Calculating Running Totals in Power BI: A Step-by-Side Guide

When working with data in Power BI, sometimes you need to calculate a running total of values over time or across a range of rows. This can be particularly useful for tracking cumulative totals, such as sales revenue, over a specific period. In this article, we'll walk through the steps to use running totals in Power BI.

Step 1: Determine the Last Date

To start, we need to decide on the last date we want to consider for our running total calculation. For this, we can use the MAX function, which will find the latest date in the 'Date' column. To do this, select the 'Date' column and enter a logical operator of less than (<) followed by the MAX function.

Step 2: Apply Filter Criteria

Once you've selected the 'Date' column, you'll need to apply filter criteria to narrow down the data range. In our case, we want to remove any filters applied to the 'Date' column, so select the 'Table' or 'ColumnName' and choose the 'ALL' function.

Step 3: Calculate the Running Total

Next, we need to calculate the running total itself. We'll use the SUM function to add up the values in the 'Sales' column. To do this, open the SUM function and select the 'Sales' column. Name your measure as 'RT Measure' (where RT stands for running total).

Step 4: Apply the Filter

Finally, we need to apply a filter to our calculation to specify which criteria we want to match. In our case, we want to calculate the sum of sales values, so select the 'Sales' column and enter your desired filter expression.

With these steps complete, you should now have a running total measure in Power BI that will automatically update as new data is added or as filters are applied. By following this step-by-step guide, you can easily calculate running totals in Power BI to gain deeper insights into your data.

Another word for 'running total' is 'summarization'.

Another word for running total