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An IF statement in Power BI is a logical function that allows you to perform a specific action based on a certain condition. It follows the syntax of “IF(condition, value if true, value if false)” where the condition is evaluated and if it is true, the first value is returned, and if it is false, the second value is returned. For example, if we want to create a column that categorizes sales as “High” or “Low” based on a threshold, we can use the IF statement as follows: IF(Sales > 1000, “High”, “Low”). This will return “High” if the sales are greater than 1000 and “Low” if they are not.
You can use the following syntax in DAX to write an IF statement in Power BI:
Method 1: Write an IF Statement
Rating = IF( 'my_data'[Points] > 20, "Good", "Bad" )
This particular syntax creates a new column named Rating that returns “Good” if the value in the Points column is greater than 20 or “Bad” otherwise.
Method 2: Write a Nested IF Statement
Rating = IF( 'my_data'[Points] < 20, "Bad", IF( 'my_data'[Points] <30, "Good", "Great" ) )
This particular syntax creates a new column named Rating that returns the following values:
- “Bad” if the value in the Points column is less than than 20
- Else, “Good” if the value in the Points column is less than 30
- Else, “Great”
The following examples show how to use each method in practice with the following table in Power BI named my_data:
Example 1: Write an IF Statement in Power BI
Suppose we would like to add a new column that contains “Good” if the value in the Points column is greater than 20 or “Bad” otherwise.
To do so, click the New column icon:
Then type in the following formula into the formula bar:
Rating = IF( 'my_data'[Points] > 20, "Good", "Bad" )
This will create a new column named Rating that contains the value “Good” or “Bad” based on the corresponding value in the Points column:
Example 2: Write a Nested IF Statement in Power BI
Suppose we would like to add a new column that contains “Bad” if the value in the Points column is less than 20, else “Good” if the value in the Points column is less than 30, else “Great” if neither of the previous conditions are met.
To do so, click the New column icon:
Then type in the following formula into the formula bar:
Rating = IF( 'my_data'[Points] < 20, "Bad", IF( 'my_data'[Points] <30, "Good", "Great" ) )
This will create a new column named Rating that contains the value “Bad’, “Good” or “Great” based on the corresponding value in the Points column:
Note: You can find the complete documentation for the IF function in DAX .
Additional Resources
The following tutorials explain how to perform other common tasks in Power BI: