Power BI has been named a Leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for Analytics and BI Platforms for five consecutive years. That recognition reflects how widely Power BI has been adopted as a trusted platform for business reporting.
Microsoft introduced Small Multiples for the new Card Visual to solve a common pain point. Anyone who builds dashboards tracking KPIs across regions, brands, or customer segments knows the drill. You either build multiple visuals or set up slicers. The new card visual repeats automatically across categories in one clean container.
In this article, we’ll cover how small multiples work in the new card visual, how to set it up after the November 2025 GA release, layout and formatting options, and where it fits in real reporting workflows.
Key Takeaways The new card visual went generally available in Power BI’s November 2025 release and replaces the classic Card and Multi-row Card. Small multiples repeat one card automatically across the values of a category field, removing the need to build separate cards for each region, brand, or segment. Layout choices include single column, single row, and grid, with grid being the only arrangement Microsoft kept after GA. Overflow is handled with continuous scroll or vertical and horizontal pagination. The new card supports multiple measures per card, hero images, conditional formatting, and rounded corners. Small multiples work best up to roughly 20 panels and lose value when category differences are minor.
What Are Small Multiples in the New Card Visual? Small multiples in the new card visual let you display the same measure across different values of a category field, all within a single visual. Instead of creating separate visuals for each brand, product, or region, you set up one card and let Power BI repeat it automatically based on the field you choose. Each card represents one value from that field and displays the same metric.
This reduces clutter, improves layout efficiency, and offers a more structured way to look at category-level metrics. It works especially well in dashboards tracking KPIs across segments.
Classic Card vs Multi-row Card vs New Card Visual Capability Classic Card Multi-row Card New Card (GA Nov 2025) Number of measures shown 1 Multiple, stacked Multiple, with layout control Small multiples support No No Yes Hero image support No No Yes Conditional formatting Limited Limited Full (data label, background, title, reference labels) Layout options Single value Stacked rows Grid, with row and column control Status Legacy Replaced Default in new reports
6 Features the New Card Visual Brings 1. Automatic visual repetition by category : Drag a categorical field like Brand or Region into the small multiples well, and Power BI generates a separate card for each unique value. No manual duplication.
2. Multiple layout choices : Pick between single row, single column, or grid. Grid mode lets you set the number of rows and columns to fit your report design.
3. Overflow handling with scroll or pagination: When you have more cards than fit in the visual, choose continuous scrolling or pagination. Both vertical and horizontal paging are available depending on the layout.
4. Customizable headers : Headers can be aligned vertically or horizontally and placed at the top or on the left of each card. Orientation matters more than people expect, especially with long category names.
5. Detailed formatting options : Control font styles, label colors, padding, borders, transparency, and background colors or images.
6. Support for multiple measures : Show more than one measure in each card. For example, both Net Sales and Gross Margin per product are visualized automatically.
Steps to Enable the New Card Visual The new card visual is the default Card in Power BI Desktop starting with November 2025. If you’re on a current build, skip ahead to the build section. If you’re on an earlier version, here’s the preview enable flow that originally shipped in November 2024.
Step 1: Open Power BI Desktop Launch Power BI Desktop and check which version you are using by going to Help → About . If you are on the November 2025 release or later, the new Card visual is already enabled by default, so you can skip these steps. If not, make sure you update to a recent monthly version so the feature is available.
Step 2: Go to Options Click on File in the top menu, then select Options and settings → Options . This will open the Power BI settings window, where you can manage features and configurations.
Step 3: Open Preview Features In the Options window, look at the left-hand panel and scroll down until you find Preview features. Click on it to view a list of features that are still in testing but can be enabled manually.
Step 4: Enable the New Card Visual In the list, locate New card visual and check the box next to it. This activates the updated Card visual, which supports small multiples, improved formatting options, and more flexible layout control compared to the classic Card visual.
Step 5: Restart Power BI Desktop Click OK to save your changes, then close and reopen Power BI Desktop. Restarting ensures the new Card visual is fully loaded and available in the Visualizations pane for use in your reports.
What Happens After You Enable It You’ll see an updated card visual in your Visualizations pane. It looks similar to the classic card but offers more layout and formatting options. From here, you can build visuals with small multiples by dragging a category field like Region, Product, or Brand into the small multiples well.
If the new card visual still doesn’t appear after restarting, check your Power BI version or re-enable the feature. Some preview features need the latest monthly release before they show up.
Take Your Business to the Next Level with Innovative Power BI Solutions! Partner with Kanerika today.
Book a Meeting
Steps to Build and Use Small Multiples in the New Card Visual Once the new card visual is available, using small multiples is straightforward. Knowing the layout options and how to manage space makes a real difference in how clean your report looks.
