How to View Measures in Power BI

Knowing where to find your measures in Power BI is the first step to understanding, troubleshooting, or enhancing a report. While they are central to any data model, measures can sometimes feel hidden if you've inherited a complex file or are just getting started. This tutorial breaks down the different ways to easily locate and view every measure in your Power BI project.

What Exactly is a Measure in Power BI?

Before hunting for measures, it's good to be clear on what they are. In Power BI, a measure is a formula created using Data Analysis Expressions (DAX) that performs a calculation on your data. Think of them as dynamic, on-the-fly calculations.

For example, a common measure is calculating total revenue. The DAX formula might look simple:

Total Revenue = SUM(Sales[SaleAmount])

When you use this "Total Revenue" measure in a chart or a table visual, Power BI calculates the sum based on the context. If you slice it by year, you see the total revenue for that year. If you filter by a specific product, the measure instantly re-calculates to show revenue just for that product.

Measures vs. Calculated Columns

It’s important to distinguish measures from calculated columns, as they can seem similar at first glance.

Calculated Column: This is a new column physically added to one of your tables. The DAX formula is calculated once for each row in the table when the data is refreshed. Its results are static and stored within your model, which increases the file size.
Measure: This is not stored physically in your tables. It’s a formula whose result is calculated only when you use it in a visual. Measures are context-dependent and are generally more efficient for aggregations (like sums, averages, counts).

The key takeaway is that measures are designed for summarizing and aggregating data in visuals, while calculated columns create new row-level data points.

Why Viewing Measures is a Critical Skill

Locating a measure’s formula isn’t just an academic exercise. It’s a core task you’ll perform frequently for several practical reasons:

Troubleshooting and Debugging: If a visual is showing an unexpected number, the first stop is almost always the measure. By viewing its DAX formula, you can check if the logic is correct, if it’s an incorrect SUM vs. an AVERAGE, or if a filter is missing.
Editing and Enhancing Reports: Business needs change. You might need to update a commission measure to reflect a new rate or add a new condition to a "Qualified Leads" calculation. To edit a measure, you first have to find it.
Learning from Existing Reports: When you take over a Power BI report built by someone else, understanding its measures is like looking under the hood. You can see how they calculated key metrics, learn new DAX techniques, and understand the business logic baked into the model.
Reusing Logic: Finding an existing measure allows you to copy its formula as a starting point for a new, slightly different calculation. This saves time and ensures consistency across your report.

4 Ways to Find and View Measures in Power BI

Power BI offers several ways to see your measures, ranging from quick glances to advanced analysis. Let's cover the most common and effective methods.

Method 1: Identify Measures in the Data Pane

This is the most direct and common way to find a measure within Power BI Desktop. The Data pane (formerly the Fields pane) lists all your tables, columns, and measures.

Measures are distinguished by a special icon: a small calculator.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

Open your report in Power BI Desktop.
On the right side of the screen, you will find the Data pane. It contains a list of all the tables in your model.
Click the small arrow next to a table name to expand it and see its contents.
Scan through the list for any names accompanied by the calculator icon. These are your measures.
To view the formula, simply click on the measure's name. The DAX code will immediately appear in the formula bar located just below the ribbon at the top of the interface.

This method works well when you know which table a measure belongs to, or when your model is relatively simple with only a few tables.

Method 2: Use the Model View for a Birds-Eye Perspective

The Model view provides a visual layout of your data model, showing tables and the relationships between them. It’s another place where you can easily spot and view measures.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

In Power BI Desktop, click on the Model view icon on the left-hand navigation bar (it looks like three connected boxes).
You'll see a diagram of all the tables in your report.
Inside each table card, there is a list of its columns and measures.
Just like in the Data pane, look for the calculator icon to identify the measures.
Clicking on a measure name in any of the table cards will select it and display its DAX formula in the formula bar at the top, just as it does in other views.

This approach can be particularly helpful for understanding which table a measure "lives" in and how it relates to other data points.

Method 3: Group Measures in a "Measure Table" (A Best Practice)

As your reports become more complex, measures can get scattered across dozens of tables, making them difficult to manage. A proven best practice is to group all your measures into a single, dedicated table, often called a "measure table" or "measures folder."

This doesn't move the calculations themselves but organizes them for easy access. If you've inherited a well-structured report, a measure table might already exist!

How to Create a "Measure Table"

First, create a brand-new, empty table that will act as a container.

Navigate to the Home tab in the Power BI ribbon.
Click the Enter data button.
A "Create Table" window will pop up. You don't need to add any data. Simply name the table. A common convention is to use a name like _Measures or "Key Metrics". The underscore pushes the table to the top of the Data pane list.
Click Load. Power BI will create a new table with a single, blank "Column1".

How to Move Measures into Your New Table

Next, move your existing (or newly created) measures into this container.

From the Data pane, select a measure you want to move.
With the measure selected, a new contextual ribbon tab called Measure tools will appear at the top.
In the "Properties" section of this ribbon, find the Home table dropdown menu.
Click the dropdown and select your new _Measures table from the list. The measure will visually move from its old table to the new one in the Data pane.
Repeat this process for all your measures.

Finalizing the Measure Table

The final, magical step is to hide the dummy column. This transforms your table into a dedicated measure group.

In the Data pane, find your _Measures table.
Right-click on Column1 and choose Hide.
As soon as the only visible column is hidden, Power BI changes the table’s icon to a group of calculators and pins it to the top of the Data pane. Now all your important formulas are in one clean, easy-to-find place.

Method 4: View All Measures with DAX Studio (For Advanced Users)

For large and complex models, hunting measures one by one isn't efficient. This is where external tools like DAX Studio come in. DAX Studio is a free and powerful tool that connects directly to your Power BI data model and allows you to browse all its metadata, including a clean list of every single measure.

Steps to Use DAX Studio:

Make sure you have DAX Studio installed (it's a free download).
Have your Power BI Desktop file open.
Open DAX Studio. It should automatically detect and display your open Power BI file in its "Connect" dialog. Select it and click Connect.
Once connected, click on the DMV tab on the left-hand side. DMVs (Dynamic Management Views) query the data model's metadata.
In the list that appears, find and double-click MDSCHEMA_MEASURES. This automatically generates a query in the main window.
Click the Run button. The results grid will instantly display a complete table of every measure in your model, including which table it belongs to and, most importantly, its full DAX expression.

This method is unbeatable for documenting a project, reviewing all measures for consistency, or quickly finding a piece of logic when you aren't sure where it is.

Final Thoughts

From a quick peek in the Data pane to organizing with a dedicated measure table or performing a full export with DAX Studio, you now have a complete toolkit for finding and viewing any measure in Power BI. Mastering these techniques will make you faster and more confident when building, troubleshooting, and managing insightful reports.

Ultimately, getting data insights shouldn't require complex tools or hunting for formulas. At Graphed, we've designed a platform that surfaces these insights for you. You can connect all your data sources and create live, interactive dashboards just by asking questions in plain English. We handle the behind-the-scenes data work so you can focus on making decisions, freeing you from writing DAX and building reports manually. You can get started with Graphed for free and spend more time acting on your data instead of just looking for it.