Power BI vs SSRS: Migration and Modernization Guide for 2026

<h2>Power BI vs SSRS: Why Enterprises Are Modernizing Their Reporting Stack in 2026</h2>

<p>SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) has been the backbone of enterprise operational reporting for nearly two decades. Organizations running SSRS have accumulated hundreds or thousands of RDL-based reports that serve critical business functions: financial statements, regulatory filings, invoice generation, inventory manifests, and compliance documentation. These reports work. They print correctly. Business users depend on them daily.</p>

<p>The question enterprise IT leaders face in 2026 is not whether SSRS still works, but whether it remains the right platform for the next decade of reporting requirements. Power BI has matured from a self-service visualization tool into a comprehensive enterprise analytics platform that now includes <strong>Power BI paginated reports</strong>—the same RDL rendering engine that SSRS uses, hosted in the Power BI service. This convergence creates a clear modernization path that preserves existing investments while unlocking capabilities that SSRS cannot deliver.</p>

<p>Our <a href="/services/power-bi-consulting">Power BI consulting team</a> has guided over 100 SSRS-to-Power BI migrations for enterprise organizations across healthcare, financial services, and government. This guide consolidates our methodology, lessons learned, and decision frameworks into a practical resource for planning and executing your migration.</p>

<h2>SSRS vs Power BI: Feature-by-Feature Comparison</h2>

<p>Understanding exactly where each platform excels is the foundation of a sound migration strategy. Oversimplifying the comparison leads to failed migrations—typically when organizations try to replace pixel-perfect operational reports with interactive Power BI dashboards and discover that the output does not meet regulatory or print requirements.</p>

<table> <thead> <tr><th>Capability</th><th>SSRS (On-Premises)</th><th>Power BI Interactive Reports</th><th>Power BI Paginated Reports</th></tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr><td>Report format</td><td>RDL (pixel-perfect, paginated)</td><td>PBIX (interactive, visual-first)</td><td>RDL (pixel-perfect, paginated)</td></tr> <tr><td>Hosting</td><td>On-premises SSRS server</td><td>Power BI service (cloud) or Report Server</td><td>Power BI service (cloud)</td></tr> <tr><td>Data sources</td><td>SQL Server, ODBC, OLE DB, Oracle, SAP</td><td>300+ connectors via Power Query</td><td>SQL Server, Oracle, ODBC, Power BI datasets</td></tr> <tr><td>Export formats</td><td>PDF, Excel, Word, CSV, XML, TIFF</td><td>PDF, PowerPoint, Excel, CSV, image</td><td>PDF, Excel, Word, CSV, XML, TIFF, MHTML</td></tr> <tr><td>Print fidelity</td><td>Pixel-perfect, multi-page</td><td>Not designed for print</td><td>Pixel-perfect, multi-page</td></tr> <tr><td>Subscriptions</td><td>Email, file share, SharePoint library</td><td>Email, Teams, SharePoint (alerts)</td><td>Email, Teams, SharePoint, Azure Blob, Power Automate</td></tr> <tr><td>Row-level security</td><td>Database-level or report parameters</td><td>DAX-based RLS on semantic model</td><td>Database-level or dataset RLS</td></tr> <tr><td>Parameters</td><td>Multi-value, cascading, date pickers</td><td>Slicers, filters (visual interaction)</td><td>Multi-value, cascading, date pickers</td></tr> <tr><td>Subreports</td><td>Yes (nested RDL rendering)</td><td>Drillthrough pages, tooltips</td><td>Yes (nested RDL rendering)</td></tr> <tr><td>Licensing cost</td><td>SQL Server license (included)</td><td>Power BI Pro ($10/user/mo) or PPU ($20/user/mo)</td><td>Requires Premium Per User or Fabric capacity</td></tr> <tr><td>Mobile support</td><td>Limited (HTML rendering)</td><td>Native mobile app with optimized layouts</td><td>PDF rendering on mobile</td></tr> <tr><td>Natural language Q&amp;A</td><td>No</td><td>Yes (Q&amp;A visual, Copilot)</td><td>No</td></tr> <tr><td>AI/ML integration</td><td>No</td><td>Copilot, smart narratives, anomaly detection</td><td>No</td></tr> <tr><td>Refresh frequency</td><td>Scheduled (minimum 1 minute) or on-demand</td><td>Scheduled (8x/day Pro, 48x/day PPU/Premium) or DirectQuery</td><td>On-demand or scheduled subscriptions</td></tr> </tbody> </table>

