22.7 Slicers: Styles and Settings
Quick answer: the short, self-contained version of this lesson is the guide How to Use Slicers in Power BI.
Start with a problem
Shahrukh wants a compact dropdown City slicer and an Amount range slider for the audit page.
Explain simply
Slicer settings: style (vertical list, tile, dropdown), selection (single select, multi-select with Ctrl, Select all), and Between sliders for numbers and dates.
Show the data
| Order ID | Order Date | City | Store | Platform | Category | Amount (₹) | Delivery mins | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 301 | 06-Apr-2026 | Pune | Kothrud | Blinkit | Dairy | 400 | 8 | Delivered |
| 302 | 06-Apr-2026 | Pune | Baner | Amazon Now | Snacks | 200 | 12 | Delivered |
| 303 | 07-Apr-2026 | Nashik | Gangapur | Blinkit | Dairy | 300 | 14 | Delivered |
| 304 | 04-May-2026 | Nashik | College Road | Blinkit | Fruits | 150 | 9 | Delivered |
| 305 | 04-May-2026 | Kolhapur | Rajarampuri | Amazon Now | Snacks | 450 | 7 | Delivered |
| 306 | 05-May-2026 | Pune | Kothrud | Blinkit | Fruits | 250 | 16 | Delivered |
| 307 | 05-May-2026 | Nashik | College Road | Amazon Now | Dairy | 350 | 11 | Delivered |
| 308 | 05-May-2026 | Kolhapur | Rajarampuri | Blinkit | Dairy | 0 | Cancelled |
About this data: This table uses columns: Order ID, Order Date, City, Store, Platform, Category, Amount (₹), Delivery mins, Status. This table uses columns: Slicer, Orders, Total (₹). This table uses columns: Style, Field type, Best use, Quick-commerce 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
- City slicer › Format › Slicer settings › Style Dropdown; Selection Single select.
- New slicer on
Amount› Style Between › set 200 to 400. - Read the table.
Show the result
Your result should look like this (fictional sample):
| Slicer | Orders | Total (₹) |
|---|---|---|
| Amount 200–400 | 301, 302, 303, 306, 307 | 1,500 |
| + City = Pune | 301, 302, 306 | 850 |
Explain what happened
Between keeps values from 200 to 400 inclusive; the City slicer then keeps Pune.
Explore further
- Numeric range slicers use the column's min and max by default.
Detailed reference for this lesson:
Steps in Power BI – City slicer
- Click an empty canvas area › Visualizations › Slicer.
- Drag
DarkStore[City]into Field. - Format visual › Visual › Slicer settings › Options › Style: Vertical list, Tile or Dropdown.
- Slicer settings › Selection: Single select On/Off; Multi-select with CTRL On/Off; Show "Select all" option On/Off.
- Slicer header (title text, font), Values (font, background), Items or Buttons formatting, and a Search option (… › Search) for long lists.
| Style | Field type | Best use | Quick-commerce example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vertical list | Text/any | Few values, always visible | Platform (Blinkit, Amazon Now) |
| Tile (buttons) | Text | 2–6 values, touch-friendly | City tiles: Pune, Mumbai, Nashik … |
| Dropdown | Any | Many values, saves space | Store Name, Product Name |
| Between (range) | Number / date | Numeric or date range with slider | Delivery Time Mins 0–30; Order Date range |
| Less than or equal to / Greater than or equal to | Number | One-sided limit | Amount ≥ ₹500 |
| Before / After / List / Dropdown | Date | Date choices | Orders after 01-10-2025 |
| Relative Date | Date | Last N days/weeks/months | Last 7 days |
| Relative Time | Date/time | Last N minutes/hours | Last 3 hours of orders |
| Hierarchy slicer | Several fields or a hierarchy | Drill in the slicer | Maharashtra › Pune › Kothrud (Module 12.4) |
| Button slicer (newer) | Any | Modern tabs/cards with images, states and layouts | Metric Selector tabs, Platform buttons with logos |
| List slicer (newer) | Any | Richer list formatting and hierarchy support | Category › Sub Category |
Tip
For a date range, use the Between style on 'Date'[Date] (from the Date table, not Orders), so the slicer filters all related facts and time intelligence keeps working.
Ravindra Bagale's Tip
A common mistake is showing a slicer with hundreds of values (Customer Name) as a list. Use a dropdown with search, or a hierarchy slicer. Choose single select or multi-select deliberately, and turn on "Select all" only when it makes sense. Clear?
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – मराठी
एक common चूक म्हणजे शेकडो values असलेला slicer (Customer Name) list म्हणून दाखवणं. Search असलेला dropdown किंवा hierarchy slicer वापरा. Single select की multi-select ते विचारपूर्वक निवडा, आणि अर्थ असेल तेव्हाच "Select all" चालू करा. समजलं का?
Ravindra Bagale's Tip – हिंदी
एक common गलती है सैकड़ों values वाले slicer (Customer Name) को list के रूप में दिखाना. Search वाला dropdown या hierarchy slicer इस्तेमाल करो. Single select या multi-select सोच-समझकर चुनो, और "Select all" तभी चालू करो जब उसका मतलब हो. समझ आया?
Fix common mistakes
| Wrong result | Reason | Correction |
|---|---|---|
| Users select two cities by mistake | Multi-select | Single select or show a clear header |
| Range excludes 400 | Boundary misunderstanding | Between is inclusive |
| Slicer list too long | High cardinality | Dropdown with search |
Practise independently
Practice task
Set the range to 300–450. Which orders?
Hints
- Inclusive.
Solution
301 (400), 303 (300), 305 (450), 307 (350) – ₹1,500.
Think like a professional
Choose slicer style for the device: dropdowns save space on laptops and phones.
Revision card