Top Power BI Interview Questions in India Every Analyst Should Know (2025 Edition)

You’ve built your dashboards, explored DAX, and maybe even automated a few reports — but when it comes to Power BI interviews, the real test begins.

Across India, from Chennai to Bengaluru and Gurugram to Pune, companies like TCS, Accenture, Deloitte, Infosys, and HCL are actively hiring Power BI professionals. And what they’re really looking for isn’t just tool knowledge — it’s analytical thinking, practical DAX skills, and clarity in explaining how you solve data problems.

If you’re preparing for a Power BI role in India, here are the 10 most common and high-impact Power BI interview questions — along with smart ways to answer them.

1. What is Power BI and Why Do Companies Use It?

What they’re testing: Your ability to explain Power BI in business terms.

Answer:

Power BI is Microsoft’s business analytics tool used to visualize data, build dashboards, and make data-driven decisions. It connects with multiple data sources — Excel, SQL Server, SharePoint, SAP, and even cloud tools — to give real-time insights.
 

Tip: Add a short example — “At my previous role, I used Power BI to track sales performance across regions — it helped our team make faster decisions.”

2. What’s the Difference Between Power BI Desktop, Service, and Mobile?

Why it’s asked: Employers want to know you understand the workflow.

Answer:

1. Power BI Desktop: Used to design and build reports.

2. Power BI Service: Cloud platform to publish, share, and automate reports.

3. Power BI Mobile: Lets users access dashboards on the go.
 

Many Indian companies, especially in BFSI and retail, use Desktop for report creation and Service for management dashboards across departments.

3. What’s the Difference Between a Calculated Column and a Measure?

This is one of the most frequently asked Power BI questions in Indian interviews.

Answer:

A calculated column is stored in the table and evaluated row by row, while a measure is calculated dynamically based on the filter context in visuals.
 

Example: “If I want profit margins to change dynamically by region, I’ll use a measure — not a column.”

Bonus Tip: Mention that measures are more efficient than calculated columns — it shows you understand model performance.

4. Explain Different Types of Filters in Power BI.

What to say:

1. Visual-level filters – Apply to one visual only.

2. Page-level filters – Apply to all visuals on a page.

3. Report-level filters – Apply to the entire report.

4. Drill-through filters – Used to navigate to detailed pages.

5. Slicers – User-friendly way to filter data interactively.
 

Interview angle: In India, employers often follow up with, “What’s the difference between a filter and a slicer?” — be ready for that!

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5. How Do You Handle Relationships Between Tables?

Answer:

Power BI uses relationships to connect data tables using keys (like CustomerID or ProductID). I ensure the right cardinality (one-to-many or many-to-one) and avoid bi-directional filters unless necessary.
 

Mentioning that you use a star schema (fact and dimension tables) adds strong credibility — it’s a best practice many Indian IT firms look for.

6. What Are the Most Common DAX Functions Used in Power BI?

Answer:
List examples by category:

1. Aggregation: SUM, AVERAGE, COUNTROWS

2. Logical: IF, SWITCH

3. Filter: CALCULATE, FILTER, ALL

4. Time Intelligence: SAMEPERIODLASTYEAR, DATESYTD
 

Add: “CALCULATE is the most powerful DAX function — it changes the filter context and enables deeper insights.”

Real tip: In Indian interviews, they may ask you to write a small DAX expression or explain context transition, so prepare examples.

7. How Can You Improve Power BI Performance?

Performance questions are now very common in mid-level interviews.
You can say:

1. Use measures instead of calculated columns.

2. Import only necessary data.

3. Use star schema instead of flat tables.

4. Avoid columns with high cardinality.

5. Enable incremental refresh for large data sources.
 

Add a practical note: “I’ve optimized dashboards that loaded in under 5 seconds after restructuring data models.”

8. What is Row-Level Security (RLS) in Power BI?

Answer:

RLS restricts data access for users based on roles. For example, a South Zone manager can only view South Zone data. It’s configured in Power BI Desktop and applied in the Service.
 

In Indian organizations with multiple branches, RLS is a key feature for ensuring secure, region-wise reporting.

9. What’s the Difference Between Import, DirectQuery, and Live Connection?

Answer:

1. Import Mode: Fastest; stores data in Power BI.

2. DirectQuery: Queries the source in real time — used for large databases.

3. Live Connection: Connects to external models like SSAS or Azure.
 

Many companies using SQL Server prefer DirectQuery for large transactional datasets, especially in BFSI and telecom sectors.

10. How Do You Publish and Share Reports in Power BI?

Answer:

Reports are built in Power BI Desktop and published to Power BI Service. From there, you can share via dashboards, apps, or embed reports into Teams or SharePoint.
 

Tip: Mention governance or access control — Indian corporates often ask, “How do you manage report access for different departments?”

Bonus: Power BI Interview Trends in India (2025)

In 2025, Indian companies are not just testing technical skills — they’re evaluating how you use Power BI to solve business problems.

Expect scenario-based questions like:

• “How would you calculate month-on-month growth?”
• “How can you automate report refreshes?”
• “How do you handle data coming from multiple Excel files?”

Roles such as Business Analyst, Power BI Developer, and MIS Reporting Analyst are in high demand, with salaries ranging from ₹6–14 LPA depending on your DAX depth and project experience.

Final Thoughts

Power BI interviews in India test more than your technical skill — they reveal how you think, how you connect data with business outcomes, and how efficiently you can communicate insights. If you can explain your dashboards clearly and use DAX with logic, you’re already ahead of most candidates.
 

Build Job-Ready Power BI Skills with ExcelGoodies India

If you’re looking to prepare not just for interviews, but for real-world Power BI projects, explore the Power BI Training by ExcelGoodies MCTs.
 

It’s a hands-on, live training program designed to help professionals master DAX, data modeling, and automation through practical business scenarios — the same skills top employers look for.

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