<h3>Key Takeaway: It Is Not SSRS vs Power BI—It Is SSRS + Power BI</h3>

<p>The comparison reveals that Power BI paginated reports replicate nearly all SSRS capabilities in the cloud, while Power BI interactive reports deliver analytics capabilities that SSRS never had. The optimal migration strategy uses <strong>both</strong> report types: paginated reports for operational and compliance reporting, interactive reports for analytics and data exploration. Trying to force every SSRS report into an interactive Power BI report is the single most common migration mistake we see.</p>

<h2>When to Keep SSRS vs When to Migrate</h2>

<p>Not every organization should migrate everything to Power BI. Some scenarios warrant keeping SSRS running alongside Power BI indefinitely. Use this decision framework:</p>

<h3>Keep SSRS When</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Air-gapped environments</strong>: Government classified networks, defense installations, and manufacturing floor systems that cannot connect to the internet. SSRS runs entirely on-premises with zero cloud dependency.</li> <li><strong>Extremely high-volume report generation</strong>: Organizations generating 100,000+ reports per day (e.g., utility bills, insurance policy documents) where the SSRS rendering engine running on dedicated hardware outperforms cloud-based paginated report rendering at scale.</li> <li><strong>Deep integration with legacy applications</strong>: Custom applications that embed SSRS reports via the ReportViewer control or call the SSRS SOAP/REST API for report rendering. These integrations require code changes to migrate to Power BI embedding.</li> <li><strong>SQL Server license already covers SSRS</strong>: If you are running SQL Server Enterprise Edition and your SSRS workload is stable with no new requirements, the incremental cost of Power BI Premium/Fabric capacity purely for paginated reports may not be justified.</li> </ul>

<h3>Migrate to Power BI When</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Cloud-first strategy</strong>: Your organization is moving infrastructure to Azure/Microsoft 365 and wants to eliminate on-premises servers.</li> <li><strong>Self-service analytics demand</strong>: Business users want to explore data interactively, ask ad-hoc questions, and create their own visualizations—capabilities SSRS does not provide.</li> <li><strong>Mobile and modern distribution</strong>: You need native mobile apps, Teams integration, embedded reports in web applications, and Power Automate-driven distribution workflows.</li> <li><strong>AI and Copilot capabilities</strong>: You want natural language Q&amp;A, smart narratives, anomaly detection, and Copilot-generated insights layered onto your reporting.</li> <li><strong>Consolidated platform management</strong>: Managing SSRS servers (patching, scaling, backup, high availability) alongside Power BI creates dual operational overhead. Consolidating onto Power BI service eliminates SSRS infrastructure management.</li> <li><strong>Modern semantic layer</strong>: Power BI semantic models (formerly datasets) provide a governed, reusable data layer that both interactive and paginated reports can share—something SSRS shared datasets never achieved at scale.</li> </ul>

<p>Our <a href="/services/power-bi-architecture">Power BI architecture services</a> help organizations evaluate these factors and build a migration roadmap tailored to their infrastructure, licensing, and business requirements.</p>

<h2>Paginated Reports: The Bridge Between SSRS and Power BI</h2>

<p>Power BI paginated reports are the linchpin of any SSRS migration. They use the same RDL file format, the same rendering engine, and the same Report Builder authoring tool. For most SSRS reports, the migration path to Power BI paginated reports is a configuration change (data source connection) rather than a full report rebuild.</p>

