Power BI Ultimate Waterfall Custom Visual

Ultimate Waterfall (API) End User Documentation

Version: 1.1.1.10
Publisher: dataviz.boutique
Support: https://dataviz.boutique

Ultimate Waterfall (API) is a Power BI custom visual for building waterfall charts with contribution bars, totals, starting and ending values, reference values, small multiples, line overlays, subtotals, table values, labels, highlights, hierarchy coloring, and outlier handling.

Use the visual when you need to explain how positive and negative changes move a value from a start point to an end point, compare measures against references, or show step-by-step business drivers across categories.

Original Release Highlights, Examples, and Registration

Power BI Ultimate Waterfall Custom Visual (Release!) – Power BI visualizations

• Waterfall charts also have other names, such as walk charts, bridge charts, flying brick charts, and Mario charts (as in Nintendo).
• Calculation waterfalls (vertical axis) – the status bars represent base and result measures (for example, sales and EBIT), while the contribution bars in between represent the increase or decrease of the measures.
• Chart orientation – choose horizontal orientation for time series and vertical orientation for categories.
• IBCS (R) color theme as the default colors
• Small multiples – available in both orientations; change the number of columns or rows.
• Scaling within small multiples
• Define up to eight subtotals
• Support for variance waterfalls
  • Define start value
  • Define or calculate deviation as increase/decrease
  • Total value = start value +/- increase/decrease
  • Limit outliers
  • Stacked value fields
  • Independent first bar and last bar
  • Drill down and up
  • Hatched bar background

 Video: Power BI Ultimate Waterfall Chart

Video: Power BI Ultimate Waterfall Chart subtotals

 

Register for your Ultimate Waterfall Chart today

 

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Related: Ultimate Waterfall licenses and product options.

Documentation

Add the Visual to a Report

1. Open Power BI Desktop.
2. Choose Import a visual from a file.
3. Select the .pbiviz package for Ultimate Waterfall (API).
4. Add the visual to the report canvas.
5. Add fields to the visual wells described below.

Data Fields

The visual exposes these field wells:

Field well	Required	Use
Category	Usually required	Defines the waterfall steps or labels. Drilldown is supported on this role.
Small Multiples	Optional	Splits the visual into multiple small charts by group.
Measure Data	Commonly required	Main numeric measure used for contribution bars.
Starting Values	Optional	Supplies explicit starting values instead of deriving the start from the measure flow.
First Values	Optional	Supplies or styles first bar values for specific scenarios.
Second Last Values	Optional	Supplies or styles the second-last bar.
Last Values	Optional	Supplies or styles final values.
Reference	Optional	Adds a reference series/value.
Reference2	Optional	Adds a second reference series/value.
Table Value(s)	Optional	Adds values to the table displayed with the chart.
Tooltips	Optional	Adds extra fields to tooltip content.
Sign	Optional	Controls sign behavior when supplied as a measure.

Common setup patterns:

• Basic waterfall: add Category and Measure Data.
• Waterfall with a known start and end: add Category, Measure Data, and the relevant Starting Values, First Values, Last Values, or Second Last Values fields.
• Small multiples: add Category, Measure Data, and Small Multiples.
• Reference comparison: add Category, Measure Data, and Reference or Reference2.
• Table-enhanced waterfall: add Category, Measure Data, and one or more Table Value(s) fields.

Formatting Pane

Open the visual formatting pane in Power BI to configure the sections below.

About

The About card contains support and license information.

Setting	Use
Support	Shows the support website.
Version	Shows the visual version.
License Key	Enter a license key if required.
Info	Shows decoded license or status information.
Plan Expired	Shows whether the plan is expired.
Plan Name	Shows the active plan name.

Chart Render

Use Chart Render for overall layout and axis behavior.

Setting	Use
Padding	Controls space around the chart.
Flip Orientation	Switches between the default orientation and the flipped orientation.
Merge Last and Total Bars	Combines the final bar and total bar presentation.
Show Y Axis	Displays or hides the Y-axis.
Show Origin Line	Displays the zero/origin reference line.
Show brackets () for negative values	Formats negative values with brackets.

Bars

Use Bars for bar labels, number formatting, total bar styling, and custom bar colors.

Setting	Use
Show Labels	Shows or hides bar value labels.
Rotate Labels	Rotates bar labels when orientation supports it.
Label Background	Adds a background behind labels.
Background Color	Sets the label background color.
Background Transparency	Controls label background transparency from 0 to 100.
Show + Sign for Positive Values	Adds a plus sign to positive values.
Numerical Precision	Sets decimal precision from 0 to 10.
Data Unit	Chooses Auto, None, Percent, Thousand, Million, Billion, or Trillion.
Show Data Unit	Shows or hides the selected unit suffix.
Text Size	Sets bar label text size.
Text Color	Sets bar label text color.
Font Family	Sets bar label font.
Total Bar	Shows or hides the total bar.
Total Bar Color	Sets the total bar color.
Custom Bar Color	Sets a custom bar color.
Custom Bar Color Indices	Applies the custom color to selected bar positions, such as 1,2,3.
Show Custom Color for All Bars	Applies the custom color to all bars.

