How to Display Power BI Reports in a Continuous Slideshow with Live Data

[Bibiano_Geraldo]

Introduction

Displaying live data in a visually engaging way is essential in modern corporate environments. Whether it’s in a command center, a sales room, or a lobby, showcasing Power BI reports on large screens can drive awareness and data-driven decisions.

But there’s a challenge: when you open a Power BI report in a TV browser, it always starts on the default page, and there's no built-in way to auto-rotate between pages.

This article shows you how to use PowerPoint and the official Power BI add-in to turn a multi-page report into an automated slideshow, with each slide displaying a different report page all with live data and continuous looping.

The Problem: Regional Sales Report by Contoso

Contoso, a fictional retail company, has a Regional Sales report that helps leadership understand:

• Which products are driving profits
• Which regions are underperforming or overachieving
• Sales goal tracking vs. actual performance
• Trends by sales channel

The sales manager wants to display this report on a TV in the planning room, automatically cycling through report pages every 5 seconds, without manual interaction.

The Solution: Power BI + PowerPoint in Slideshow Mode

By combining the Power BI add-in for PowerPoint with PowerPoint’s built-in slideshow features, you can create an auto-advancing, looping presentation with:

• One report page per slide
• Real-time data pulled from Power BI Service
• Automatic transitions between pages
• Continuous loop playback

Step-by-Step: Build Your Auto-Slideshow

Step 1 – Publish your report to Power BI Service

Make sure your Regional Sales report is published and accessible via Power BI Service.

 

Step 2 – Add the Power BI add-in to PowerPoint

• Go to Home> Add-ins
• Search for Power BI
• Add the official Microsoft add-in
• Sign in using your organizational Power BI account

Step 3 – Insert your report into the first slide

• Insert a blank slide
• Go to Insert > Power BI
• Select the Regional Sales report
• Choose the Overview page
• Click Insert

Step 4 – Enable Automatic Data Refresh During the Slideshow

By default, the Power BI add-in for PowerPoint only refreshes data when the slide is first loaded or when the user manually clicks Refresh. Fortunately, there's a built-in option that allows the add-in to automatically refresh the data from Power BI during the slideshow.

To Enable Automatic Data Refresh During a Slide Show:

• In the footer of the visual, click Add-in options

• Navigate to the Slide show settings tab

• Check the box for Automatic refresh in slide show

• Set your desired refresh frequency

Pro Tip:

Even with automatic slide rotation, the data refreshes seamlessly in the background, keeping your visuals up to date without interrupting the presentation ideal for real-time dashboards in war rooms, logistics centers, office lobbies, or trade show displays.

Step 5 – Duplicate the slide and change the report page

• Right-click the slide > Duplicate Slide

• Change the report page to Trends

• Repeat for the Insights page

Step 6 – Set up automatic slide transitions

• Go to the Transitions tab
• Enable Advance Slide after 5 seconds
• Click Apply to All

Step 7 – Enable loop mode for the slideshow

• Go to Slide Show > Set Up Slide Show
• Check Loop continuously until 'Esc'
• Click OK

Step 8 – Present it on your TV

• Connect a laptop or mini-PC to your TV
• Press F5 to launch the presentation

Technical Considerations

Aspect	Detail
Data Refresh	Based on dataset schedule, DirectQuery, or live stream
Requirements	Valid Power BI license and internet connection
Smart TV browsers	Do not support page rotation or slide behavior
Recommended Setup	Use PowerPoint for slideshow control instead of relying on the browser

Benefits of This Approach

Advantage	Impact
Full automation	Zero manual interaction during the presentation
Real-time updates	Connected directly to the Power BI Service
Smooth visual transitions	Clean, professional data storytelling
Reusable setup	Easy to repurpose for meetings, events, or executive dashboards
Ideal for screen displays	Works perfectly on TVs and large monitors in business environments

Quick Checklist

• ✅ Report published to Power BI Service
• ✅ Power BI add-in added to PowerPoint
• ✅ Slides created with different report pages
• ✅ Slide transitions configured
• ✅ Loop playback enabled
• ✅ TV connected to a laptop or device

Final Thoughts

With just a few steps, you can turn any Power BI report into a live, looping slideshow, making it ideal for public dashboards, sales centers, or decision rooms.

Using Power BI + PowerPoint together is a smart, low-code way to showcase insights with real-time updates, visual continuity, and maximum business impact.

The example with Contoso’s Regional Sales Report demonstrates how easy and effective this method is.

Report used in this article: Regional Sales sample for Power BI