<h3>What Paginated Reports Preserve from SSRS</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Pixel-perfect layout</strong>: Headers, footers, page numbers, repeating column headers, precise positioning of every element.</li> <li><strong>Multi-page rendering</strong>: Reports that span 50, 500, or 5,000 pages render correctly with proper pagination.</li> <li><strong>Export fidelity</strong>: PDF, Excel, Word, CSV, XML, TIFF exports produce the exact same output format as SSRS.</li> <li><strong>Parameters</strong>: Multi-value parameters, cascading parameters, date range selectors, and default parameter values all work identically.</li> <li><strong>Subreports and drillthrough</strong>: Nested report rendering and parameterized drillthrough navigation are supported.</li> <li><strong>Expressions</strong>: The full Visual Basic expression language (IIF, Switch, Code references, custom assemblies with restrictions) is supported.</li> <li><strong>Tables, matrices, and lists</strong>: All tablix data regions (the core layout structure of RDL reports) render identically.</li> </ul>

<h3>What Changes in Power BI Paginated Reports</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Data sources</strong>: On-premises data sources require an <a href="/blog/power-bi-gateway-best-practices">on-premises data gateway</a>. Direct database connections from the report to on-premises SQL Server are not possible without the gateway.</li> <li><strong>Custom assemblies</strong>: Custom .NET assemblies referenced in SSRS reports are <strong>not supported</strong> in Power BI paginated reports. This is the most common migration blocker. Reports using custom assemblies must be refactored to use built-in expressions or move logic to the data source (stored procedures, views).</li> <li><strong>Shared data sources</strong>: SSRS shared data sources do not exist in Power BI. Each paginated report defines its own data source connections, or connects to a Power BI semantic model.</li> <li><strong>Report parts</strong>: SSRS report parts (reusable report components) are not supported. Restructure these as subreports or rebuild them in each consuming report.</li> <li><strong>Subscriptions</strong>: SSRS subscriptions (email, file share, SharePoint) are replaced by Power BI subscription features (email, Teams, Power Automate integration). File share delivery requires Power Automate with a file connector.</li> </ul>

<h2>Migration Methodology: The Five-Phase Approach</h2>

<p>EPC Group uses a structured five-phase methodology for SSRS-to-Power BI migrations. This approach minimizes risk, ensures no reports are lost or degraded, and provides clear decision points for stakeholders.</p>

<h3>Phase 1: Discovery and Assessment (2-4 Weeks)</h3>

<p>The assessment phase builds a complete inventory of your SSRS environment and classifies every report for migration planning.</p>

<h4>Inventory Collection</h4>

<p>Query the SSRS ReportServer database to extract the complete report catalog:</p>

<ul> <li><strong>Report inventory</strong>: Name, path, description, creation date, last modified date, last execution date, data sources, parameters, subscriptions.</li> <li><strong>Usage data</strong>: ExecutionLog table reveals which reports are actually used, how frequently, by whom, and typical execution duration. Reports not accessed in 12+ months are candidates for retirement rather than migration.</li> <li><strong>Data source inventory</strong>: All shared and embedded data sources, connection strings, authentication types (Windows integrated, stored credentials, prompt).</li> <li><strong>Subscription inventory</strong>: All scheduled subscriptions, delivery methods (email, file share, SharePoint), schedules, recipients, parameters.</li> <li><strong>Custom assembly inventory</strong>: Reports referencing custom .NET DLLs that will require refactoring.</li> </ul>

<h4>Report Classification</h4>

<p>Classify every report into one of four migration categories:</p>

<ol> <li><strong>Direct migration</strong> (typically 40-60% of reports): Standard RDL reports with SQL Server data sources, no custom assemblies, standard expressions. These can be uploaded to Power BI paginated reports with minimal changes (data source reconfiguration).</li> <li><strong>Migration with refactoring</strong> (typically 20-30%): Reports requiring changes—custom assemblies to remove, complex expressions to simplify, data source changes, or SSRS-specific features to replace.</li> <li><strong>Rebuild as interactive</strong> (typically 10-20%): Reports that are better served as interactive Power BI reports—dashboards, ad-hoc analysis reports, KPI summaries, trend analysis. These are not truly "reports" but analytics use cases forced into SSRS because no alternative existed.</li> <li><strong>Retire</strong> (typically 10-20%): Reports not accessed in 12+ months, reports superseded by newer reports, one-time reports, test/draft reports. Do not waste migration effort on reports nobody uses.</li> </ol>

