Power Platform Community Forum Thread Details

Hi everyone,

I'm working on a Power BI report that contains a Matrix visual where:
Rows = Name
Columns = Date
Values = Quantity

Not every Name/Date combination has a corresponding record, so many cells are blank. I have embedded a Power Apps visual in the report, and my requirement is:
When a user selects a cell that contains a quantity, the relevant row and column values (Name and Date) are passed to Power Apps, which works as expected.
However, I also need users to be able to select blank cells (where no record exists yet) so that Power Apps receives the corresponding Name and Date values and can create a new record.

The problem is that blank matrix cells don't have an underlying data row, so nothing is passed to Power Apps.

My question is:
Is there a way to capture the row (Name) and column (Date) values when a user selects a blank cell in a Power BI Matrix? Alternatively, is there a recommended approach or workaround to achieve this?

Any suggestions or best practices would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

Categories:

Building Power Apps

Hi,

Unfortunately, Power BI matrix visuals can't directly select a truly blank cell because there's no underlying data point behind it. Since no row exists for that Name/Date combination, nothing is passed to the Power Apps visual when the user clicks the blank area.

A common workaround is to create a dataset that includes all possible Name/Date combinations (for example, via a cross join of Names and Dates) and then show a value such as 0 or a placeholder when no record exists. This creates an actual data point for every cell, allowing the Name and Date context to be passed to Power Apps when selected.

Another option is to drive the Power Apps visual from separate Name and Date slicers rather than relying on matrix cell selection.

In short, the key is that Power Apps can only receive context for data points that exist in the model. Truly blank matrix cells don't have selectable context, so you'll need to materialize the missing Name/Date combinations in your data model or use an alternative selection mechanism.

Thanks & Regards,

Manoj Annavajjala