Roundup
Power BI design tools, compared with sources
19 tools people use to make Power BI reports look good, grouped by the job they do. Each entry has the price, what it is best at, the catch, and facts linked to the vendor’s own page with the date we read it.
By Nawaf Sharaf · Founder & Reliability Engineer · Updated
Disclosure: VizForge makes three of the tools listed (the Design Studio, Theme Lab and the AI custom visual generator). They are listed in alphabetical order with everyone else, with their limits. Nobody paid to be included, and there are no affiliate links.
Short answer
Which tool should I use to design a Power BI report?
Match the tool to what is missing. For colours and fonts, a theme generator is enough. For a plain-looking page, use a page designer that exports a background and a PBIP. For a finished PBIX to adapt, buy or download a template. For a chart Power BI lacks, use Deneb or an AI visual generator.
Report page designers
A page designer lays out a whole report page (header, KPI cards, chart areas, background art) before or instead of doing it by hand in Power BI Desktop. The useful ones export something Desktop opens: a background image, a theme JSON or a PBIP project with the visuals already placed.
Draft BI
IndependentA browser tool for planning a report: wireframe native visuals on a grid, generate a theme, get DAX help from a pasted model schema and export a PBIR project.
- Price
- Free plan with a monthly export allowance; paid plans per month.
- Best for
- Agreeing a layout with stakeholders, who can comment on a shared wireframe without an account.
- Watch out for
- You design a wireframe, not the finished look: there is no background art, and the free plan caps exports each month.
Sourced facts
- Free plan: 3 PBIR exports and 5 AI Actions per month, unlimited projects, commercial use included. draftbi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Pro plan: $12 per month: 20 PBIR exports and 50 AI Actions per month, 14-day free trial. draftbi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Team plan: From $25 per seat per month, three-seat minimum; shared themes, projects and TMDL models. draftbi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
Mokkup.ai
IndependentA dashboard wireframing tool for Power BI and Tableau with templates and AI-generated layouts, exported as screens or report files.
- Price
- Free coins to start; paid plans billed annually.
- Best for
- Teams that mock up dashboards for both Power BI and Tableau from one place.
- Watch out for
- Exports and AI layouts spend coins, so heavy use needs a paid plan.
Sourced facts
PowerBI.tips Power Designer
IndependentThe Tips+ report-design tool from PowerBI.tips: wireframes, layouts, themes and AI auto-layout, exported as a PBIP and also offered as a Microsoft Fabric workload.
- Price
- Needs a Tips+ licence; the Power Designer page does not state a price.
- Best for
- Organisations that want design tooling inside Microsoft Fabric.
- Watch out for
- No published price on the product page, and the Fabric workload has to be allowed by your tenant admin.
Sourced facts
- Power Designer: Tips+ report-design tool: wireframes, layouts, themes, gallery and AI auto-layout; exports a PBIP. powerbi.tips · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Power Designer price: Requires a Tips+ licence; no price is stated on the Power Designer page. powerbi.tips · checked 5 Nov 2026
Report Hacker (BiNexus)
IndependentA free browser page designer that exports a PBIP with a semantic model, a page folder, PNG and SVG backgrounds, a theme JSON and Deneb templates.
- Price
- Free; no account needed.
- Best for
- Exports that carry a working model, including one built from your own small CSV.
- Watch out for
- The model is their sample or your CSV (up to 1,000 rows), not your real model; check the licence of any bundled Deneb template before client use.
Sourced facts
- Price and account: Free; no account needed; optional Google sign-in to keep projects in an account. binexus.net · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Exports: .pbip with a semantic model, page-folder .zip, PNG and SVG background, theme JSON, Deneb template. binexus.net · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Data: 416-row sample, your own CSV up to 1,000 rows, or an empty model. binexus.net · checked 5 Nov 2026
VizForge Design Studio
Made by VizForge (us)Our free browser studio for Power BI report pages: brand, layout, background art, KPI cards, icons and visual slots, exported as a PNG or SVG background, a theme JSON and a PBIP project.
