Interface overview (Report, Data, Model views) in Power BI - Step-by-Step Guide

Introduction

Power BI has three main views to work with your data and reports. These views help you create visuals, check your data, and manage relationships between tables. Knowing these views makes building reports easier and more organized.

When you want to design and arrange charts and visuals on report pages.

When you need to see the raw data tables imported or connected to your report.

When you want to create or edit relationships between tables to connect data.

When you want to check data types and columns in your tables.

When you want to switch between designing reports and managing data structure.

Steps

Step 1: Click

- Report view icon (left vertical pane, top icon)

The main canvas shows report pages with visuals and charts you can edit or add.

💡 This is the default view when you open Power BI Desktop.

Step 2: Click

- Data view icon (left vertical pane, middle icon)

The screen changes to show tables and their columns with data rows visible.

💡 Use this view to inspect your data and check for errors or missing values.

Step 3: Click

- Model view icon (left vertical pane, bottom icon)

You see a diagram of tables and lines showing relationships between them.

💡 Drag fields between tables here to create or edit relationships.

Before vs After

Before

Power BI Desktop opens showing a blank report canvas with no visuals.

After

User clicks Data view icon and sees tables with data rows and columns loaded from the data source.

Settings Reference

View selection icons

📍 Left vertical pane in Power BI Desktop

Switch between designing reports, viewing data tables, and managing data relationships.

Default: Report view

Table relationships

📍 Model view

Connect tables to enable combined data analysis.

Default: No relationships initially

Common Mistakes

Trying to edit data directly in Report view.

Report view only shows visuals, not raw data tables.

Switch to Data view to inspect or explore raw data tables.

Not creating relationships in Model view when needed.

Without relationships, visuals combining multiple tables may show incorrect results.

Use Model view to create relationships between tables before building complex reports.

Summary

Power BI has three main views: Report, Data, and Model.

Report view is for creating and arranging visuals on pages.

Data view lets you see and check your raw data tables.

Model view helps you manage relationships between tables.

Switching views helps organize your work and build accurate reports.

Practice

1. Which Power BI view is primarily used to create visuals and reports?

easy

A. Query View

B. Data View

C. Model View

D. Report View

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of Report View

   Report View is designed for creating visuals and reports in Power BI.

2. Step 2: Compare with other views

   Data View is for managing data tables, Model View is for managing relationships, and Query View does not exist as a main view.

3. Final Answer:

   Report View -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   Report View = Create visuals and reports [OK]

Hint: Report View = visuals and reports creation [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing Data View with Report View
• Thinking Model View is for visuals
• Selecting a non-existent Query View

2. Which of the following is the correct way to switch to Data View in Power BI?

easy

A. Click the table icon on the left pane

B. Click the chart icon on the left pane

C. Click the relationship icon on the left pane

D. Click the gear icon on the top menu

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify the icon for Data View

   Data View is accessed by clicking the table icon on the left pane in Power BI.

2. Step 2: Verify other icons

   The chart icon is for Report View, the relationship icon is for Model View, and the gear icon is for settings, not views.

3. Final Answer:

   Click the table icon on the left pane -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Table icon = Data View [OK]

Hint: Table icon = Data View [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Clicking chart icon instead of table icon
• Confusing relationship icon with Data View
• Looking for Data View in settings

3. In Model View, you create a relationship between two tables. What is the main effect of this action?

medium

A. It allows filtering data across related tables

B. It changes the data values in the tables

C. It creates a new visual report automatically

D. It deletes duplicate rows from tables

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of relationships in Model View

   Relationships connect tables to allow data filtering and aggregation across them.

2. Step 2: Eliminate incorrect effects

   Relationships do not change data values, create visuals, or delete rows.

3. Final Answer:

   It allows filtering data across related tables -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Relationships enable cross-table filtering [OK]

Hint: Relationships enable filtering between tables [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking relationships change data values
• Expecting automatic visual creation
• Confusing relationships with data cleaning

4. You tried to create a relationship in Model View but it failed. Which of these is a likely cause?

medium

A. The Data View is empty

B. You are in Report View instead of Model View

C. The tables have no common columns with matching data

D. You have too many visuals on the report page

Solution

1. Step 1: Check relationship requirements

   Relationships require common columns with matching data types and values.

2. Step 2: Evaluate other options

   Being in Report View or having many visuals does not prevent creating relationships; empty Data View means no data but not necessarily failure cause.

3. Final Answer:

   The tables have no common columns with matching data -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Common columns needed for relationships [OK]

Hint: Relationships need matching columns in tables [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Trying to create relationships in wrong view
• Blaming visuals for relationship errors
• Ignoring data type mismatches

5. You want to create a report showing sales by product category and also filter by customer region. Which Power BI views will you use to prepare and build this report?

hard

A. Report View only, because it handles all tasks

B. Data View to check data, Model View to create relationships, Report View to build visuals

C. Model View only, because relationships create visuals

D. Data View only, because it shows all data

Solution

1. Step 1: Prepare data in Data View

   Check and clean data tables for sales, products, and customers in Data View.

2. Step 2: Create relationships in Model View

   Set relationships between product and customer tables to enable filtering by region.

3. Step 3: Build report visuals in Report View

   Use Report View to create charts showing sales by product category and apply filters.

4. Final Answer:

   Data View to check data, Model View to create relationships, Report View to build visuals -> Option B

5. Quick Check:

   Use all three views for data prep, modeling, and reporting [OK]

Hint: Use Data, Model, and Report views together [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using only Report View for all tasks
• Ignoring relationships in Model View
• Skipping data checks in Data View