Introduction
When I first decided to learn Power BI back in 2020, I was a complete beginner looking for the best way to get started. I chose the Udemy Power BI course for the desktop, and it was a amazing starting point. The course was perfect for understanding the basics and building a strong foundation. Fast forward to 2024, I realized I needed to up my game with the cloud features, so I took the Udemy Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running with Power BI Service course. The quality of both courses convinced me that Udemy offers the best learning experience for Power BI, whether you’re just starting or want to advance your skills.
If you’re like me, start with the Power BI Desktop course and then move to the Power BI Service course once you’re ready for more advanced tools and features. Let me share why these courses are the best options for mastering Power BI and how they can help you on your data journey.
Why I Chose a Udemy Power BI Course
I picked Udemy because it offers affordable, high-quality courses with lifetime access. The flexibility to learn at my own pace and revisit content as needed was crucial. The courses were also practical and project-based, which allowed me to apply the skills I learned immediately. Udemy’s courses are created by experienced instructors who know what learners need, making them perfect for beginners and advanced users alike.
Choosing Udemy meant I could learn real-world applications of Power BI, like building interactive dashboards and reports or understanding complex features such as Row-Level Security (RLS). I could also access quizzes, downloadable resources, and a supportive Q&A forum. This combination of practical skills and interactive learning elements made all the difference in my Power BI journey.
Course 1: Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running with Power BI Desktop
Overview of the Course: The Udemy Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running with Power BI Desktop online course was my starting point. It’s an in-depth, project-based course perfect for anyone new to Power BI. The course begins with the basics, like connecting to various data sources (Excel, SQL databases, etc.) and moves on to building interactive reports and dashboards.
Who is it For? This is the best Power BI course on Udemy for beginners. If you’re starting your journey in data analysis or business intelligence, this course will help you build a strong foundation in Power BI Desktop. You’ll learn essential skills, such as data modeling, visualization, DAX, and creating dashboards. By the end, you’ll be confident in using Power BI Desktop to develop professional reports from scratch.
Key Learning Outcomes: You’ll gain a comprehensive understanding of Power BI Desktop’s core features, including:
- Data preparation and transformation.
- Building interactive visualizations and reports.
- Mastering DAX formulas for advanced calculations.
- Creating and sharing dashboards for decision-making.
This Power BI one of the best-selling udemy courses with over 550.000 students coming with 4.6/5 rating! The teachers Chriss Dutton and Aaron Perry from Maven Analytis are well known in the scene and highly knowledgeable. The level of English is easy to understand, and you won’t have problems to follow the. Plus the content gets regularly updated to stay relevant!
Check out their course on udemy:
How much does Microsoft Power BI Desktop for Business Intelligence cost?
That depends, a little bit if udemy has some offers around in also in the country you are based in!
As you can see from the screenshot below, the current price is 19.99 EUR down from 109,99 EUR. I do not recommend to ever pay for the full price as udemy has almost always a great discount in place. Just wait for it!
Pro Tip: Different countries have different pricing. For instance, 19.99 EUR is when my location is Germany. But if you use a VPN tool such as surfshark and change the location to Indonesia, you will see quite a significant price drop!
Now let’s compare the prices with a VPN location set to Indonesia: The result is incredible. As of September 2024, the price for this course translated into EUR is just 8,67 EUR! Thats a difference of more than 11 EUR!!!
It gets even crazier, if you change your location to India! There you will only pay 549 Indian Rupees which equal just 5,91 EUR as of writing this article! But this is not the end, set your location to Nigeria and you only need to pay 7.900 Nigerian Naira or 4.42 EUR. That is more than 15 EUR less than what I would pay in Germany!
Course 2: Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running with Power BI Service
Overview of the Course: After mastering the basics, I moved on to the Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running with Power BI Service course. This course is designed for more advanced users who want to learn cloud-based features like dataflows, gateways, and row-level security. It focuses on using Power BI Service to collaborate with teams, automate workflows, and manage user roles and data security.
Who is it For? This is the best Power BI course for advanced users or anyone familiar with Power BI Desktop and looking to expand their skills in cloud analytics. It’s perfect if you’re aiming to understand the full Power BI ecosystem, especially the features available in the cloud.
Key Learning Outcomes: By completing this course, you’ll be equipped to:
- Publish and share reports to the cloud.
- Automate workflows with dataflows and gateways.
- Configure user roles and maintain data security with RLS.
- Collaborate with teams and use advanced Power BI Service tools.
How much does Microsoft Power BI – Up & Running With Power BI Service 2024 cost?
Again, the price depends on your location, I found Nigeria again being the cheapest with just 6.900 Nigerian Naira or 3,68 EUR. Now everyone can afford that 🙂 if you use Germany again as a location then you will have to pay 19,99 EUR!
Comparing Power BI Desktop and Service Courses
Both courses offer unique benefits, and taking them together provides a complete learning experience. The Power BI Desktop course helps you build the fundamentals of data modeling and visualization. On the other hand, the Power BI Service course dives into more complex features like sharing, automation, and security, which are critical for cloud-based analytics. Together, they cover every aspect of Power BI, from building a report to deploying it for collaborative use.
Conclusion
If you’re serious about mastering Power BI, I highly recommend starting with the Udemy Power BI Desktop course for a solid foundation, and then moving on to the Power BI Service course to explore advanced, cloud-based features. Both courses have greatly enhanced my understanding and usage of Power BI, and I’m confident they will do the same for you. Take the step today, and start your journey toward becoming a Power BI expert!
Want to know how long it takes to learn Power BI? Here are my thoughts:
For additional reading, head over to my blog post series: 8 Tips to Create an Interactive Power BI Dashboard
Thanks for reading this far! Did you find this blog post useful? I’d be very happy to receive a comment 🙂
Leave a Reply