How to Remove Visualization from Power BI

Building a report in Power BI can feel like putting together a puzzle, but sometimes a piece just doesn't fit. You may have added a chart that's no longer relevant, a visual that clutters the page, or you simply want to start over with a different type of visualization. This guide will walk you through exactly how to remove a visualization from both a Power BI report and a dashboard, and show you a handy way to hide visuals without deleting them for good.

First, Let’s Talk About Reports vs. Dashboards

Before we jump into the "how-to," it's important to understand where you're working. Power BI has two main ways of displaying visuals: reports and dashboards. The process for removing a visual differs slightly between them.

• Reports are the multi-page canvases in Power BI where you build your visualizations from scratch. You connect to data, drag fields, and create detailed, interactive charts and tables. This is your design and analysis workspace.
• Dashboards are single-page summaries, or highlight reels, of your most important metrics. You don't build visuals directly on a dashboard, instead, a dashboard is made up of "tiles" that are pinned from one or more reports.

In short: You create visuals in reports and pin them to dashboards. Removing a visual from a report deletes it from that page, while removing a tile from a dashboard only removes that shortcut — the original visual in the report remains safe and sound.

Method 1: Removing a Visual from a Power BI Report Page

Most of the time, you'll be making changes within a Power BI report, either in Power BI Desktop or by editing it in the Power BI Service. The process for deleting a visual here is quick and easy.

Step-by-Step: Using the Delete Key or Context Menu

Follow these simple steps to permanently remove a chart, graph, table, or any other visual element from your report page.

1. Open Your Report: Launch Power BI Desktop and open your .pbix file, or navigate to your report in the Power BI Service and click "Edit."
2. Select the Visual: Click on the visualization you want to remove. A faint border with grab handles will appear around it, confirming that it's selected.
3. Press the Delete Key: With the visual selected, simply press the Delete key on your keyboard. The visual will immediately disappear.

Alternatively, you can use the built-in menu:

1. Select the Visual: Just like before, click on the visual to select it.
2. Open the 'More options' Menu: In the top-right corner of the visual's border, click the three horizontal dots (...) to open the context menu.
3. Select 'Remove': From the dropdown menu, click on the "Remove" option. The visual will be deleted from your report canvas.

That's all it takes. The visual is now gone from that specific page of your report. This action doesn't affect your underlying dataset or any other visuals on other pages.

Method 2: Removing a Visual Tile from a Power BI Dashboard

As mentioned earlier, visuals on dashboards are called "tiles." If you want to clean up your dashboard summary, you can easily remove a tile without impacting the original report.

Step-by-Step: Removing a Dashboard Tile

This process must be done in the Power BI Service, where dashboards live.

1. Navigate to Your Dashboard: Log in to the Power BI Service (app.powerbi.com) and open the dashboard that contains the tile you want to remove.
2. Access the Tile Options: Hover your mouse over the tile. You’ll see several icons appear in the top-right corner of that tile.
3. Open the 'More options' Menu: Click the three horizontal dots (...) that appear in the tile's header.
4. Choose 'Delete tile': In the menu that appears, click "Delete tile."
5. Confirm Your Choice: Power BI will ask for confirmation because this action cannot be undone. A pop-up will appear saying "Delete this tile?" Click the red "Delete" button to confirm.

The tile will disappear from your dashboard. It's crucial to remember that the original report visual you pinned this from is completely safe. You can always go back to that report and re-pin it to the dashboard if you change your mind.

Alternative Method: Hiding Visuals with the Selection Pane

What if you don't want to permanently delete a visual? Maybe you're testing out different layouts, cleaning up your design canvas, or creating interactive reports with buttons that show or hide certain charts. In this case, you can hide the visual instead of deleting it using the Selection Pane in Power BI Desktop.

Using the Selection Pane to Show and Hide Visuals

This powerful feature gives you full control over all the objects on your report pages.

1. Open the Selection Pane: In Power BI Desktop, navigate to the "View" tab on the top ribbon.
2. Enable the Pane: In the "Show panes" section, check the box next to "Selection." A new pane will appear on the right side of your screen, listing every object on the current report page (visuals, text boxes, images, buttons, and shapes).
3. Identify Your Visual: The pane will list all items, often with generic names like "Bar chart" or "Card." To make things easier, click on a visual on your canvas, and it will automatically be highlighted in the Selection Pane. Pro Tip: Double-click the name of any object in the Selection Pane to rename it to something descriptive, like "Quarterly Sales Trend" or "Marketing KPI Card." This is a lifesaver for managing complex pages!
4. Hide the Visual: To the right of each item's name is a small eye icon. To hide a visual, simply click the eye icon next to it. The visual will disappear from the report canvas, and the icon will change to an eye with a slash through it.
5. Unhide the Visual: To bring it back, just click the slashed-eye icon again. It will instantly reappear exactly where it was.

Hiding visuals is completely non-destructive and is an excellent technique for decluttering your view while you work or for building sophisticated interactive experiences for your end-users using bookmarks and buttons.

Common Questions and Tips

Here are answers to a few common issues you might run into.

Can I undo deleting a visual?

In Power BI Desktop, yes! If you accidentally delete a visual, you can immediately press Ctrl+Z (or use the Undo button) to bring it back. In the Power BI Service, actions are more permanent once you save the changes, so be more careful. Deleting a tile from a dashboard cannot be undone.

What if I emptied a page by mistake? Can I get a previous version back?

If you've saved your file in Power BI Desktop after making a mistake, there is no in-built version control for that one specific file in the same location. However, if those reports sync with a OneDrive or SharePoint account, an earlier version can be retrieved for a period of time as part of its document management capabilities.

Why can’t I delete or edit a visual?

If you find that you're unable to remove a visual, it's likely due to one of these reasons:

• View-Only Permissions: You might be viewing a report that was shared with you in "view mode." You need "edit" permissions on the workspace or a "member," "contributor," or "admin" role to make changes to reports. Contact the report owner to request access if needed.
• Confusing a Dashboard Role with a Report: Some companies build dashboard "apps," so users think they reside natively in a typical dashboard workstream. Make sure it's not a report that's rendered in this format for better visual appeal. Look for an "open report" option in some way to get you where you can make your visualization change.

Final Thoughts

Managing visualizations in Power BI is a core part of the process, and knowing how to quickly remove or hide them is a fundamental skill. Whether you're making a permanent change to a report in Power BI Desktop, cleaning up a dashboard tile in the service, or using the Selection Pane to temporarily hide a chart to focus, you now have the tools you need to keep your reports tidy and effective.

The cycle of adding, configuring, removing, and rebuilding charts is common because it's hard to get the perfect insight on the first try. Often, we delete a chart not because it's wrong, but because it doesn't quite answer the business question we were trying to solve. When we built Graphed, we worked to solve this exact problem. Instead of forcing you through hundreds of clicks to create and remove visuals, you can simply describe what you need in plain English. If the first chart isn’t right, just ask a follow-up question to refine your analysis. Graphed helps you skip the tedious parts and get straight to the insights you need in seconds, not hours.