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20. Dynamic Text and Dynamic Colour (Conditional Formatting)

20.7 Data Bars, Icons and Web URLs

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Start with a problem

Ravina wants data bars in the store table, an up/down icon for May vs April, and a clickable link to each store's internal page.

Explain simply

Data bars draw a bar in each cell; Icons show symbols by rules; Web URL turns a text value into a link (the column needs Data category Web URL).

Show the data

Store Total Sales (₹) Apr (₹) May (₹)
Kothrud 650 400 250
College Road 500 0 500
Rajarampuri 450 0 450
Gangapur 300 300 0
Baner 200 200 0

About this data: This table uses columns: Store, Total Sales (₹), Apr (₹), May (₹). This table uses columns: Store, Data bar, May vs Apr, Icon. This table uses columns: Option, Steps, Example. This table uses columns: Wrong result, Reason, Correction. Values shown are the lesson examples already on this page (not a new dataset).

Fictional sample data. Practice file: visuals_orders_apr_may_2026.csv (source: src/practice/).

Demonstrate

  1. Table: Store, Total Sales, May vs Apr = [May Sales] - [Apr Sales].
  2. Total Sales › Conditional formatting › Data bars.
  3. May vs Apr › Conditional formatting › Icons › rules: > 0 up arrow, < 0 down arrow.
  4. Add a column Store URL (e.g. https://intranet.example.com/store/ & Store) › Column tools › Data category Web URL; add it to the table.

Show the result

Your result should look like this (fictional sample):

Store Data bar May vs Apr Icon
Kothrud Longest −150 ↓
College Road Long +500 ↑
Rajarampuri Medium +450 ↑
Gangapur Short −300 ↓
Baner Shortest −200 ↓

Explain what happened

Bars scale to the largest value (650). Icon rules evaluate the difference per store.

Explore further

  • Show bar only (hide the number) when exact values are not needed.

Detailed reference for this lesson:

Option Steps Example
Data bars Field drop-down › Conditional formatting › Data bars › positive/negative colours, axis, Show bar only In-cell bars for Total Orders per dark store
Icons Conditional formatting › Icons › Format style Rules or Field value › icon layout (left/right of data, icon only), alignment, Style (arrows, traffic lights, flags) ▲/▼ for Orders MoM %; traffic lights for delivery time
Web URL Conditional formatting › Web URL › based on a column with links Store SOP link; set Data category Web URL on the column

Icons

For icons, the Rules style with a preset icon set (arrows or traffic lights) is the easiest. Udaharan mhanje, Orders MoM % > 0 → green up arrow, < 0 → red down arrow. Field value icons are also possible, pan the measure must return the exact icon names that Power BI expects.

Ravindra Bagale's Tip

Remember one thing: data bars on a column with negative values or huge outliers can make the other bars invisible. Set the minimum and maximum values explicitly. For icons, add a legend or a note so users know what each icon means. Don't worry – after doing it two or three times, it becomes a habit.

Fix common mistakes

Wrong result Reason Correction
URL not clickable Data category not Web URL Set Data category Web URL
Icons all the same Rule thresholds wrong Check rule order and boundaries
Bars misleading with negatives Default axis Set a 0 baseline / diverging bars

Practise independently

Practice task

Which stores get an up arrow?

Hints
  • Positive May vs Apr.
Solution

College Road (+500) and Rajarampuri (+450).

Think like a professional

Icons and bars speed up scanning, but keep them meaningful – decoration with no rule is noise.

Ravi Sir's Cards for this lesson

Data bars, icons and web URLs. Tables are easier to scan with small visual hints.Revision card

मराठी cards