Welcome to the one-stop hub with information for preparing for the PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst certification exam. Upon successful completion of the exam, you earn the Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate certification.

This hub provides information directly here (topic-by-topic), links to a number of external resources, tips for preparing for the exam, practice tests, and section questions to help you prepare. Bookmark this page and use it as a guide to ensure that you are fully covering all relevant topics for the PL-300 exam and making use of as many of the resources available as possible.

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Skills tested at a glance (as specified in the official study guide)

• Prepare the data (25–30%)
• Model the data (25–30%)
• Visualize and analyze the data (25–30%)
• Manage and secure Power BI (15–20%)

Click on each hyperlinked topic below to go to the preparation content and practice questions for that topic. And there are also 2 practice exams provided below.

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Prepare the data (25–30%)

Get or connect to data

• Identify and connect to data sources or a shared semantic model
  • Practice Questions: Identify and connect to data sources or a shared semantic model
• Change data source settings, including credentials and privacy levels
  • Practice Questions: Change data source settings, including credentials and privacy levels
• Choose between DirectQuery and Import
  • Practice Questions: Choose between DirectQuery and Import
• Create and modify parameters
  • Practice Questions: Create and modify parameters

Profile and clean the data

• Evaluate data, including data statistics and column properties
  • Practice Questions: Evaluate data, including data statistics and column properties
• Resolve inconsistencies, unexpected or null values, and data quality issues
  • Practice Questions: Resolve inconsistencies, unexpected or null values, and data quality issues
• Resolve data import errors
  • Practice Questions: Resolve data import errors

Transform and load the data

• Select appropriate column data types
  • Practice Questions: Select appropriate column data types
• Create and transform columns
  • Practice Questions: Create and transform columns
• Group and aggregate rows
  • Practice Questions: Group and aggregate rows
• Pivot, unpivot, and transpose data
  • Practice Questions: Pivot, unpivot, and transpose data
• Convert semi-structured data to a table
  • Practice Questions: Convert semi-structured data to a table
• Create fact tables and dimension tables
  • Practice Questions: Create fact tables and dimension tables
• Identify when to use reference or duplicate queries and the resulting impact
  • Practice Questions: Identify when to use reference or duplicate queries and the resulting impact
• Merge and append queries
  • Practice Questions: Merge and append queries
• Identify and create appropriate keys for relationships
  • Practice Questions: Identify and create appropriate keys for relationships
• Configure data loading for queries
  • Practice Questions: Configure data loading for queries

Model the data (25–30%)

Design and implement a data model

• Configure table and column properties
  • Practice Questions: Configure table and column properties
• Implement role-playing dimensions
  • Practice Questions: Implement role-playing dimensions
• Define a relationship’s cardinality and cross-filter direction
  • Practice Questions: Define a relationship’s cardinality and cross-filter direction
• Create a common date table
  • Practice Questions: Create a common date table
• Identify use cases for calculated columns and calculated tables
  • Practice Questions: Identify use cases for calculated columns and calculated tables

Create model calculations by using DAX

• Create single aggregation measures
  • Practice Questions: Create single aggregation measures
• Use the CALCULATE function
  • Practice Questions: Use the CALCULATE function
• Implement time intelligence measures
  • Practice Questions: Implement time intelligence measures
• Use basic statistical functions
  • Practice Questions: Use basic statistical functions
• Create semi-additive measures
  • Practice Questions: Create semi-additive measures
• Create a measure by using quick measures
  • Practice Questions: Create a measure by using quick measures
• Create calculated tables or columns
  • Practice Questions: Create calculated tables or columns
• Create calculation groups
  • Practice Questions: Create calculation groups

Optimize model performance

• Improve performance by identifying and removing unnecessary rows and columns
  • Practice Questions: Improve performance by identifying and removing unnecessary rows and columns
• Identify poorly performing measures, relationships, and visuals by using Performance Analyzer and DAX query view
  • Practice Questions: Identify poorly performing measures, relationships, and visuals by using Performance Analyzer and DAX query view
• Improve performance by reducing granularity
  • Practice Questions: Improve performance by reducing granularity

Visualize and analyze the data (25–30%)

Create reports

• Select an appropriate visual
  • Practice Questions: Select an appropriate visual
• Format and configure visuals
  • Practice Questions: Format and configure visuals
• Create a narrative visual with Copilot
  • Practice Questions: Create a narrative visual with Copilot
• Apply and customize a theme
  • Practice Questions: Apply and customize a theme
• Apply conditional formatting
  • Practice Questions: Apply conditional formatting
• Apply slicing and filtering
  • Practice Questions: Apply slicing and filtering
• Use Copilot to create a new report page
  • Practice Questions: Use Copilot to create a new report page
• Use Copilot to suggest content for a new report page
  • Practice Questions: Use Copilot to suggest content for a new report page
• Configure the report page
  • Practice Questions: Configure the report page
• Choose when to use a paginated report
  • Practice Questions: Choose when to use a paginated report
• Create visual calculations by using DAX
  • Practice Questions: Create visual calculations by using DAX

