Thirteen situations, each with the recommendation we would start from, the reasoning, the cost at Canadian list prices, and what would be checked before anything is bought. Terms are explained in Concepts Explained. Prices come from the pricing reference.
All monthly figures are Microsoft list prices as of 22 September 2026 in Canadian dollars for the Canada Central region, before tax, with one-year reservations for any capacity. They change without notice. Wherever a capacity appears, its size is a starting point that we confirm by measuring the workload.
A small team with invoices
Situation. Five people build reports, 25 people read them. Daily sales and finance reporting, refreshed four times a day, with invoices produced as print-ready documents. All datasets are well under 1 GB.
Recommendation. Pro for all 30 people, minus anyone who already holds Microsoft 365 E5.
Why. Everything here fits Pro: the data is small, four refreshes a day is within the limit of eight, and invoice-style documents (paginated reports) are a Pro feature.
Cost. 30 Pro licences: CAD 570 a month. For comparison, an F64 capacity plus five Pro would be CAD 7,798.
Checked first. How many of the 30 already have E5.
An analytics team with a large dataset
Situation. Ten analysts build, 35 colleagues read. One dataset is 4 GB when loaded, refreshed every 30 minutes, and the analysts use external modelling software that connects to the model.
Recommendation. PPU for all 45 people.
Why. Pro does not work here: the dataset exceeds 1 GB, 30-minute refresh means 48 a day, and the external-tool connection is a Premium feature. Everyone who opens content in a PPU workspace needs PPU, so the readers are licensed too. A Fabric capacity could do the same job, but the sizes that fit 4 GB cost more than PPU for 45 people.
Cost. 45 PPU licences: CAD 1,467 a month. The capacity alternatives: F16 plus 45 Pro at CAD 2,781 (and 4 GB may exceed F16's 5 GB ceiling during refresh), or F32 plus 45 Pro at CAD 4,706.
Checked first. The dataset's peak memory during refresh, to confirm it stays within PPU's 100 GB ceiling, and how many of the 45 already hold Pro or E5, since they move to PPU at the add-on price.
A large audience with large data
Situation. Twelve people build, 600 people read. The largest dataset is about 20 GB when loaded, refreshed every two hours. Nobody holds a licence today.
Recommendation. A Fabric capacity plus Pro for the 12 publishers, with viewers on the Free licence, if measurement shows a capacity qualifies. The size is not yet known. F64 and F128 are the candidates to test.
Why. Pro alone is ruled out because the data exceeds 1 GB. PPU for 612 people would work but is the most expensive option. F64 is the smallest capacity that lets viewers read for free, and its 25 GB ceiling might hold a 20 GB model, but refresh can push a model well above its loaded size, so F64 has to be proven before it is bought. F128 has a 50 GB ceiling and is the next candidate, and it needs the same proof. If neither qualifies, a larger capacity would change the comparison.
Cost. F64 plus 12 Pro: CAD 7,931. F128 plus 12 Pro: CAD 15,633. PPU for 612: CAD 19,951. Either capacity costs less than PPU if it qualifies; a larger required capacity might not.
Checked first. Peak memory of the 20 GB model during refresh, and a load test with 600 viewers on a trial capacity, for each candidate size before any is recommended.
A mid-sized Canadian organization
Situation. Five people build, 350 people read. Standard reporting, small datasets, nobody licensed today.
Recommendation. Pro for all 355 people.
Why. At US prices, Pro and F64 cost about the same for this many viewers. At Canadian prices, Pro for everyone is still cheaper than F64 plus Pro for the publishers. The break-even point is a little over 400 unlicensed viewers.
Cost. 355 Pro: CAD 6,745. F64 plus 5 Pro: CAD 7,798.
Checked first. Nothing beyond confirming the headcount and that no one already holds E5.
The same organization, mostly on E5
Situation. As in D, but 300 of the 355 people already hold Microsoft 365 E5, including all five publishers.
Recommendation. Pro for the 55 people who are not on E5.
Why. E5 includes Pro, so 300 people cost nothing extra. Capacity would replace only 55 licences, so it costs far more.
Cost. 55 Pro: CAD 1,045. An F64 would be CAD 7,703 for no benefit.
Checked first. The E5 assignments in the Microsoft 365 admin center.
A dataset too big for F64
Situation. Eight people build, 400 people read, and one dataset is 40 GB when loaded.
Recommendation. PPU for all 408 people is the leading candidate, provided measurement confirms the model's peak memory stays within PPU's 100 GB ceiling. If the organization also wants free viewing or the Fabric data platform, the candidates are F128 and F256, each to be tested.
