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Power Automate Premium License Inquiry

Andrew Howley 20 Reputation points
2025-11-21T17:50:07.6866667+00:00

I am developing an automation in Power Automate, while using a free trial to "Premium." The automation will be a button, that is clicked on a Power BI report, which generates a Word document that will contain a few data points from the Power BI report.

For some additional context, I expect to be the only developer for this automation, but potentially many others will use the automation to generate documents.

I'm able to get this to run successfully on my own, but when my coworker tests the feature it errors, indicating an "unsuccessful" run. Upon review, it seems that generating a Word document is a premium feature, and my coworker does not have a premium account (or free trial activated for that matter).

My questions for you:

  1. Will the users (people clicking the button to generate Word docs, that are not developers) need Premium licenses, too? Or just the developer?
  2. What's the most cost efficient way to navigate this? I'm a bit skeptical that the Premium license for all users is viable...so if there's any guidance on cost efficieny it would be appreciated.

Thanks a lot,

Drew

Microsoft 365 and Office | Other
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  1. JC 8,140 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-11-21T20:51:05.7566667+00:00

    Hello,

    Looking up your scenario brings up the native possible exports for power BI, which is only pbix, pdf, powerpoint or publish to web, the generation of the word doc seems to be power automate needing power BI to generate the word file which is what requires the premium bit.

    Maybe you can work around this issue by outputting a pdf file instead of a word document? It should work but you’ll have to juggle the conversion back to word docs if it’s a hard requirement.

    Hope this helps,

    JC

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  1. Q&A Assist
    2025-11-21T17:50:26.6666667+00:00
    AI generated content. This question contains an answer created with AI from Q&A Assist. Learn more
    1. Yes, users who are clicking the button to generate Word documents will also need Premium licenses. Since generating a Word document is a premium feature, any user who interacts with this automation will require a Power Automate Premium license to successfully execute the flow.
    2. To navigate this cost-effectively, consider the following options:
      • Power Automate Premium License: While this is the most straightforward solution, it may not be viable for all users due to cost.
      • Power Automate Trial: You can encourage users to sign up for a trial license, which lasts for 90 days, allowing them to access premium features temporarily.
      • Pay-as-you-go Plan: This option allows users to pay for Power Automate using an Azure subscription, which can be more flexible and cost-effective for occasional users.
      • Power Apps Developer Plan: If the automation is for development and testing purposes, you can use the Power Apps Developer Plan, which provides access to premium features for development but is not allowed for production use.

    By assessing the usage patterns and the number of users who will need access, you can choose the best approach that balances functionality with cost.

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