<h3>Phase 2: Environment Preparation (1-2 Weeks)</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Power BI capacity provisioning</strong>: Paginated reports require <a href="/blog/power-bi-premium-vs-pro-complete-comparison">Premium Per User, Premium capacity, or Fabric capacity</a>. Size the capacity based on the concurrent paginated report rendering load from your SSRS usage data.</li> <li><strong>Gateway installation</strong>: Install and configure the on-premises data gateway to bridge on-premises SQL Server instances to the Power BI service. Configure gateway clustering for high availability if your SSRS reports serve mission-critical business processes.</li> <li><strong>Workspace structure</strong>: Create Power BI workspaces for paginated reports following your governance model (by department, by function, by environment).</li> <li><strong>Semantic model design</strong>: For reports being rebuilt as interactive Power BI reports, design the semantic model layer. For paginated reports connecting to on-premises databases, plan the gateway data source configuration.</li> <li><strong>Security mapping</strong>: Map SSRS role-based security to Power BI workspace roles and row-level security. Document which SSRS users map to which Power BI security groups.</li> </ul>

<h3>Phase 3: Report Conversion (4-12 Weeks)</h3>

<p>This is the core migration work. Approach it in priority order: migrate the most critical, most-used reports first.</p>

<h4>Direct Migration Process (for "Direct Migration" Category)</h4>

<ol> <li><strong>Download RDL</strong>: Export the .rdl file from the SSRS server (Management Studio or SSRS web portal).</li> <li><strong>Open in Power BI Report Builder</strong>: Open the .rdl in the latest version of Power BI Report Builder (not the legacy SQL Server Report Builder).</li> <li><strong>Update data source</strong>: Change embedded data source connections to use gateway-accessible connection strings. For shared data sources, create embedded data sources in each report.</li> <li><strong>Test locally</strong>: Run the report in Report Builder preview to verify data retrieval and rendering.</li> <li><strong>Publish to Power BI service</strong>: Publish the report to the target workspace. Configure the data source credentials in the Power BI service (gateway binding).</li> <li><strong>Validate output</strong>: Compare the Power BI paginated report output (PDF export) against the original SSRS output page-by-page. Verify headers, footers, page breaks, formatting, totals, and parameter behavior.</li> </ol>

<h4>RDL-to-PBIX Conversion (for "Rebuild as Interactive" Category)</h4>

<p>Reports classified for interactive rebuild require a different process:</p>

<ol> <li><strong>Analyze the RDL data queries</strong>: Extract the SQL queries or stored procedures from the RDL file. These become the source for Power Query transformations in the PBIX model.</li> <li><strong>Design the semantic model</strong>: Create a Power BI semantic model (import or DirectQuery) that covers the data requirements of the report. If multiple SSRS reports share the same data, design a single shared semantic model.</li> <li><strong>Build interactive visuals</strong>: Replace static tables and matrices with interactive visuals—bar charts, line charts, KPI cards, maps, decomposition trees. Add slicers to replace report parameters. Add drillthrough pages to replace subreports.</li> <li><strong>Validate business logic</strong>: Ensure that totals, calculations, and filtered values in the interactive report match the SSRS report. Use <a href="/blog/power-bi-dax-formulas-complete-guide">DAX measures</a> to replicate complex SSRS expressions.</li> </ol>

<h4>Tool-Assisted Conversion</h4>

<p>Several tools accelerate the conversion process:</p>

<ul> <li><strong>Power BI Report Builder</strong>: The primary tool for opening, modifying, and publishing RDL files as paginated reports. Free download from Microsoft.</li> <li><strong>RDL Migration Tool (Microsoft)</strong>: An open-source tool that automates bulk upload of RDL files to Power BI workspaces, handling data source rebinding.</li> <li><strong>Third-party conversion tools</strong>: Tools like those from JEEV Technologies and others provide automated RDL-to-PBIX conversion for standard report patterns, reducing manual rebuild effort for the "Rebuild as Interactive" category.</li> </ul>

