Power BI provides a variety of built-in charts for visualizing data. Creating these charts is quick and easy, typically requiring just a few clicks.
Among these charts, the Power BI Pie Chart is frequently used when you need to represent the percentage of the whole dataset.
This tutorial will cover a Power BI pie chart and how to create a Power BI Pie Chart in Power BI Desktop. If you’re experiencing issues with your Power BI pie chart not showing, we’ll address and resolve these steps.
But this tutorial is not just about creating the Pie chart; I will also cover some of the formatting available in the Power BI Pie chart like:
- Format Size and style in Power BI Pie chart
- Format Legend in Power BI Pie chart
- Format Header Icons in the Power BI Pie chart
- Format Tooltips in the Power BI Pie chart
Power BI Pie Chart
The Power BI pie chart is a circular graph or visual that represents the percentage of the dataset, where each “slice” represents a percentage of the whole. It’s utilized when you visually represent the percentage of various categories in a report.
Example – 1:
If you have a product and you sell it in various regions, the pie chart displays the sales distribution across those regions. Check the screenshot below.
Example – 2:
You have different product categories and the total sales for each category. The pie chart shows the sales distribution across these categories. Check the screenshot below.
How to Create a Power BI Pie Chart
I will show you how to create a Power BI pie chart in a Power BI report. If you’re new to Power BI, explore our Power BI Tutorials for more guidance.
Scenario:
Imagine you own a small ice cream shop. You offer various flavors of ice cream, including chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, mint chocolate chip, cookie dough, etc.
You want to analyze which flavors are the most popular among your customers to understand their preferences better.
In this case, keep track of your ice cream sales for the past month, recording the number of scoops sold for each flavor.
Now, you want to visualize this data using a Pie Chart in Power BI to see easily which flavor is most in demand.
According to this scenario, we have a SharePoint list named Ice Cream Sales Data that contains the following columns with various data types:
| Columns | Data Types |
|---|---|
| Ice Cream Flavor | Single line of text |
| Number of Scoops Sold | Number |
Follow the below steps to create a Power BI pie chart:
1. Open Power BI Desktop and load the data. Then, you see data in the Data pane.
2. Under the Home tab, expand Visual gallery(black box) -> Click the Pie chart.
3. Then, use the +Add data option to add Ice Cream Flavor into Legend and Number of Scoops Sold into the Values field.
4. After that, you can see the Power BI Pie chart. Check the screenshot below.
This way, you can create a Power BI pie chart.
Power BI Pie Chart not Showing
If you create a pie chart in a Power BI report and find that the chart isn’t visible, it’s essential to check the Values field. Ideally, the Values field should not be blank but contain a value for the chart to display correctly.
In the screenshot below, you can observe that I left the Values field empty.
After I added the Number of Scoops Sold into the Values field, the pie chart appeared as expected.
I hope you understand. When creating a pie chart, it is essential to add your value to the Values field for the chart to display properly.
Power BI Pie Chart Formatting
Now we see how to add basic formatting to the Power BI pie chart.
Two types of formatting are available in the pie charts: Visual formatting and Properties formatting.
- In Visual formatting, there are six available formats: Size and style, Title, Legend, Slices, Detail labels, and Rotation.
- In Properties formatting, there are four available formats: Header icons, Tooltips, Alt text, and Advanced options.
Now we see one by one how it works:
Format Size and style in Power BI Pie chart
With Power BI Pie chart Size and Style formatting options, you can adjust the size and position of the chart. This includes modifying padding, adding background color, inserting a visual border, and applying shadow effects. Check the screenshot below.
Format Title in Power BI Pie chart
Power BI Pie chart Title formatting options allow us to name our pie chart using Title and Subtitle options. Additionally, we can insert a Divider and adjust the Spacing between the divider and the header.
Format Legend in Power BI Pie chart
In the Power BI Pie chart, the legend formatting options enable us to change the position of the legend text. Additionally, we can alter the legend title, adjust the text color, and modify the text font using the legend formatting.
Format Slices in Power BI Pie chart
Using the slicer formatting option, we can change the color of a specific slice in a Power BI Pie chart.
Format Detail Labels in the Power BI Pie chart
Power BI Detail label formatting offers additional information on the slices of the pie chart. We can adjust various aspects such as position, color, font size, font family, value decimal places, and percentage decimal places.
Format Rotation in the Power BI Pie chart
Using this formatting option, we can rotate our pie chart.
Format Header Icons in the Power BI Pie chart
With the header icon formatting in Power BI, we can customize the background, border, and icon colors in the header icons. Additionally, we can adjust the transparency of the header icons and choose how many icons are displayed in the Pie chart header section.
Format Tooltips in the Power BI Pie chart
A small dialog box appears when hovering over a pie chart slice. With tooltip formatting, we can customize various aspects, including this dialog box’s background color, font, label color, and value color.
Format Alt text in the Power BI Pie chart
Alt text for people who can’t see the chart or visuals.
These are the important formats presented in the Power BI Pie chart.
