Table Options Reference
Control the fundamental display behavior of your table including hover effects, row striping, freezing panes, and display precision.
These settings correspond to the tableSettingsCard in the configuration model.
Overview
Table Options control how your table behaves and displays data without changing the styling or colors. These are the foundational display settings.
Hover Behavior
Highlight Row on Hover
Setting: Highlight row on hover
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Highlights the entire row when your cursor moves over it.
Use cases:
- Interactive dashboards
- Reports where users will hover to explore
- Tables with many columns (helps track which row you're in)
Example:
Normal: | Region | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 |
Hover: | Region | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | ← Entire row highlighted
Row Appearance
Zebra Rows
Setting: Zebra rows
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Alternates row background colors for easier reading.
Visual effect:
Row 1: White background
Row 2: Light gray background
Row 3: White background
Row 4: Light gray background
...
Benefits:
- Helps readers track across wide tables
- Improves readability for people with dyslexia
- Makes data-dense tables easier to scan
When to disable:
- Very narrow tables (few columns)
- When custom styling already provides good contrast
Display Formatting
Show % Symbol
Setting: Show % symbol
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Controls whether the "%" character appears after percentage values.
Examples:
- On:
45%,68.5% - Off:
45,68.5
Use cases:
- Keep On for general reporting (clearer meaning)
- Turn Off for data-dense tables where space is limited
Percent Precision
Setting: Percent precision
Type: Number (0-5)
Default: 1
Number of decimal places for percentage display.
Common settings:
| Precision | Example | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | 45% | Executive summaries, simple reporting |
| 1 | 45.2% | Standard business reporting (most common) |
| 2 | 45.23% | Detailed analysis, research |
| 3+ | 45.234% | Scientific/academic work |
Tips:
- Higher precision = larger numbers in cells (may affect readability)
- Lower precision = cleaner look but less detail
- Match precision to your audience's needs
Column & Row Freezing
Freezing keeps certain rows/columns visible while scrolling, essential for navigating large tables.
Freeze Left Column
Setting: Freeze left column
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Keeps the row labels (leftmost column) visible while scrolling horizontally.
When enabled:
- You scroll left/right through data columns
- Row labels stay visible on the left
- Easy to identify which row you're looking at
When to disable:
- Table fits on screen (no horizontal scroll needed)
- First column should scroll with the rest
Example:
Frozen left:
┌─────────────┬──────────────────────────────┐
│ Product (F) │ Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 ... (scroll) │
│ Product A │ 100 120 115 130 │
│ Product B │ 85 92 98 105 │
└─────────────┴──────────────────────────────┘
Freeze Top Row
Setting: Freeze top row
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Keeps column headers visible while scrolling vertically.
When enabled:
- You scroll up/down through rows
- Headers stay visible at top
- Easy to know which column you're looking at
When to disable:
- Table fits on screen (no vertical scroll needed)
- Headers should scroll with the rest
Example:
┌──────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Region │ Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 (F) │
├─────────┼──────────────────────────┤
│ North │ 1000 1100 1050 1200 │
│ South │ 800 920 950 1050 │
│ East │ 1200 1300 1250 1400 │
│ ....... │ ... (scroll down) ... │
└─────────┴──────────────────────────┘
Keep both freezing options On for tables larger than your screen. Disable only if your table is small enough to fit completely.
Column Sizing
Row Title Fixed Width
Setting: Row title fixed width
Type: Text input
Format: Any valid CSS width (200px, 20%, 15em)
Default: Empty (automatic sizing)
Set a fixed width for the row labels column instead of letting it auto-size.
Use cases:
- Consistent layouts: When creating multiple tables with same row structure
- Visual alignment: Aligning tables vertically across multiple reports
- Space control: Limiting label space when labels are very long
Examples:
/* Fixed pixel width */
Row Title Fixed Width: 250px
/* Fixed percentage */
Row Title Fixed Width: 25%
/* Em units (relative to font size) */
Row Title Fixed Width: 20em
Tips:
- Leave empty for automatic sizing (recommended for most cases)
- Use when labels are consistent across reports
- Test that labels aren't cut off if using fixed widths
- Percentage widths are relative to total table width
This is particularly useful when you have the same column variables but different row variables across multiple tables, maintaining visual consistency.
Header Visibility
Show Column Header
Setting: Show column header
Type: Toggle
Default: On
Show or hide the column header row entirely.
When to keep enabled (most cases):
- Users need to identify columns
- Multiple hierarchical levels
When to disable:
- Table is part of a dashboard with clear context
- Column labels are already provided elsewhere
- Space is extremely limited
- Headers are obvious from surrounding documentation
Example - Headers Hidden:
Before (Header On): After (Header Off):
┌──────┬─────┬─────┐ ┌──────┬─────┬─────┐
│ Item │ Q1 │ Q2 │ │ 100 │ 120 │ 115 │
├──────┼─────┼─────┤ ├──────┼─────┼─────┤
│ A │ 100 │ 120 │ → │ 85 │ 92 │ 98 │
│ B │ 85 │ 92 │ │ 45 │ 52 │ 48 │
└──────┴─────┴─────┘ └──────┴─────┴─────┘
Configuration Examples
Standard Business Report
- Highlight row on hover: On
- Zebra rows: On
- Show % symbol: On
- Percent precision: 1
- Freeze left: On
- Freeze top: On
- Row title fixed width: (leave empty)
- Show column header: On
Data-Dense Table
- Highlight row on hover: Off (reduces visual clutter)
- Zebra rows: On (helps tracking)
- Show % symbol: On
- Percent precision: 0 (more compact)
- Freeze left: On
- Freeze top: On
- Row title fixed width: 180px
- Show column header: On
Executive Dashboard
- Highlight row on hover: On
- Zebra rows: Off (cleaner look)
- Show % symbol: On
- Percent precision: 0 (simplicity)
- Freeze left: On
- Freeze top: On
- Row title fixed width: (auto)
- Show column header: On
Minimal/Embedded Table
- Highlight row on hover: On
- Zebra rows: Off
- Show % symbol: On
- Percent precision: 1
- Freeze left: Off (if table is narrow)
- Freeze top: Off (if few rows)
- Row title fixed width: (auto)
- Show column header: Off or On (context dependent)
Best Practices
- Hover Highlight: Keep On for interactive reports, Off for print-friendly views
- Zebra Rows: Always On unless table is very narrow
- Symbol/Precision: Match your audience (executives = simpler, analysts = more detail)
- Freezing: Always On for large tables, consider Off for small ones
- Column Headers: Keep On unless context is very clear
Troubleshooting
Q: Text is overlapping or hard to read
A: Increase precision decimals or reduce row title fixed width
Q: Zebra rows make it harder to read
A: This may indicate insufficient contrast - adjust custom formatting colors instead
Q: Freeze isn't working
A: Verify your browser/Power BI version supports sticky positioning; try disabling custom scrolling settings
Q: Row labels are cut off
A: Use auto sizing (leave Row Title Fixed Width empty) or increase the fixed width value
Related Topics
- Table Styles - Apply professional themes
- Custom Element Formatting - Colors and fonts
- Formatting Overview - All formatting options