Microsoft Fabric vs. Power BI: Differences Enterprises Should Know

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Microsoft Fabric vs. Power BI: Microsoft offers two powerful analytics tools that serve different purposes.

“Power BI is a business intelligence powerhouse, designed to transform raw data into interactive dashboards and reports,” said Jacob Saunders, EVP of Professional Services, Atmosera. “Microsoft Fabric, on the other hand, is a full-scale enterprise analytics platform, built to centralize data.”

In this blog post, we’ll go over:

• What is Microsoft Fabric? What is Power BI?
• Microsoft Fabric vs Power BI pricing
• Which one should enterprises use?
• Data management with OneLake and Direct Lake mode

What is Microsoft Fabric vs. Power BI?

Microsoft Fabric is an all-in-one analytics resource built for enterprises that need a seamless way to move, centralize, process, transform, and visualize data. It merges multiple data services into a single, unified platform, making it a go-to solution for large-scale data management and analysis.

Power BI, on the other hand, focuses on turning raw data into interactive reports and dashboards. It’s a flexible tool designed to connect with different data sources, giving users the agility to explore insights through dynamic visualizations.

Let’s take a more in-depth look at what each can do.

Microsoft Fabric In-Depth

Microsoft Fabric is a full-scale analytics platform designed with a new approach. Instead of being built on top of Microsoft’s SQL Server proprietary engine, Fabric blends proprietary and open-source engines on the back end, and its front end evolves out of Power BI—making it instantly familiar to anyone who has worked with Microsoft’s reporting tools.

Microsoft Fabric introduces a significant shift in how users interact with enterprise analytics. Unlike the older Synapse model, which required navigating a suite of separate tools often unfamiliar to Power BI analysts, Fabric consolidates everything into a seamless, SaaS-based experience.

The main interface is built around the Power BI Service, making it immediately accessible to BI professionals already comfortable with it. This reporting-first design reduces the steep learning curve, bridging the gap between business intelligence and data engineering.

Analysts can now engage with data at a deeper level—leveraging lakehouses, pipelines, and AI-driven insights—without needing to start from scratch in an unfamiliar environment. Fabric transforms enterprise analytics by making advanced data capabilities feel like a natural extension of the Power BI experience.

Plus, Fabric provides end-to-end analytics, integrating everything from data ingestion and transformation to real-time intelligence and AI-driven insights.

Here’s what makes Fabric stand out:

• OneLake: A unified data lake that eliminates silos and centralizes storage.
• Role-specific workloads: Tailored tools for analysts, data scientists, and engineers.
• Microsoft Copilot AI support: Built-in AI assistant to simplify complex data tasks.
• Unified data management: Streamlined governance, discovery, and sharing.

Power BI In-Depth

Power BI is Microsoft’s powerhouse for business intelligence, giving you the tools to connect, analyze, and visualize data from virtually any source.

Power BI works as an ecosystem of apps and services designed to make data accessible and actionable.

Power BI is comprised of:

• Power BI Desktop: The Windows application where users build custom dashboards and reports.
• Power BI Service (SaaS): The cloud-based hub for editing, publishing, sharing, and collaborating on reports.
• Power BI mobile apps – iOS, Android, and Windows apps that let you view insights anytime, anywhere.
• Power BI Report Builder – A tool for creating paginated, print-friendly reports with precise formatting.
• Power BI Report Server – An on-premises solution for organizations that need full control over report hosting

 

Microsoft is making a big push to bring Power BI users into Fabric’s broader analytics ecosystem. If you have a Premium (P1 or higher) license, you’re automatically getting Fabric currently at no extra cost and will switch over the Fabric SKUs when your subscription renews.

You can still use Power BI as a standalone tool, but Fabric expands its capabilities, making it easier to handle larger datasets, advanced AI-driven insights, and enterprise-scale reporting.

Microsoft Fabric vs Power BI Pricing

When it comes to pricing, Microsoft Fabric and Power BI take two very different approaches. Fabric operates on a capacity-based model, while Power BI offers user-based pricing with additional options for embedded analytics. As mentioned above, Power BI Premium (the former capacity-based enterprise plan for Power BI) is replaced by Fabric’s capacity-based model.

Microsoft Fabric Pricing

Fabric uses a Capacity Unit (CU) model, where you get a shared pool of compute power that supports everything from data warehousing to insights. You can choose pay-as-you-go for flexibility or reservation pricing for significant savings—up to 41% off.

• No pre-allocating resources: Use your capacity where and when you need it.
• Auto-scaling capabilities: Adjust compute power up or down based on demand.
• Transparent cost tracking: Monitor usage through a centralized dashboard.

 

Prices start around $300/month (F2 capacity) depending on region and go up based on workload demands, with discounts available for reserved capacity. If you need enterprise-level analytics with complete data control, Fabric’s pricing model makes it cost-efficient at scale.