- Price
- Free, no account; a free account removes the small VizForge mark on exports.
- Best for
- Getting a finished-looking, branded page into Desktop quickly, starting from a template gallery.
- Watch out for
- Review links (free account) take pinned comments, but there is no live co-editing; the PBIP export (beta) builds its model from a sample or your own CSV or TMDL, and does not suggest DAX or layouts from it.
Sourced facts
- Exports a background PNG (1× or 2×) or SVG, a theme JSON and a PBIP project; designs are saved in your browser. vizforge.ai · checked 9 Nov 2026
- Page presets match Power BI's canvas sizes, including 1920×1080 and 1280×720. vizforge.ai · checked 9 Nov 2026
Theme generators
A theme JSON sets the data colours, fonts and default formatting for every visual in a report. Power BI's own theme editor covers the basics; a generator helps when you start from a brand, need dark and light versions, or want to check text contrast before you ship.
BIBB theme generator
IndependentA free online Power BI theme generator from BIBB; the same site also has a variant that adds conditional-formatting icons to a theme.
- Price
- Free.
- Best for
- A quick free theme with a real-time preview, or adding icon sets to a theme.
- Watch out for
- A theme tool only: no page layouts, backgrounds or PBIP.
Sourced facts
- They describe it as a free online tool to generate colour palettes, preview designs in real time and export themes. bibb.pro · checked 9 Nov 2026
DaTaxan theme generator
IndependentA free theme generator with presets, light and dark modes, WCAG contrast badges, a palette from an uploaded image or logo, and font control.
- Price
- Free.
- Best for
- A quick, accessible theme from presets or a brand image, with no sign-up.
- Watch out for
- This tool exports a theme JSON: no page layouts or PBIP project export.
Sourced facts
- They describe it as a free generator with live preview, dark mode, 30+ preset themes and colour tools. dataxan.com · checked 9 Nov 2026
- They describe it as having a WCAG contrast checker with live AA/AAA badges, colour extraction from an uploaded brand image or logo, and no sign-up or watermark. dataxan.com · checked 9 Nov 2026
The theme gallery and the Customize theme dialog inside Power BI Desktop, plus import of any theme JSON file.
- Price
- Included with Power BI Desktop.
- Best for
- Small colour and font changes without leaving Desktop.
- Watch out for
- No brand-from-logo, no contrast check across colour pairs and no page backgrounds; deeper per-visual settings mean editing the JSON.
Sourced facts
- Import a theme file from Design ribbon → Import theme; Customize theme edits colours, text, visuals and page settings. learn.microsoft.com · checked 4 Nov 2026
Power UI
IndependentA theme studio with an icon library and an MCP server that writes to Power BI projects from AI coding assistants.
- Price
- Free tier; paid one-time licences.
- Best for
- Teams that want a visual theme editor plus an icon library and AI-assistant integration.
- Watch out for
- The full product is paid, and its licence has its own terms for public and resold reports, so read it before you ship a theme.
Sourced facts
- They describe it as a visual theme editor with 1,500+ icons and live preview, no JSON knowledge required. powerui.com · checked 9 Nov 2026
PowerBI.tips Theme Generator
IndependentA long-running free theme editor that sets colours, text, icons and visual properties and downloads the theme JSON.
- Price
- Free; the wider Power Designer product needs Tips+.
- Best for
- Fine control over per-visual theme properties, backed by a large tutorial library.
- Watch out for
- Theme only; layouts and backgrounds are separate products.
Sourced facts
- Theme Generator: Free visual editor that writes Power BI theme JSON. powerbi.tips · checked 5 Nov 2026
- They describe it as building a Power BI theme in your browser: colours, text, icons and visual properties, then a JSON download. Free. themes.powerbi.tips · checked 9 Nov 2026
themes.pbix by POINT
IndependentA free theme editor from POINT Consulting with per-visual settings.
- Price
- Free.