<h3>Phase 4: Subscription and Schedule Migration (2-4 Weeks)</h3>

<p>Migrating SSRS subscriptions is often the most underestimated phase. Enterprises with 500+ active subscriptions need a systematic approach:</p>

<ul> <li><strong>Export SSRS subscriptions</strong>: Query the ReportServer database to extract all subscription definitions (report, schedule, delivery method, parameters, recipients).</li> <li><strong>Map to Power BI subscriptions</strong>: Power BI paginated report subscriptions support email delivery with PDF, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and CSV attachments. Configure each subscription in the Power BI service with the equivalent schedule and recipient list.</li> <li><strong>File share delivery replacement</strong>: SSRS file share delivery has no direct equivalent in Power BI. Use Power Automate flows to export paginated reports to SharePoint, OneDrive, Azure Blob Storage, or on-premises file shares via the gateway.</li> <li><strong>Data-driven subscriptions</strong>: SSRS data-driven subscriptions (where recipient lists and parameters come from a database query) require Power Automate or custom development in Power BI. Build Power Automate flows that query the recipient database and trigger paginated report exports with appropriate parameters for each recipient.</li> <li><strong>Schedule alignment</strong>: Verify that Power BI subscription schedules match the original SSRS schedules. Account for timezone differences if SSRS was running in a different timezone than the Power BI service tenant.</li> </ul>

<h3>Phase 5: Validation and Cutover (2-4 Weeks)</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Parallel run</strong>: Run both SSRS and Power BI paginated reports simultaneously for 2-4 weeks. Compare outputs daily for critical reports. Involve business users in validation—they know the data better than IT.</li> <li><strong>User acceptance testing</strong>: Business users validate that every migrated report produces correct output, parameters work as expected, exports are formatted correctly, and subscriptions arrive on schedule.</li> <li><strong>Performance benchmarking</strong>: Compare report rendering times between SSRS and Power BI. Paginated reports in the cloud may render slower than on-premises SSRS for complex reports due to gateway latency. Optimize by: moving data sources to Azure SQL, using DirectQuery to Power BI semantic models, or increasing Fabric capacity size.</li> <li><strong>Cutover</strong>: Once all reports pass validation, redirect users to Power BI. Disable SSRS subscriptions. Keep the SSRS server running in read-only mode for 30-60 days as a rollback option, then decommission.</li> </ul>

<h2>Data Source Migration Strategies</h2>

<p>Data source migration is the most technically complex aspect of moving from SSRS to Power BI. The approach depends on your target data architecture.</p>

<h3>Strategy 1: Lift and Shift (Gateway-Based)</h3>

<p>Keep data in on-premises SQL Server. Install an on-premises data gateway. Paginated reports in Power BI connect to on-premises databases through the gateway. This is the fastest migration path but introduces gateway as a dependency and single point of failure.</p>

<h3>Strategy 2: Cloud Migration (Azure SQL/Synapse)</h3>

<p>Migrate on-premises databases to Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, or Azure Synapse Analytics. Paginated reports connect directly to cloud data sources without a gateway. This eliminates gateway dependency but requires a database migration project. Often combined with broader <a href="/services/azure-migration">Azure migration initiatives</a>.</p>

<h3>Strategy 3: Semantic Model Layer</h3>

<p>Build Power BI semantic models (import or DirectQuery) that abstract the underlying data sources. Paginated reports connect to Power BI semantic models instead of directly to databases. This provides a governed data layer, enables reuse across interactive and paginated reports, and decouples reports from database changes. This is the recommended long-term architecture for organizations committed to Power BI as their primary analytics platform.</p>