Some options appear only when the related feature is enabled. For example, background color and transparency appear when Label Background is on, and custom color index options appear after a custom bar color is selected.

Y-axis

Use Y-axis to control the numeric range.

Setting	Use
Min	Sets a custom axis minimum.
Max	Sets a custom axis maximum.
Reset axis range	Returns the axis range to automatic behavior.

Subtotal

Use Subtotal to insert subtotal bars and define their names and colors.

Setting	Use
Subtotal	Enables subtotal bars.
Subtotal Type	Choose Automatic or Manual.
Subtotal Bar Indices	For manual subtotals, enter bar positions such as 1,2,3.
Name 1 to Name 8	Sets labels for up to eight subtotal definitions.
Color 1 to Color 8	Sets colors for up to eight subtotal definitions.

When Automatic subtotal type is selected, the manual subtotal index field is hidden.

Reference

Use Reference when the Reference or Reference2 field wells are populated.

Setting	Use
Negative for Reference Label	Inverts the sign interpretation for reference labels.
Show reference bars	Shows or hides reference bars.
New Connection Line	Uses the alternate connection-line style.

Labels

Use Labels to style category labels.

Setting	Use
Text Color	Sets label text color.
Text Size	Sets label text size.
Font Family	Sets label font.
Bolden Labels	Enables bold formatting for selected labels.
Bolden Labels at Indices	Enter label positions such as 1,2,3.
Bolden All Labels	Makes all labels bold.
Overlap Mitigation	Enables controls to reduce label collisions.
Truncate Labels	Limits label length.
Multiline Labels	Allows labels to wrap across multiple lines.
Degree of Rotation	Sets the label rotation angle from 0 to 360.
Horizontal Position	Moves labels horizontally.
Vertical Position	Moves labels vertically.

The index and bold-all options appear when Bolden Labels is enabled. Truncation, rotation, and position controls appear when Overlap Mitigation is enabled.

Legend

Use Legend to show and style the visual legend.

Setting	Use
Show	Shows or hides the legend.
Marker Size	Sets legend marker size.
Font Family	Sets legend font.
Text Color	Sets legend text color.
Text Size	Sets legend text size.

Line Chart

Use Line Chart to overlay a line series on the waterfall.

Setting	Use
Show	Shows or hides the line chart overlay.
Line Color	Sets line color.
Line Thickness	Sets line thickness from 0 to 10.
Overlap Color Setting	Chooses how the line blends with other elements. Options include Normal, Multiply, Screen, Overlay, Darken, Lighten, Difference, Hue, Saturation, Luminosity, and others.
Line Ending Style	Chooses Round or Square line ends.
Line Style	Chooses Normal, Dotted, or Dashed.
Show Markers	Shows or hides point markers.
Marker Size	Sets marker radius.
Marker Outline Thickness	Sets marker outline thickness.
Marker Outline Color	Sets marker outline color.
Marker Fill Color	Sets marker fill color.
Show Area Under the Line	Fills the area under the line.
Area Color	Sets the area fill color.
Area Opacity	Sets the area opacity from 0.0 to 1.0.

Marker settings appear when Show Markers is on. Area color and opacity appear when Show Area Under the Line is on.

Highlight 1, Highlight 2, and Highlight 3

Use Highlight 1 through Highlight 3 to mark ranges between selected start and end bar positions.

Setting	Use
Show	Enables the highlight.
Badge Type	Chooses Rectangle or Bubble.
Text Size	Sets badge text size.
Font Family	Sets badge font.
Line Color	Sets highlight line color.
Badge Color	Sets badge color.
Use Sentiment Color	Uses the configured sentiment colors instead of manual colors.
Negative for highlight	Inverts sign interpretation for the highlight.
Starting Indices	Enter start bar positions such as 1,2,3.
Ending Indices	Enter end bar positions such as 2,3,4.
Arrow Size	Sets arrow size.
Show Starting Arrow	Shows an arrow at the start of the highlight.
Show Ending Arrow	Shows an arrow at the end of the highlight.

Highlight for Total and Last Bar

This highlight is intended for the relationship between the total bar and the last bar.

Available settings include Show, Badge Type, Text Size, Font Family, Line Color, Badge Color, Use Sentiment Color, Negative for highlight, Arrow Size, Show Starting Arrow, and Show Ending Arrow.

Highlight for Last and Second Last Bar

This highlight is intended for the relationship between the last bar and the second-last bar.