1. Add the New Card Visual to Your Report Open your Power BI report or create a new page. From the Visualizations pane, select the card visual. It looks similar to the classic card but includes a small multiples field well.
Drag a measure like Net Sales or Revenue into the Values field. This displays a single card by default.
2. Apply Small Multiples To turn it into a multi-card visual, drag a categorical field like Brand, Region, or Customer Type into the small multiples well. Power BI creates one card per unique value, arranged in the default layout.
Each card shows the same measure, filtered by one category value. With Brand selected, you get one card per brand, all showing the same metric.
3. Resize the Visual Area Depending on how many categories you have, the cards may look squeezed or cut off. Expand the visual area to give it more room. This is especially important if you’re working with many values or planning to display more than one metric per card.
4. Adjust Layout Settings Open the Format pane and look under the Small multiples section. Here you’ll find layout controls:
Layout type: Choose between Single column, Single row, or Grid Grid settings: Manually set the number of rows and columns Spacing and padding: Adjust gaps between cards for a tighter or looser fit Choose a layout that works best with your data and available space.
5. Format the Visual Use the Formatting options to clean up the look:
Show or hide labels and callout values Apply background colors or images Set font size, alignment, and transparency
If the number of cards is too large to display at once, use overflow settings to switch between scrolling and pagination.
How to Create a Quadrant Chart in Power BI Discover how to build interactive Quadrant Charts in Power BI to compare performance, analyze trends, and visualize key metrics.
Learn More
Small Multiples Layout Options in Power BI Layout settings control how repeated cards are arranged on the page. A well-chosen layout makes your report easier to read. A poor one makes it feel cramped.
A useful starting point is five multiples per visual. Small enough to keep vertical headers readable, large enough to be useful, and enough to show scroll behavior cleanly during testing.
1. Single Column Layout This layout stacks each card vertically, one below the other. It works well when:
You’re working with fewer category values Your report design is more vertical in nature You expect users to scroll down to explore data
This layout also gives you more control over the width of each card, especially when only one or two measures are being displayed.
2. Single Row Layout In this mode, all cards are displayed in a horizontal line. It’s useful when:
You want to highlight comparisons across categories side by side Your page layout has more horizontal space than vertical You’re using fewer values or a short list of categories
Keep in mind, single-row layouts may need width adjustments if the cards start to overflow the page.
3. Grid Layout Grid layout is the most flexible option, allowing you to define the exact number of rows and columns. For example:
A 3×4 grid (3 rows, 4 columns) will display 12 cards on one page A larger grid like 4×5 can show 20 cards, ideal for dense comparisons
Grids are especially useful when you want to make the most of your visual space and show a larger set of categories at once. You can set these values manually under the layout options in the Format pane.
Formatting and Styling Small Multiples in the Card Visual in Power BI Once your layout is set, formatting decides whether the visual feels clean or cluttered. Power BI offers good styling control over both card content and how each multiple is presented.
1. Borders and Grid Lines You can add borders around each card to separate them visually. Border color, thickness, and transparency are all customizable. For a clean, minimal look, skip borders altogether. With dense grids, subtle borders prevent visual overlap.
Grid lines are also available. Use either borders or grid lines, never both. Combining them makes the visual feel busy.
2. Background Options Under the formatting settings, you can choose:
A background color for each card (use light tones to avoid overpowering the data) A background image, which is more useful for branded dashboards or custom report themes
You can turn the background on or off and adjust its transparency depending on the visual’s purpose.
3. Fonts, Callouts, and Labels You have full control over font style and size for measure values, callout value visibility, and label formatting like color, alignment, and spacing.
If your visual only shows one measure, hide the label for a cleaner look. The moment you add a second measure, turn labels back on. Without labels, readers cannot tell which number represents which metric.
4. Rounded Corners and Shape Adjustments The new card visual supports rounded corners. This is a stylistic choice. Used carefully, it helps the visual blend with other modern visuals and themes.
Working with Headers in Small Multiples Headers in small multiples guide how users interpret the category breakdown. You can customize both orientation and position.
Once your cards are arranged in a single row, column, or grid, go to the Format pane and expand the small multiples header section.
1. Orientation Settings You can set the orientation to:
Vertical : Headers will appear rotated, which often works better for narrow column layouts. Horizontal : Best suited for row-based layouts or when you want the header to run left-to-right.
Choosing the right orientation helps maintain clarity, especially when space is tight or when working with long category names.
2. Position Options Power BI gives you two positions to place your headers:
Top : Headers are shown above each card. This is often used in row or grid layouts where horizontal space is limited. Left : Headers are aligned to the left of each card, ideal for stacked column layouts or vertical scrolling setups.
Each option works better in different layout scenarios. For instance:
If you’re using a single row layout, top-positioned headers feel more natural. If you’re using a single column layout, left-positioned headers improve readability.