What is Power BI Pie Chart Group Small Values
In Power BI, when we create a pie chart to show data, sometimes we have small pieces that are hard to see. To clarify, we can group these small pieces into one category. This way, our pie chart is easier to read.
The left side pie chart shows the small pieces. After adding these pieces into one group, the pie chart looks like the right side.
How to Create a New Group in Power BI Pie Chart
We will see how to create a new group in the Power BI Pie chart.
We have a SharePoint list used for this pie chart example. The SharePoint list contains the columns below with various data types. See the screenshot below:
| Columns | Data Types |
|---|---|
| Region | Single line of text |
| Product ID | Single line of text |
| Product Name | Single line of text |
| Sales | Currency |
| Quantity | Number |
| Discount | Number |
| Profit | Currency |
I hope you open Power BI Desktop and load the data using the get data option.
1. Here, I have created a pie chart. The “Legend” field contains the Product Name, and the “Values” field contains the Sum of Quantity data.
2. In the ‘Legend’ field, “Product Name” is present; click the right-side down arrow. Then, a dialog box is opened. In this box, click the “New group” option. Check out the screenshot below.
3. Then another dialog box, “Groups,” opened. Here, you can create a group. Let’s create a group. Enter the group name, like ‘Potz,’ Then select the item by “ctrl + click” like ‘Aeromint Potz,’ and ‘Rolo Potz.’ Click the Group option.
4. Then, in the “Groups and members” section, group members are displayed. Click “OK” to create a group. If you remove the member, click on the member and click the Ungroup option.
5. Our group is created in the “Data” panel, “Potz.” Now drag the “Potz” into the Legend field. Check out the screenshot below.
You can create a group in the Power BI Pie chart.
Power BI Add Category Other to Charts
Here, we see how to add other categories to the Power BI pie chart. Now, we create an ‘Other’ category in the same window and do the below steps.
1. Click the down arrow under the Visualizations panel -> click Edit groups.
2. The Groups dialog box opens. In this, check the Include Other group checkbox. Now, the other group contains all ungrouped values. Then click on ‘OK‘.
Now we successfully add the other category to the pie chart.
In this way, you can add other categories to the pie chart.
Add Power BI Pie Chart Group Small Values
Now, we will see how to group small values in the Power BI pie chart.
For example:
We have a pie chart that shows the ‘Sum of Quantity by Product.’
In the Pie chart, Aubergine, Courgette, and Eggplant are in small quantities. We add these three products to one group. Check out the screenshot.
Now, go to the Groups dialog box. Select “Aubergine,” “Courgette,” and “Eggplant” in a group, then click ‘OK.’Now, see the result.
Now you can see the small slice in a group.
In this way, you can group small values in the Power BI pie chart.
Power BI Pie Chart Multiple Values
We can display two values simultaneously in the Power BI Pie chart.
To do this, In the Visualizations pane, click the Pie chart -> Then drag and drop Product Name into the Legend field. -> Next, drag and drop Profit and Sales into the Values fields.
You can see a white line separating the slice into Sales and Profit. You can see details in the tooltips when you hover over the slice.
You can display a Power BI pie chart with multiple values.
Power BI Pie Chart On Map
A Power BI Pie Chart On Map is a visual representation that combines a map with pie charts. It displays data as pie charts overlaid on specific locations, providing insight into the distribution of values across geographical areas.
Refer to the image below for how it looks:
Create Power BI Pie Chart On Map
Now, we will see how to create a Power BI pie chart on a map.
Scenario:
Let’s say you own a chain of restaurants in different cities across the country. You want to visualize the distribution of sales by food category (such as Appetizers, Main Courses, and Desserts) in each city to identify which types of food are most popular in different regions.
In this scenario, using Power BI, we can create a Pie Chart on a map, where each slice of the pie represents a food category, and the size of the slice corresponds to the proportion of sales for that category in each city.
According to this scenario, we have a SharePoint list named City Food Sales Summary that contains the following columns with various data types:
| Columns | Data Types |
|---|---|
| City | City |
| Latitude | Number |
| Longitude | Number |
| Food Category | Single line of text |
| Sales | Currency |
Follow the below steps to create a Power BI pie chart on the map:
1. Open Power BI Desktop and load data using the Get data option. Then, we can see the data set in the Data Panel.
2. Under the Home tab, expand Visual gallery (black box) -> Click the Map visual.
3. If you face an Error: “Map and filled map visuals aren’t enabled for your org. Contact your tenant admin to fix this.” follow the steps below. If you do not face any errors, move directly to step 7.
4. To solve this error, go to File -> click Options and Settings -> Click Options. Check the screenshot below.
5. Now, you see the Options dialog box. Then click the Security option and check the Map and Filled Map visuals checkbox. Click on OK.
6. After that, go to the Power BI Admin portal. You have enabled the “Map and filled map visuals.” Click on Apply; after 15 minutes, you can use it.
In this way, you can fix the map error in Power BI Desktop.
I hope you are not facing any errors or have solved the error now.
7. After that you can see one blank map visual added in the report view.
8. Then, use the +Add data option to add City into Location, Food Category into Legend, and Sales into Bubble size.
9. You can now see the Power BI pie chart in the map visual.
This visualization helps you quickly understand the preferences of customers in different areas.