Available settings include Show, Badge Type, Text Size, Font Family, Line Color, Badge Color, Use Sentiment Color, Negative for highlight, Arrow Size, Show Starting Arrow, and Show Ending Arrow.

Sentiment Color

Use Sentiment Color to control colors for increases, decreases, and conditional formatting.

Setting	Use
Use Conditional Formatting	Uses Power BI conditional formatting rules for sentiment color.
Increase	Sets the increase color. Default: #6FD44D.
Decrease	Sets the decrease color. Default: #ff2800.
Conditional Color	Defines rule-based conditional color when conditional formatting is enabled.
Negative is Good	Treats negative changes as favorable and swaps sentiment interpretation.

When Use Conditional Formatting is off, Increase, Decrease, and Negative is Good are available. When it is on, Conditional Color is used instead.

Table

Use Table to display supporting values below or alongside the chart, depending on the visual layout.

Setting	Use
Show	Shows or hides the table.
Text Size	Sets table text size.
Font Family	Sets table font.
Column Spacing	Adjusts spacing between table columns.
Format Values	Applies numeric formatting to table values.
Formatting Precision	Sets table decimal precision.
Table Header	Shows or hides the table header.
Header Grid Symbols	Shows or hides header symbols.
Measure Values	Shows measure values in the table.
Reference Values	Shows reference values in the table.
Absolute Variance	Shows absolute variance.
Variance %	Shows percentage variance.
Result	Shows result values.
Header Symbol Type	Chooses Line, Rectangle, Hatched Rectangle, or Parallel Lines for each table item type.
Symbol Color	Sets the symbol color for each table item type.

Formatting Precision appears when Format Values is on. Header symbol style and color settings appear when Header Grid Symbols is on.

Limit Outlier

Use Limit Outlier to cap very large values and mark them with an axis-break identifier.

Setting	Use
Limit Outlier	Enables outlier limiting.
Outlier Value	Sets the maximum displayed outlier threshold.
Limit Total	Applies the limit to total values.
Limit First Values	Applies the limit to first values.
Limit Second Last Values	Applies the limit to second-last values.
Limit Last Values	Applies the limit to last values.
Show Outlier Identifier (Axis Break)	Shows an axis-break marker on limited values.
Identifier Size	Sets marker size.
Identifier Color	Sets marker color.
Identifier Type	Chooses Polygon or Gradient.
Identifier Position	Moves the marker position.

Identifier styling options appear when Show Outlier Identifier is on.

Starting Value, First Value, Last Value, and Second Last Value

These cards style special value bars.

Card	Default color	Settings
Starting Value	#B2BEB5	Name, Color, Border Color, Style
First Value	#FF7F50	Name, Color, Border Color, Style
Last Value	#17A589	Name, Color, Border Color, Style
Second Last Value	#F0B27A	Name, Color, Border Color, Style

The Style setting supports Solid and Pattern.

Hierarchy

Use Hierarchy to assign colors to category hierarchy levels.

Setting	Default color
Level 1	#003396
Level 2	#154197
Level 3	#2e5090
Level 4	#3A5891
Level 5	#496291
Level 6	#5F7295
Level 7	#728099
Level 8	#818A9B

Tips for Report Authors

• Start with Category and Measure Data, then add optional fields one at a time.
• Use Reference fields when you need a target, budget, prior period, or benchmark comparison.
• Use Table Value(s) for values that should be visible without requiring tooltip interaction.
• Use Tooltips for additional context that should appear only on hover.
• Use Small Multiples when the same waterfall logic should be repeated by business unit, region, scenario, or product group.
• Use Subtotal when the report needs intermediate totals within the waterfall sequence.
• Use Limit Outlier when one very large value compresses the rest of the chart.
• Use Sentiment Color consistently across reports so increases and decreases have the same meaning for readers.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	What to check
The visual is blank	Confirm that Category and a valid numeric measure are assigned.
Values look too small or too large	Check Data Unit, Numerical Precision, and axis Min/Max settings.
Labels overlap	Enable Overlap Mitigation, rotate labels, truncate labels, or reduce text size.
Custom bar colors do not apply	Confirm a Custom Bar Color is selected and that the indices match the intended bar positions.
Subtotal positions do not apply	Confirm Subtotal is enabled and Subtotal Type is Manual.
Line markers are missing	Enable Line Chart and Show Markers.
Area fill is missing	Enable Line Chart and Show Area Under the Line.
Table symbols are missing	Enable Table, Table Header, and Header Grid Symbols.
About version appears wrong	Confirm the installed .pbiviz package is version 1.1.1.10.

Current Package

The current packaged visual in this folder is:

Waterfall2023Pbi552BC2DB21894DA5B40D0FE0FE33D590.1.1.1.10.pbiviz