As with most formatting in Power BI, it’s worth testing both options and previewing how your report looks, especially if you’re dealing with long lists or dense grids.
Real-World Use Cases for Small Multiples in the New Card Visual The small multiples feature saves time and improves clarity in reports where repeated comparisons are common. Here’s where it fits in a reporting workflow.
1. Sales Performance by Region or Territory Instead of building individual cards for each region, you can now create one visual that repeats automatically:
Show Total Sales, Target vs Actual, or YoY Growth per region Quickly compare which locations are underperforming or exceeding targets Great for sales dashboards where regional managers need a clear view of their zones 2. Product Category or Brand Breakdown Track KPIs like Revenue, Profit Margin, or Inventory Turnover by product category:
Each card can represent a category or sub-brand Add multiple measures to show net and gross profit side by side Ideal for retail , eCommerce, or manufacturing teams managing large product portfolios 3. Campaign or Channel Comparison in Marketing Marketing teams often compare results across multiple platforms. Small multiples are great for:
Displaying Cost per Lead, Impressions, Clicks, or ROAS for each channel (Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn, etc.) Keeping all cards consistent in design and layout while enabling fast, visual comparison 4. Customer Service Metrics by Team or Shift In support dashboards, you might want to show:
Ticket Volume, Resolution Time, and Customer Satisfaction by team or shift Use the new card visual to display key service KPIs in a grid, making it easier to spot trends between morning, evening, or weekend teams 5. Financial Summary by Business Unit Finance teams often compare high-level metrics across departments or units:
Show Operating Cost, EBITDA, and Variance per business line or region Easier to manage than building multiple visuals or duplicating cards for each unit
Build Power BI Dashboards That Scale With Kanerika Kanerika is a Microsoft Solutions Partner for Data and AI with Analytics specialization. We build Power BI reports and Microsoft Fabric pipelines for enterprises across pharma, healthcare, banking, retail, and manufacturing.
Our work with the new card visual ranges from regional sales dashboards using small multiples for territory comparison to executive KPI grids tracking financial metrics across business units. We’ve delivered 520+ KPIs across client engagements, with 98% client retention and a 5.0 rating on Clutch, Capterra, and GoodFirms.
If you’re rebuilding dashboards on Power BI or moving from Tableau, Cognos, or Crystal Reports, our FLIP migration accelerator cuts migration effort by 75%. Most migrations land in 2 to 8 weeks depending on pipeline volume.
Wrapping Up Power BI is investing heavily in visual experience updates, and the new card visual is one of the bigger ones to land in the last year. Small multiples remove a real friction point for KPI dashboards that track the same metric across categories. Worth trying on any report where you currently have stacks of duplicated cards or slicer-driven filters.
Test it on a dashboard that already exists. Five multiples is a good place to start. Adjust the layout, headers, and formatting until the visual reads cleanly, then scale from there.
Move Beyond Legacy Systems and Embrace Power BI for Better Insights! Partner with Kanerika Today.
Book a Meeting
FAQs Is the new card visual replacing the old one in Power BI? The new card visual went generally available in November 2025 and replaces both the classic Card and Multi-row Card visuals. Existing reports keep their old visuals. Any new card you add to a report uses the new visual by default. Microsoft recommends switching to the new visual for all new work.
How do I enable the new card visual in Power BI? If you’re on Power BI Desktop November 2025 or later, the new card visual is the default. Just pick Card from the Visualizations pane. On older builds, go to File, Options and settings, Options, Preview features, then check New card visual and restart Power BI Desktop. The legacy visuals remain accessible through the three-dot menu.
Can I use small multiples in other visuals besides the card visual? Yes, small multiples work in bar charts, column charts, and line charts as well. The functionality differs slightly by visual type. Bar and line charts split a chart series across panels, while the new card visual repeats the entire card layout for each category value. Setup follows the same pattern across visuals.
Why don't I see the small multiples option in my card visual? You’re likely using the classic card visual or a Power BI Desktop version older than November 2025. The classic card does not support small multiples. Switch to the new card visual from the Visualizations pane. If you’re on an older build, enable the preview feature first, then restart Power BI Desktop.
Can I show more than one measure in each small multiple card? Yes. Drag multiple measures into the Values field of the new card visual. Each card displays both values, filtered by the small multiples category. Use Card layout for callout-style display or Table layout for tighter rows. Always turn labels on with multiple measures, otherwise readers cannot tell which number represents which metric.
How does Power BI handle too many cards in small multiples? Pick between continuous scroll and pagination under the small multiples format settings. Continuous scroll keeps everything in one frame and lets users scroll. Pagination splits cards into pages with navigation arrows, and works in vertical and horizontal directions. Pagination tends to feel cleaner when card density would make scrolling awkward.
