Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (BC) Version 26, part of the 2025 release wave 1, brings significant enhancements to its Power BI integration, making it easier than ever for businesses to unlock actionable insights from their data. With these updates, organizations can expect more intuitive data visualization, improved user experience, and greater flexibility in how they analyze and share business information.

Seamless Insights with Power BI

Power BI is Microsoft’s leading data visualization platform, enabling users to build interactive dashboards and reports based on Business Central data. The integration allows for:

• Real-time access to Business Central data, ensuring dashboards always reflect the latest information.
• The ability to drill down into data, customize visualizations, and even merge data from multiple companies within Business Central.
• Embedded Power BI reports directly within Business Central, so users can view analytics without leaving the system. For more complex dashboards, the Power BI web site offers an enhanced experience.

What’s New in Business Central Version 26 for Power BI?

Enhanced Embedded Experience

• Updated Embedded Power BI Controls: The embedded Power BI experience in BC26 has been refreshed with new controls and an improved look, making it easier to interact with reports within the Business Central web client. The new UserControlHost page type maximizes available space for embedded analytics, providing a cleaner and more focused user interface.
• FactBox Pane Redesign: The FactBox pane, which often hosts embedded Power BI reports, now sports a modern, curved-corner layout for a more contemporary feel.

Expanded Reporting Capabilities

• More Out-of-the-Box Reports: BC26 continues the trend of adding new standard Power BI reports covering finance, sales, purchasing, inventory, manufacturing, and projects. These reports are designed to provide immediate insights without the need for custom development.
• Cross-Company Reporting: Users can now create Power BI reports that merge data from different companies within Business Central, supporting consolidated analytics and group-level insights.

Improved Usability & Productivity

• Optimized Layouts: The new UserControlHost and updated controls ensure that embedded reports use screen real estate more efficiently, helping users focus on the data that matters.
• Role Explorer Enhancements: The Role Explorer and Report Explorer now display extended tooltips and allow users to open pages/reports in separate windows, streamlining navigation and learning.

Key Benefits of Power BI Integration

• Enhanced Decision-Making: Unified, real-time data enables faster, more informed decisions.
• Customizable Dashboards: Tailor reports to specific roles or departments, such as finance or sales, for targeted insights.
• Visual Storytelling: Transform complex data into clear, interactive visuals that are easy to understand and act upon.
• Productivity Boost: Employees spend less time gathering data and more time analyzing and acting on it.
• Data-Driven Culture: The seamless integration encourages everyone in the organization to use data for continuous improvement.

Getting Started: How to Use Power BI with Business Central

• Install Standard Power BI Apps: Microsoft publishes official Power BI apps for Business Central on AppSource. These apps provide ready-made dashboards for various business areas.
• Embed Reports in Business Central: Configure the system to display Power BI reports within the Business Central client, either in FactBoxes or dedicated pages.
• Create Custom Reports: Use Power BI Desktop to build your own reports and dashboards, then publish and share them with your team.

Online vs. On-Premises Support

Note: Some features, such as managing Power BI reports directly from Business Central or accessing official Power BI apps, are exclusive to the online version.

With Version 26, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central deepens its Power BI integration, delivering a more modern, flexible, and powerful analytics experience. Whether you’re a business leader seeking real-time insights or an analyst building custom dashboards, these new capabilities make it easier than ever to harness your business data for smarter, faster decision-making.

Need More Power? JourneyTeam Has You Covered

While Version 26 offers powerful built-in analytics, many organizations outgrow the standard reporting capabilities. That’s where JourneyTeam comes in. Built on Microsoft Fabric and Power BI, our JourneyTeam Analytics for Business Central delivers measurable value across multiple dimensions:

• Consolidates your data into a single source of truth
• Leverages a medallion architecture to organize data for maximum accuracy and performance
• Delivers AI-ready insights with pre-built Power BI semantic models and dashboards
• Supports cross-functional, scalable reporting with minimal IT dependency

With JourneyTeam Analytics, your team gains fast, self-service access to reliable insights—without the technical hurdles of custom development.

Has it been a minute since you dusted off your Power BI skills?  Whether you’re new to Power BI or looking to accelerate adoption, our Power BI FastStart Program offers hands-on workshops, coaching sessions, and best-practice guidance to:

• Build strong Power BI fundamentals
• Master data modeling, DAX, and visualization techniques
• Create branded, accessible, and actionable dashboards

Next Steps

If your team is ready to leverage Business Central’s awesome new features – OR needs to go beyond out-of-the-box reports and build a future-ready analytics foundation – OR you simply need to get confident with Power BI, we’re here to help.