Power BI Pricing

Power BI’s pricing is structured for individual users and businesses that need interactive reporting without the complexity of full-scale data engineering.

• Power BI Free: Basic report creation, included in the Microsoft Fabric free account.
• Power BI Pro ($10/user/month): Share and publish reports.
• Power BI Premium Per User ($20/user/month): Enterprise-scale reporting, bigger model sizes, and more frequent data refreshes.
• Power BI Embedded – Custom pricing for embedding analytics into customer-facing applications, based on virtual core (V-core) and RAM allocations.

 

For smaller teams and organizations that primarily need data visualization, Power BI’s per-user pricing is a cost-effective option.

If you’re embedding analytics into applications, Power BI Embedded provides flexible, scalable pricing, starting at $735.91/month for A1 nodes.

 

Pricing Spotlights Microsoft Fabric vs. Power BI Pro: At $10 per user/month, Power BI Pro is a straightforward subscription model that gives businesses access to interactive dashboards and collaboration tools. Microsoft Fabric, on the other hand, follows a capacity-based pricing model rather than per-user fees. Fabric’s pricing starts at $262.80/month (F2 capacity). Microsoft Fabric vs. Power BI Premium Per User: Power BI Premium Per User (PPU) upgrades Pro with enterprise-scale capabilities, allowing users to handle larger datasets, increase refresh frequency, and leverage advanced AI features for $20/user/month. Fabric, however, takes it further. Instead of pricing per user, Fabric’s compute capacity is pooled and dynamically allocated. Pricing starts at $262.80/month for F2 capacity. Microsoft Fabric Free Trial vs. Power BI Free: Both Power BI Free and Microsoft Fabric Free Trial offer users a chance to explore analytics without a paid subscription, but their capabilities differ significantly. Power BI Free allows users to build interactive reports but does not include sharing or collaboration features—meaning reports can only be used by the creator. Microsoft Fabric’s Free Trial includes everything an F-64 SKU provides, giving users a free taste of all Fabric has to offer.

Power BI vs. Microsoft Fabric: How They Work Together

Whether you’re working with spreadsheets, databases, or cloud applications, Power BI transforms raw numbers into interactive, shareable insights that help drive decisions.

Here’s how Fabric enhances Power BI:

• OneLake integration: A centralized, secure data repository for seamless access and governance.
• Advanced data prep: Fabric Data Factory acts as the data processing engine, preparing data for consumption in Power BI and other downstream consumers, enhancing data transformation and scalability. Microsoft Fabric also leverages powerful data engines like Apache Spark to handle large-scale data transformations.
• Additional insights: While Power BI already has AI features, Fabric adds the ability to integrate even more automation, optimization, and predictive analytics AI/ML solutions.
• Enterprise-scale analytics: Power BI is great for visualizing data, and Fabric provides the infrastructure to handle massive datasets with integrated real-time processing.

Power BI vs. Microsoft Fabric: Which One Should Enterprises Use?

• Power BI is your go-to for reporting. If you need to visualize trends, create dashboards, and generate reports, Power BI is what you need.

• Fabric is for organizations that need full-scale analytics. If you’re dealing with complicated data environments, real-time processing, and insights, Fabric is the smarter choice.

If you’re using Power BI today, you’re already halfway into the Fabric ecosystem.

Microsoft is making sure of that by rolling Power BI Premium (P1 or higher) users into Fabric at no extra cost.

Data Management with Microsoft Purview

Plus, managing data across multiple platforms is complicated. Microsoft Fabric simplifies governance and visibility. With built-in integration to Microsoft Purview, businesses gain full transparency into data lineage, access, and usage, ensuring compliance and better decision-making.

Centralize Storage for Seamless Access with OneLake

OneLake eliminates data silos and duplication, providing a unified storage solution that supports open data formats like Delta Lake and Parquet. This ensures compatibility across different analytics engines while preventing vendor lock-in.

Direct Lake Mode Offers Power BI Without the Bottlenecks

Fabric’s Direct Lake Mode lets Power BI query OneLake data instantly—without copying or moving it.

• Real-time data availability—no need for scheduled refreshes.
• Faster performance—combining Import Mode speed with DirectQuery flexibility.
• Cross-platform data access—analytical engines can read and write directly in OneLake.

With Fabric’s integrated data governance, centralized storage, and high-performance access, businesses can manage, process, and analyze big data more efficiently.

Microsoft Fabric or Power BI? Choose the Right Fit for Your Business

Power BI and Microsoft Fabric aren’t competitors—they’re complementary tools.

Power BI excels at data visualization and reporting, while Fabric delivers enterprise-scale analytics, AI-driven automation, and unified data management.

If you’re already using Power BI, transitioning to Fabric could be the next step toward scalable, real-time analytics that drive smarter decision-making.

Still unsure which solution fits your business? Leverage Atmosera’s expertise to build a future-proof data strategy that maximizes your Microsoft investment.

Get expert guidance today.