<h2>Hybrid Approach: SSRS and Power BI Coexistence</h2>

<p>Many enterprises operate in a hybrid state for months or years. This is not a failure—it is a pragmatic strategy when the report portfolio is large (1,000+ reports) or when air-gapped environments require on-premises SSRS indefinitely.</p>

<h3>Coexistence Architecture</h3>

<ul> <li><strong>Power BI Report Server</strong>: An on-premises Power BI server that hosts both interactive Power BI reports and paginated reports. It provides a unified on-premises portal that replaces the SSRS web portal while supporting both report types. This is the bridge for organizations that need on-premises hosting but want to start using interactive Power BI reports.</li> <li><strong>Unified portal</strong>: Use a SharePoint page, Teams tab, or custom web application as a unified entry point that links to both SSRS reports and Power BI reports during the transition period. Users do not need to know which platform hosts which report.</li> <li><strong>Phased migration waves</strong>: Migrate reports in waves—typically by department or business function. Each wave follows the five-phase methodology. This spreads migration effort over 6-18 months and allows lessons learned from early waves to improve later waves.</li> </ul>

<h3>When to End Coexistence</h3>

<p>Target full migration when: all report users have Power BI Pro/PPU licenses, the on-premises data gateway is stable and monitored, all critical subscriptions are migrated and validated, business users have completed Power BI training, and the SSRS server hardware is approaching end-of-life or license renewal.</p>

<h2>Common Migration Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them</h2>

<ol> <li><strong>Ignoring custom assemblies</strong>: Discovery phase must identify all custom .NET assemblies. Each one requires a refactoring plan before migration begins.</li> <li><strong>Underestimating subscription migration</strong>: Data-driven subscriptions with complex recipient logic require significant Power Automate development. Budget accordingly.</li> <li><strong>Forcing interactive reports where paginated reports are needed</strong>: If the report must be printed, mailed, filed, or match a specific format, use paginated reports. Interactive reports are for exploration, not compliance documentation.</li> <li><strong>Skipping the parallel run</strong>: Business users must validate output during a parallel run period. Cutting over without validation leads to emergency rollbacks.</li> <li><strong>Gateway single point of failure</strong>: Always configure gateway clustering (minimum two gateway nodes) for production paginated reports that use on-premises data sources.</li> <li><strong>Ignoring retired reports</strong>: Migrating reports nobody uses wastes effort and clutters the new environment. The discovery phase should identify and retire unused reports.</li> </ol>

<h2>Migration Timeline and Effort Estimates</h2>

<table> <thead> <tr><th>Environment Size</th><th>Report Count</th><th>Estimated Duration</th><th>Team Size</th></tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr><td>Small</td><td>1-50 reports</td><td>4-8 weeks</td><td>1-2 developers</td></tr> <tr><td>Medium</td><td>50-200 reports</td><td>8-16 weeks</td><td>2-4 developers</td></tr> <tr><td>Large</td><td>200-500 reports</td><td>16-30 weeks</td><td>4-6 developers + PM</td></tr> <tr><td>Enterprise</td><td>500-2000+ reports</td><td>6-18 months (waves)</td><td>6-10 developers + PM + architect</td></tr> </tbody> </table>

<p>These estimates assume 40-60% direct migration, 20-30% refactoring, 10-20% interactive rebuild, and 10-20% retirement. Environments with high custom assembly usage or complex data-driven subscriptions will trend toward the higher end.</p>

<h2>Next Steps: Plan Your SSRS Migration</h2>

<p>Start with a discovery assessment. You cannot plan what you have not inventoried. Query your SSRS ExecutionLog to understand which reports are actually used, which are obsolete, and which are mission-critical. That data drives every subsequent decision.</p>

<p><a href="/contact">Contact EPC Group</a> to schedule an SSRS migration assessment. Our <a href="/services/power-bi-consulting">Power BI consulting</a> team has migrated thousands of SSRS reports for enterprise organizations in healthcare, financial services, and government. We bring a proven methodology, tool-assisted conversion, and deep expertise in both SSRS and Power BI paginated reports to ensure your migration preserves report fidelity while unlocking the full capabilities of the modern Power BI platform.</p>