Why. F64's 25 GB ceiling rules it out however many viewers there are. PPU handles up to 100 GB and is the cheapest option eligible on the facts known. F128 (50 GB) may hold a 40 GB model but could fail during refresh. F256 (100 GB) has more headroom and still needs its peak confirmed.
Cost. PPU for 408: CAD 13,301. F128 plus 8 Pro: CAD 15,557. F256 plus 8 Pro: CAD 30,963. These figures hold only for the options that qualify.
Checked first. Peak memory of the 40 GB model during refresh, and whether the model can be made smaller by removing columns or summarizing detail, which often costs less than a larger licence or capacity.
Reports inside a customer-facing application
Situation. A software company shows reports to thousands of its own customers inside its web application. The application signs in to Power BI with its own identity, and customers never see Power BI itself.
Recommendation. A Fabric capacity sized to the traffic, plus Pro for the staff who build the reports. Customers need no licence.
Why. When the application authenticates to Power BI on the customers' behalf, Microsoft requires no licence for the people viewing. The cost is the capacity, sized by how many customers use it and when.
Cost. From CAD 241 a month for an F2 reservation upward, decided by measured load. A pay-as-you-go capacity can be paused outside business hours.
Checked first. How the application authenticates to Power BI, active hours, and peak concurrent users.
A data platform pilot for a team already on Pro
Situation. A data team wants to build a lakehouse, notebooks, and pipelines in Fabric and report on the results to 20 colleagues who already hold Pro.
Recommendation. A small Fabric capacity, F2 to F32, sized during the pilot. Keep the existing Pro licences.
Why. The data platform requires a Fabric capacity of some size. Free viewing starts at F64, but 20 people already hold Pro, so paying for F64 to save 20 licences would cost far more than it saves.
Cost. F2 reservation CAD 241 to F32 reservation CAD 3,851, depending on what the pilot measures. No new per-person licences.
Checked first. Capacity consumption during the pilot, using the Capacity Metrics app or the free 60-day trial.
Copilot and nothing else from Fabric
Situation. Four people build, 30 read, small datasets. The organization wants Copilot in Power BI.
Recommendation. An F2 reservation plus Pro for all 34 people.
Why. Copilot needs a Fabric capacity of any size. F2 is the smallest and is enough to switch it on. The F2 can also be designated as the capacity that bills Copilot for named users, so the reports can stay in their existing Pro workspaces.
Cost. F2 reservation CAD 241 plus 34 Pro CAD 646: CAD 887 a month.
Checked first. How heavily Copilot will be used. Each question consumes capacity, and an F2 shared with reporting has limited headroom.
Reports that must stay on the organization's own servers
Situation. Regulatory or network rules require reports to run on premises.
Recommendation. Power BI Report Server, licensed through whichever entitlement the organization already holds or can most cheaply acquire.
Why. Report Server is the on-premises version of Power BI. Its licence comes with a Fabric F64 reservation, with existing Premium capacity, or with SQL Server 2025 Standard or Enterprise core licences. Pro, PPU, and pay-as-you-go capacity do not include it.
Cost. Depends on the route. An F64 reservation is CAD 7,703 a month; SQL Server licensing may already be in place.
Checked first. Existing SQL Server licences and their version.
One person who needs frequent refresh
Situation. One analyst builds reports for their own use only and needs the data refreshed twelve times a day.
Recommendation. One PPU licence.
Why. The Free licence allows eight automatic refreshes a day, the same as Pro. Twelve requires PPU, which allows 48. Nobody else views the reports, so one licence covers it.
Cost. CAD 32.60 a month.
Checked first. That the data stays under PPU's 100 GB ceiling.
Data that must stay in two regions
Situation. Twenty people build, 150 read, and data for two countries must remain in separate regions.
Recommendation. A Fabric capacity in each region plus Pro for the 20 publishers. Viewer licensing depends on the capacity sizes.
Why. Keeping data in more than one region (Multi-Geo) requires capacity; PPU cannot do it. Each regional capacity is sized separately. If either is below F64, its viewers need Pro.
Cost. Two F2 reservations plus 20 Pro would be at least CAD 862 a month, with viewer licences on top if the capacities stay below F64.
Checked first. Which data belongs in which region, and the measured load in each.
A data platform already sized above F64
Situation. A pilot measured the organization's Fabric workload at F128. Five hundred people with no licences will read the reports.
Recommendation. Keep the F128. Viewers use the Free licence.
Why. F128 is above the F64 threshold, so viewers are already free.
Cost. F128 reservation CAD 15,405 plus Pro for the publishers.
Checked first. Nothing new; the pilot measurement decided the size.