Power BI Project (PBIP)

What is PBIP?

PBIP stands for Power BI Project. It is a project structure that organises everything that makes up a Power BI solution into separate, human-readable folders and JSON files.

A PBIP project can include:

• a report, stored in the PBIR format

• a semantic model, stored in TMDL

• project configuration files

• dataset references

• metadata and connection details

The goal is to make Power BI development feel more like working with code rather than managing a single closed PBIX file. PBIP exposes everything in a clean structure that you can edit, review and automate.

What is the relationship between PBIP and PBIR?

This is where many people get confused, because the names look similar.

Here’s the simple explanation:

• PBIR is the file format for reports.
  It defines how a report is stored and organised (pages, visuals, bookmarks, layout, settings), split into small JSON files.

• PBIP is the project format.
  It is the container that brings everything together: the PBIR report, the TMDL model, the settings and project metadata.

Think of it like this:

PBIP is the full project.
PBIR is one part of that project, the report.

You can use PBIR without PBIP (for example inside a PBIX).
But PBIP always uses PBIR as its report format.

PBIP is the umbrella. PBIR is a building block inside it.

What are the benefits of PBIP?

A real project structure
PBIP turns Power BI development into a proper software project with folders, readable files and clean separation of responsibilities.

Fits perfectly with Git
Every part of the model and report is in its own JSON file. You can see exactly what changed. Code reviews become normal.

Works with DevOps and CI/CD
PBIP finally makes automated builds, tests and deployments possible for Power BI.

Edit without opening Desktop
You can adjust measure definitions, visual settings or report elements directly in VS Code or other editors.

Better collaboration
Multiple developers can work on different parts of the project at the same time with fewer merge conflicts.

Future-proof
Microsoft is building new professional features around PBIP, PBIR and TMDL. This is where Power BI development is heading.

What can you do with PBIP?

Develop Power BI like a software project
You can use branches, pull requests and code reviews just like any other engineering team.

Automate report and model updates
Because the structure is fully open, scripts can update visuals, colours, bookmarks or measures.

Build CI/CD pipelines
Validate, test and deploy Power BI content automatically using DevOps or GitHub Actions.

Create your own tooling
PBIP makes it easier to build tools that scan, validate, refactor or audit Power BI projects.

How does PBIP look technically?

A PBIP project typically contains:

• a Report folder (PBIR)

• a Model folder (TMDL)

• a Connections folder

• a Project metadata file

• various JSON definition files

Each file is readable, versioned and can be edited manually or via scripts.

PBIP is the future format for serious Power BI development. It breaks a solution into clear parts, supports modern engineering workflows and makes collaboration easier. PBIR is one of the components inside a PBIP project, focused specifically on the report structure. Together with TMDL for the semantic model, PBIP provides a complete, transparent and scalable way to build Power BI solutions.