PBIP, and back, with File > Save as.
Sources
- Microsoft forum: Determine which measures are used in a report. The question and the accepted solution, both 2018-09-26. Read 2026-11-08.
- Microsoft forum: How to find Impact Analysis that measure/dimension is used in which report?. The question and the accepted solution, both 2020-06-05. Read 2026-11-08.
- Microsoft Learn: Data lineage. The introduction and the permissions it needs. Page dated 2025-11-01. Read 2026-11-08.
- Microsoft Learn: Semantic model impact analysis. The introduction, what it counts and the permission it needs. Page dated 2025-11-01. Read 2026-11-08.