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Customize Power BI visualization titles

Applies to: ✅ Power BI Desktop and Power BI service

All Power BI visuals have title and subtitle elements you can configure, along with other formatting options like backgrounds, borders, and shadows. You can find these settings in the General tab of the Format pane. For a complete overview of all options in the General tab, see Format pane General tab overview.

To maintain consistency across your visuals and reports, consider adjusting title styles in a report theme. When you define title formatting in a theme, all existing visuals update to match, and new visuals inherit those styles automatically. For more information, see Visual defaults in Power BI reports.

Customize visualization titles in reports

The Title section of the General tab includes options for the title, subtitle, divider, and spacing.

To access these settings, select a visual. In the Visualizations pane, select the paint brush icon. Expand the General > Title section.

Title and subtitle text

By default, Power BI generates the title text based on the fields you include in the visual. You can replace this auto-generated text with your own custom title, or remove the title entirely by toggling the Title switch off.

Both the title and subtitle support:

  • Text wrap: Enable text wrap to allow longer titles to display on multiple lines.
  • Horizontal alignment: Align the text to the left, center, or right of the visual.
  • Font formatting: Set the font family, size, color, and style (bold, italic, underline).
  • Background color: Add a background color behind the title text.

You can also conditionally format the title and subtitle text to make them dynamic and responsive to user selections. For example, you can create a title that updates based on slicer selections or filter context. For detailed instructions, see Expression-based titles in Power BI Desktop.

Divider and spacing

Add a divider line between the title and subtitle area and the plot area of the visual:

  • Divider: Turn on to display a horizontal line that separates the title block from the visual content. You can customize the divider color and width.
  • Space above plot area: Controls the spacing between the title block and the plot area. This setting works whether you use a subtitle and divider, either one, or neither, keeping the space under the title block consistent across configurations.
  • Space above subtitle: Adjusts the gap between the title and the subtitle.
  • Space above divider: When you enable a divider, this option appears and lets you adjust the space above the divider line.

Note

Before the July 2026 release, Space between label and value or Space below title, Space below subtitle, and Space below divider controlled the spacing in the title when the Customize spacing toggle was enabled. Reports and themes automatically adjust to the new spacing settings without impacting the appearance of your visuals.

To revert all of the changes, select Reset to default at the bottom of the Title section.

Customize visualization backgrounds

Add a background color to the plot area of your visual to help it stand out on the report canvas or to match your organization's branding.

To access background settings, select a visual. In the Visualizations pane, select the paint brush icon. Expand General > Effects > Background.

  • Background: Turn on to enable a background color behind the visual's plot area.
  • Color: Choose a color from the color picker.
  • Transparency: Adjust the transparency level to control how much of the report canvas shows through the background.

To revert all of the changes, select Reset to default at the bottom of the Background section.

Customize visualization legends

Many visuals include a legend to help readers understand what different colors or shapes represent. You can customize the legend's appearance and position to better fit your report design.

To access legend settings, select a visual that has a legend. In the Visualizations pane, select the paint brush icon. Expand Visual > Legend.

  • Legend: Turn on to display the legend. When off, the legend is hidden.
  • Title: Turn on to display a title above the legend items. Enter custom text in the Title text field.
  • Position: Choose where to place the legend relative to the visual (top, bottom, left, right, or variations like top center).
  • Color: Set the text color for legend labels.
  • Font: Customize the font family, size, and style.

To revert all of your changes, select Reset to default at the bottom of the Legend section.

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