- Best for
- Setting obscure visual-style properties that simpler generators skip.
- Watch out for
- A theme editor only: no page design or project export.
Sourced facts
- They describe it as a free Power BI theme generator to design and customise theme files, with no sign-up needed. themegenerator.point-gmbh.com · checked 9 Nov 2026
VizForge Theme Lab
Made by VizForge (us)Our free in-browser theme generator: a palette from your logo, readable text colours, page and visual backgrounds, with WCAG checks on every text pair before download.
- Price
- Free, no account.
- Best for
- Brand themes where text contrast has to pass, and handing the theme straight to the Design Studio.
- Watch out for
- It checks contrast locally; it is not a render test in Power BI Desktop, and per-visual formatting in an existing report can still override the theme.
Sourced facts
- Imports an existing theme file to check and fix it; extracts a palette from a logo or image; exports theme JSON. vizforge.ai · checked 9 Nov 2026
Template packs and UI kits
Kits sell or give away finished building blocks: PBIX templates with sample data, Figma component libraries sized for Power BI pages, or member libraries of headers and navigation. Read the licence before you use one in client work; the terms differ a lot.
Nudge BI UI Kit
IndependentA Figma component library sized for Power BI report canvases, sold as a one-time licence.
- Price
- One-time Solo or Team licence.
- Best for
- Teams where a designer owns the report's look and already works in Figma.
- Watch out for
- Figma only, and the licence forbids using it to make competing kits or templates.
Sourced facts
- UI Kit, Solo: $249 one-time, one user in Figma. nudgebi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- UI Kit, Team: $399 one-time, unlimited users in Figma. nudgebi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Licence: allowed: Unlimited end products for personal, commercial or client use. nudgebi.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
Numerro
IndependentA Power BI design toolkit: a members' hub of templates, visual designs, themes, headers, navigation bars and paginated report templates.
- Price
- Free starter pack; yearly licences for more.
- Best for
- Paginated (.rdl) report templates alongside interactive ones.
- Watch out for
- Commercial use in client reports needs the Professional licence.
Sourced facts
- Starter: Free: the Starter Pack of 7 Toolkit Components and access to the Content Hub. numerro.io · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Premium licence: $99 per year for one user; $249 Small Teams (up to 5), $499 Large Teams (up to 25). numerro.io · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Professional licence: $249 per year for one user; $599 Small Teams, $1,299 Large Teams. Adds full commercial rights to use the components in client reports. numerro.io · checked 5 Nov 2026
Power BI Graphs
IndependentA Figma UI kit plus five editable industry PBIX templates with sample data in light and dark.
- Price
- One-time prices per kit and per template.
- Best for
- Consultants who want a finished, populated PBIX to hand over.
- Watch out for
- Five industries only, and the source files may not be resold.
Sourced facts
- Figma UI Kit: $199 one-time; components, design tokens, light and dark themes, mobile frames. powerbigraphs.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- PBIX templates: $29 each or $99 for all five (Sales, Finance, HR, SaaS, Retail). powerbigraphs.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- In each PBIX: Sample data and light and dark versions. powerbigraphs.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
ZoomCharts report templates
IndependentDownloadable PBIX reports built with ZoomCharts' own interactive visuals, sold per download or by yearly plan.
- Price
- Per-template price or yearly download plans.
- Best for
- Teams already using ZoomCharts visuals who want worked examples.
- Watch out for
- The template licence is internal use only; client work needs a distribution licence.
Sourced facts
- Template download: $24.99 one-time for one PBIX report; re-download for 12 months. zoomcharts.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Template plans: $49.99 a year for 10 downloads; $199.99 a year for unlimited downloads. zoomcharts.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
- Template licence: Internal use only; client projects, reselling or redistribution need a distribution licence or partner agreement. zoomcharts.com · checked 5 Nov 2026
Charts Power BI doesn't have, without writing a visual
When the built-in visuals and the Marketplace don't have the chart you need, the options are a declarative visual you program in JSON, a no-code chart designer, or a generator that writes the custom visual for you.