Enhance reports for usability and storytelling

• Configure bookmarks
  • Practice Questions: Configure bookmarks
• Create custom tooltips
  • Practice Questions: Create custom tooltips
• Edit and configure interactions between visuals
  • Practice Questions: Edit and configure interactions between visuals
• Configure navigation for a report
  • Practice Questions: Configure navigation for a report
• Apply sorting to visuals
  • Practice Questions: Apply sorting to visuals
• Configure sync slicers
  • Practice Questions: Configure sync slicers
• Group and layer visuals by using the Selection pane
  • Practice Questions: Group and layer visuals by using the Selection pane
• Configure drill through navigation
  • Practice Questions: Configure drill through navigation
• Configure export settings
  • Practice Questions: Configure export settings
• Design reports for mobile devices
  • Practice Questions: Design reports for mobile devices
• Enable personalized visuals in a report
  • Practice Questions: Enable personalized visuals in a report
• Design and configure Power BI reports for accessibility
  • Practice Questions: Design and configure Power BI reports for accessibility
• Configure automatic page refresh
  • Practice Questions: Configure automatic page refresh

Identify patterns and trends

• Use the Analyze feature in Power BI
  • Practice Questions: Use the Analyze feature in Power BI
• Use grouping, binning, and clustering
  • Practice Questions: Use grouping, binning, and clustering
• Use AI visuals
  • Practice Questions: Use AI visuals
• Use reference lines, error bars, and forecasting
  • Practice Questions: Use reference lines, error bars, and forecasting
• Detect outliers and anomalies
  • Practice Questions: Detect outliers and anomalies
• Use Copilot to summarize the underlying semantic model
  • Practice Questions: Use Copilot to summarize the underlying semantic model

Manage and secure Power BI (15–20%)

Create and manage workspaces and assets

• Create and configure a workspace
  • Practice Questions: Create and configure a workspace
• Configure and update a workspace app
  • Practice Questions: Configure and update a workspace app
• Publish, import, or update items in a workspace
  • Practice Questions: Publish, import, or update items in a workspace
• Create dashboards
  • Practice Questions: Create dashboards
• Choose a distribution method
  • Practice Questions: Choose a distribution method
• Configure subscriptions and data alerts
  • Practice Questions: Configure subscriptions and data alerts
• Promote or certify Power BI content
  • Practice Questions: Promote or certify Power BI content
• Identify when a gateway is required
  • Practice Questions: Identify when a gateway is required
• Configure a semantic model scheduled refresh
  • Practice Questions: Configure a semantic model scheduled refresh

Secure and govern Power BI items

• Assign workspace roles
  • Practice Questions: Assign workspace roles
• Configure item-level access
  • Practice Questions: Configure item-level access
• Configure access to semantic models
  • Practice Questions: Configure access to semantic models
• Implement row-level security roles
  • Practice Questions: Implement row-level security roles
• Configure row-level security group membership
  • Practice Questions: Configure row-level security group membership
• Apply sensitivity labels
  • Practice Questions: Apply sensitivity labels

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Practice Exams

We have provided 2 practice exams (with answer keys) to help you prepare:

• PL-300 Practice Exam 1 (60 questions with answer key)
• PL-300 Practice Exam 2 (60 questions with answer key)

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Important PL-300 Resources

• Link to the free, comprehensive, self-paced course on Microsoft Learn – Design and manage analytics solutions using Power BI
  It contains 5 Learning Paths, each with multiple Modules, and each module has multiple Units. It will take some time to do it, but we recommend that you complete this entire course, including the exercises/labs.
• Link to the certification page: Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate certification page
• Link to the study guide: Study guide for Exam PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst

• YouTube videos you will find useful:
  • Preparing for the PL-300 Certification: Exam Overview
  • How to Prepare for the PL-300 Power BI Data Analyst Associate Certification Exam
  • Conquering PL-300: Power BI Data Analyst Certification
  • Microsoft Learn YouTube video series for PL-300 – Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst

• Reddit Power BI Thread
• Datacamp’s Data Analyst in Power BI track (this is a paid service)

To Do’s:

• Schedule time to learn, study, perform labs, and do practice exams and questions
• Schedule the exam based on when you think you will be ready; scheduling the exam gives you a target and drives you to keep working on it; but keep in mind that it can be rescheduled based on the rules of the provider.
• Use the various resources above and below to learn
• Take the free Microsoft Learn practice test, any other available practice tests, and do the practice questions in each section and the two practice tests available on this hub.

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Good luck to you passing the PL-300: Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst certification exam and earning the Microsoft Certified: Power BI Data Analyst Associate certification!