{"id":2026,"date":"2026-09-16T08:46:43","date_gmt":"2026-09-16T08:46:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entri.app\/explore\/?post_type=curriculum&#038;p=2026"},"modified":"2026-09-16T08:46:43","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T08:46:43","slug":"power-query-parameters","status":"publish","type":"curriculum","link":"https:\/\/entri.app\/explore\/power-bi\/power-query-parameters\/","title":{"rendered":"Power Query Parameters"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>What Are Power Query Parameters in Power BI?<\/h2>\n<p>Power Query parameters are named, reusable values you define in Power Query Editor that can be referenced across multiple queries \u2014 letting you change a database server name, a file path, a date filter, or any other input in one place rather than editing every query individually. They are essential for building flexible, environment-aware data pipelines.<\/p>\n<h2>Why Use Query Parameters in Power BI?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><b><\/b><strong><b>Environment switching: <\/b><\/strong>Use a parameter for the database server name so you can switch between dev, staging, and production without rewriting queries.<\/li>\n<li><b><\/b><strong><b>Dynamic filtering: <\/b><\/strong>Let users or the refresh process pass a date, region, or threshold value that filters data at the source level \u2014 reducing load.<\/li>\n<li><b><\/b><strong><b>Centralized maintenance: <\/b><\/strong>If 10 queries reference the same file path, updating the parameter updates all 10 at once.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>How to Create a Parameter in Power Query<\/h2>\n<p>In Power Query Editor, click Home \u2192 Manage Parameters \u2192 New Parameter. Give it a name (e.g., ServerName), choose a type (Text, Number, Date, etc.), optionally set a list of allowed values, and assign a default\/current value. The parameter then appears in the Queries pane and can be referenced in any M expression by name.<\/p>\n<h2>How to Use Power Query Parameters in a Query<\/h2>\n<p>Reference a parameter in M code by its name \u2014 e.g., if your parameter is called ServerName, use it in a connection string: Sql.Database(ServerName, &#8220;MyDatabase&#8221;). In the UI, you can also use Home \u2192 Data Source Settings and replace hard-coded values with the parameter name via the dropdown.<\/p>\n<h2>How to Use Power Query Parameters in Power BI \u2014 Step-by-Step Tutorial<\/h2>\n<p>This tutorial walks you through creating a Power Query parameter and using it to dynamically switch a database server name. You will finish in 4 steps and under 5 minutes.<\/p>\n<h3>Steps<\/h3>\n<p><strong><b>Step 1: Create a parameter<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>In Power Query Editor, click Home \u2192 Manage Parameters \u2192 New Parameter. Name it &#8216;ServerName&#8217;, type: Text, Current Value: your dev server address (e.g., &#8216;dev-sql.company.com&#8217;). Click OK.<\/p>\n<p><strong><b>Step 2: Reference the parameter in your query<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Open the query&#8217;s Advanced Editor. Find the line where the server name is hard-coded (e.g., Sql.Database(&#8220;dev-sql.company.com&#8221;, &#8220;SalesDB&#8221;)) and replace the string with the parameter name: Sql.Database(ServerName, &#8220;SalesDB&#8221;).<\/p>\n<p><strong><b>Step 3: Test with the current value<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Click Close &amp; Apply. The query uses the parameter&#8217;s current value. Verify data loads correctly.<\/p>\n<p><strong><b>Step 4: Switch environments<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>To point to production, go back to Manage Parameters and change ServerName&#8217;s current value to &#8216;prod-sql.c<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What Are Power Query Parameters in Power BI? Power Query parameters are named, reusable values you define in Power Query Editor that can be referenced across multiple queries \u2014 letting you change a database server name, a file path, a date filter, or any other input in one place rather than editing every query individually. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"curriculum-category":[90,91,132],"custom_linking_tags":[133],"class_list":["post-2026","curriculum","type-curriculum","status-publish","hentry","curriculum-category-power-bi","curriculum-category-power-bi-tutorials","curriculum-category-merging-queries","custom_linking_tags-merging-queries"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Power Query Parameters<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/entri.app\/explore\/power-bi\/power-query-parameters\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Power Query Parameters\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What Are Power Query Parameters in Power BI? 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Power Query parameters are named, reusable values you define in Power Query Editor that can be referenced across multiple queries \u2014 letting you change a database server name, a file path, a date filter, or any other input in one place rather than editing every query individually. 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