Charticulator
MicrosoftMicrosoft Research's free, no-code chart designer that exported Power BI custom visuals.
- Price
- Free and open source.
- Best for
- Maintaining charts already built with it.
- Watch out for
- Retired: the hosted app was announced to close at the end of 2023 and the GitHub repository was archived in April 2024, so new work should start elsewhere; a community fork (Charticulator Visual Community) is on the Marketplace for existing designs.
Sourced facts
- The microsoft/charticulator repository is archived (read-only) since 26 April 2024. github.com · checked 4 Nov 2026
Deneb
IndependentA free, open-source, certified Power BI custom visual that renders Vega-Lite and Vega specifications you write in JSON.
- Price
- Free.
- Best for
- Analysts who know (or want to learn) Vega-Lite and need unlimited chart flexibility, including in tenants that allow certified visuals only.
- Watch out for
- Every chart is a JSON specification to write and debug; the grammar is a real learning curve.
Sourced facts
- They describe Deneb as a declarative visualization tool for Power BI built on Vega and Vega-Lite, free and open source. deneb-viz.github.io · checked 9 Nov 2026
VizForge AI custom visual generator
Made by VizForge (us)Our generator: describe a chart in plain English and get a .pbiviz plus its TypeScript source, type-checked with the TypeScript compiler and packaged with Microsoft's pbiviz tooling.
- Price
- One-time credit packs: 1, 2 or 5 credits per visual; 5 free credits at signup.
- Best for
- A chart type Power BI and the Marketplace don't offer, when you want to own the code.
- Watch out for
- Generated visuals are uncertified, so tenants that allow certified visuals only will block them; it builds one visual per run, not whole reports, and visuals made on free credits carry a small “Made with VizForge” badge.
Sourced facts
- Output is a .pbiviz plus its full TypeScript source; failed generations are refunded. vizforge.ai · checked 9 Nov 2026
How we built this list
We included tools that produce something Power BI Desktop opens (a theme JSON, a background image, a PBIP or PBIX project, or a custom visual) and that a person can try or buy today. Facts for tools with a full VizForge comparison come from that comparison and share its check date; the rest were read on 9 Nov 2026. Where a sentence starts with “They describe it as”, it is the vendor’s own description, not our test.
We left out consultancies, courses and tools we could not confirm are still available. Prices and licences change; follow the source link before you buy, and tell us at the support address in the footer if a fact is out of date.
FAQ
What is the best free tool to make a Power BI report look professional?
It depends on what is missing. If the report has no consistent colours, a theme generator fixes that in minutes. If the page itself looks plain, a page designer that exports a background and a PBIP gives you the header, panels and spacing as well. Free options exist in both groups; the entries on this page show the price, what each exports and its catch.
Do I need Figma to design a Power BI report?
No. Figma kits suit teams with a designer who already works in Figma, but browser page designers export straight to files Power BI Desktop opens (a background image, a theme JSON or a PBIP project) without a design tool in between.
Can I use these templates and themes in client reports?
Check each licence. Some free assets allow commercial and client use, some template stores are internal-use only unless you buy a distribution licence, and some kits forbid reselling or building competing products. Each entry above notes the licence terms the vendor publishes where they matter.
Why is VizForge on this list if VizForge wrote it?
Because it is one of the tools in this category, and leaving it out would be odd. We say so at the top, list it alphabetically like everyone else, state its limits, and source every fact about other tools to their own pages with the date we read them.
Try a starting point
Free starting points from the VizForge galleries.
Gallery
Power BI dashboard templatesReport pages by department as PBIP projects with sample data (beta).
Gallery
Power BI themesTheme JSON files with WCAG AA text contrast, light and dark.
Gallery
Report backgroundsPNG and SVG page backgrounds at 1920×1080 and 1280×720.
Comparisons
All comparisonsOne page per tool, with where the other tool is the better choice.