So this way, you can create a Power BI pie chart on the map visual.
Power BI Pie Chart Conditional Formatting
The first image displays a Power BI Pie chart with default slice colors. I want to change the Pie chart slice color with conditions.
After applying the conditional formatting, the Pie chart will display with color slicers, as shown in the second image.
How to Apply Conditional Formatting in Power BI Pie Chart
I will tell you how to apply conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie chart. As I told you, we have other ways to apply conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie charts, i.e., using the Power BI Bar chart.
Follow the instructions below to apply conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie chart:
- Create a bar chart in Power BI.
- Apply conditional formatting to the bar chart in Power BI.
- Change the bar chart to a pie chart in Power BI.
Create a bar chart in Power BI
I have a SharePoint list (Amazongo) that contains below columns with various data types:
| Columns | Data Types |
|---|---|
| Order Date | Date and time |
| Customer Name | Single line of text |
| Sate | Single line of text |
| Product Name | Single line of text |
| Category | Single line of text |
| Sub-Category | Single line of text |
| Sales | Currency |
| Profit | Currency |
1. Open Power BI Desktop and load the data set. Then, in the Data pane, you can see your data set.
1. Under the Visualizations pane, click the Stacked column chart. Then, drag the Sub-Category into the X-axis field and Profit into the Y-axis field.
Apply Conditional Formatting to the Bar Chart in Power BI
1. In the Visualizations pane, click on the Format your visual ->click Columns ->click fx. Check out the screenshot below.
2. Then, the Color – Categories dialog box opens. In this box, select Format style -> Gradient and What field should we base this on? -> Profit.
3. Then, choose a color from the highlight box dropdown below. Then click OK.
4. Finally, conditional formatting is applied in the Stacked column chart.
Change the Bar chart to a Pie chart in Power BI
1. Select the Stacked column chart -> under the Visualizations pane, and click Pie chart.
2. The Power BI Pie chart will last appear with the conditional formatting below.
Now, our Power BI Pie chart has conditional formatting.
Power BI Pie Chart Conditional Coloring Based on the Rules
Power BI Pie chart conditional coloring based on the rules means you can set up rules to automatically change the colors of different pie slices based on their values.
We can see the pie chart was formatted conditionally on Power BI. Apart from that, we can also format the pie chart by rules. To do this, follow the below steps.
1. Under the Visualizations pane, click the Stacked column chart. Then, drag the Sub-Category into the X-axis field and Profit into the Y-axis field.
2. Under the Visualizations panel, click Format your visual -> select Visual -> Expand Columns -> click fx.
3. Then, the Color – Categories dialog box opens. In this box, select Format style -> Rules and What field should we base this on? -> Profit. Next, add some Rules using the + New rule. After that, click OK.
4. Finally, conditional formatting is applied in the Stacked column chart based on rules.
5. Select the column chart, then click the pie chart in the Visualizations panel. Then, the Power BI Pie visual looks like the screenshot below.
This way, we can format our pie chart based on the rules in Power BI Desktop.
Power BI Pie Chart Conditional Formatting Using DAX
Next, we will see how to apply conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie chart using DAX.
After applying the conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie chart, the Pie chart looks like this:
First, we need to create a measure to do this by following the below steps:
1. Under the Home tab, click on the New measure.
2. In the Formula bar, put below the DAX expression. Then click commit.
Total Profit = SUM(Amazongo[Profit])
3. I create another measure. Then, in the Formula bar, put it below the DAX expression. Then click commit.
Conditional Formatting = IF([Total Profit] >= 150,"Green","Red")
4. Under the Visualizations pane, click the Stacked column chart. Then, drag the Sub-Category into the X-axis field and Profit into the Y-axis field.
5. In the Visualizations pane, click on the Format your visual ->click Columns ->click fx. Check out the screenshot below.
6. Then, the Color – Categories dialog box opens. In this box, select Format style -> Find value. Then, select What field should we base this on? -> Conditional Formatting. Then click OK.
7. Select the Stacked column chart -> under the Visualizations pane, and click Pie chart.
8. Then you see the Pie chart conditional formatting applied.
You can apply conditional formatting in the Power BI Pie Chart using DAX.
Now, I hope you know the Power BI Pie chart basics.
In this tutorial, we covered what a Power BI pie chart is and how to create one. Additionally, we discussed the steps for when a Power BI pie chart is not showing.
We also explored Power BI Pie chart formatting options, including how to format the title, slices, and detail labels in a Power BI pie chart.
Also, you may like some more Power BI articles:
- Create Power BI Pie Chart On Map
- Power BI Pie Chart Group Small Values
- Drill Down Or Drill UP in Power BI Pie Chart
Preeti Sahu is an expert in Power Apps and has over six years of experience working with SharePoint Online and the Power Platform. She is the co-author of Microsoft Power Platform: A Deep Dive book. As a Power Platform developer, she has worked on developing various tools using Power Apps and Power Automate. She also makes Microsoft 365 videos and shares them on YouTube.
