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Choose a .NET reporting architecture by the job each report must do, not by the assumption that one tool should handle every output. Use interactive Power BI reports for exploration and visual analysis; use paginated reports for precise, repeatable documents and print-ready output. If neither fits your application’s workflow, compare the long-term cost of building reporting features with an embedded .NET suite—and test the licensing, migration, deployment, and workload requirements before committing.
Start by identifying what people need from a report
“Reporting” can mean at least two different things: exploring data to find patterns, or producing a consistent document that can be printed, saved, or distributed. Those jobs have different layout and interaction needs. An application may need both, so choosing one report type for the entire product can create avoidable compromises.
Use interactive reports for exploration
Power BI reports are designed for visual analysis and interaction, such as filtering data and exploring relationships. They are a natural fit when users need to ask follow-up questions of a dataset rather than receive an identical, fixed-layout document each time.
Use paginated reports for controlled output
Paginated reports are designed for formatted pages, including reports where the layout, page breaks, headers, or footers matter. Microsoft describes them this way: “Power BI paginated reports are optimized for printing, or PDF generation.” They can also render to formats including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, PDF, CSV, XML, and MHTML. Microsoft’s guidance specifically identifies print or PDF output, grids that may overflow, and precise page formatting as reasons to use paginated reports. Microsoft Learn: When to use paginated reports in Power BI.
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These are separate report types and formats, not two modes of a single file. They can coexist in a workspace and be distributed through a Power BI app, but a paginated report is a definition that retrieves data and applies a layout when it runs. Do not assume that an existing interactive report file can simply be converted into a paginated report.
Compare the three architecture paths
| Path | Best fit | Questions and trade-offs |
|---|---|---|
| Build reporting features in the application | Workflows or presentation requirements that existing products do not fit, where the team can own the implementation over time. | Define what must be built: authoring, layout, filtering, export, data access, security, and ongoing support. Custom code does not remove the need to maintain those capabilities as requirements and runtimes change. |
| Use Power BI interactive reports and paginated reports | Interactive analysis, print-oriented reports, or a mix of both that fits the Microsoft reporting model. | Check user and workspace permissions, licensing, data connectivity, embedding needs, and the operational fit of the service or server deployment. The two report types address different jobs and may both be needed. |
| Embed a commercial .NET reporting suite | An application that needs an integrated report viewer or designer and whose target framework, client types, deployment, and licensing are supported by a candidate product. | Validate the precise runtime and hosting environment, data sources, export fidelity, report format, redistribution terms, upgrade policy, support, and migration path. Vendor feature descriptions are not independent performance or fit tests. |
The relevant cost is not just an initial development estimate or a listed subscription price. Account for the people and processes needed to author reports, validate data, manage permissions, support exports, respond to incidents, and upgrade the application or reporting service.
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Check the constraints that can change the choice
User experience and authoring
- Are end users exploring and filtering data, or consuming a designed, repeatable document?
- Will developers own all report definitions, or do business users need a designer?
- Do users need to view reports inside the .NET application, or is a separate reporting experience acceptable?
Layout and exports
- Must every row print, including long tables that continue across pages?
- Are exact page dimensions, page breaks, repeating headers, or footers required?
- Which export formats are mandatory, and does the rendered output need to match the on-screen view?
Data and operations
- List the relational or analytical sources, stored procedures, semantic models, credentials, and any gateway requirements.
- For Power BI service use, Microsoft’s guidance says on-premises sources require a data gateway. Check data types, providers, report-definition types, result size, query latency, and whether the same data is retrieved redundantly.
- For embedding, establish how the application will obtain and manage the required tokens and permissions. A paginated report does not require a Power BI semantic model as its data source and can use multiple semantic models.
- For any deployment, identify who owns data correctness, access control, accessibility, upgrades, incident response, and export support.
Runtime, deployment, and commercial terms
- Write down the actual target: ASP.NET Core, Blazor, MVC, desktop, cloud, containers, or on-premises; include operating system and expected scale.
- Check product support against the exact framework and runtime versions, not just a broad list of supported platforms.
- For a commercial suite, confirm developer licensing, renewals, redistribution rights, permitted assemblies, support, and upgrade terms before designing the release process around it.
- For Power BI, distinguish a product capability from a user’s eligibility to publish or consume it. Microsoft documents that Report Builder can be downloaded without a license; a free license permits publishing paginated reports to My Workspace. Publishing to other workspaces requires Pro or Premium Per User (PPU), a contributor role in that workspace, and Build permission on the dataset. Confirm current tenant configuration and terms before relying on these conditions.
Choose a path for existing SSRS and RDL reports
Existing SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) Report Definition Language (RDL) reports do not dictate a single replacement. Microsoft describes two routes: redevelop them as Power BI reports or migrate them as paginated reports. Redevelopment is a candidate when users should interactively explore the data; migration as paginated reports is a candidate when the existing print-oriented pattern remains appropriate.
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- Group by user job. Separate reports that support exploration from those whose main purpose is consistent, page-oriented output.
- Test a representative complex report. Include the features most likely to affect effort, such as custom code, parameters, subreports, or specialized rendering.
- Validate behavior and output. Compare data, prompts, page layout, exports, and user workflow against the existing report. Treat the result as evidence for similar reports, not proof that every report will migrate identically.
- Estimate the remaining work report by report. Decide whether to migrate, redevelop, replace, or retire each one rather than treating the inventory as a single conversion.
Migration effort and feature fidelity depend on the report’s implementation. A small proof of concept can expose incompatibilities, but it cannot establish that all reports will transfer automatically or without redesign.
Evaluate embedded .NET suites against the same requirements
DevExpress Reporting and Telerik Reporting are examples of commercial embedded reporting products for .NET applications. DevExpress documents ASP.NET Core reporting controls for a designer and viewer and says a valid license is required to distribute applications using its reporting controls; its current redistribution terms should be checked in the applicable EULA. Telerik describes reporting for .NET web and desktop applications and lists ASP.NET Core, Blazor, MVC, Web Forms, Angular, React, Vue, WPF, and WinForms among its supported environments. Treat platform lists as a starting point: verify support for the particular application, runtime, and deployment you intend to ship.
Telerik’s product page listed a starting price of $699 annually per developer when reviewed on October 8, 2026. That is a vendor-listed price, not a stable quote or independent market comparison; check the current page and license terms before budgeting. Telerik Reporting.
Compare candidates using the same representative reports and constraints. Check whether each provides the viewer and designer you need, handles your data connections and exports, supports your report formats and migration requirements, fits your deployment footprint, and grants the required redistribution rights. Include the cost of upgrades and support as well as initial licensing. A vendor’s capability statement does not establish which product will perform or integrate best in your application.
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Run a proof of concept before committing
- Select representative reports. Include an interactive analysis use case, a demanding paginated layout, and any difficult legacy report or unusual data source that could change the decision.
- Define acceptance criteria. Set targets for output fidelity, report authoring, user workflow, query latency, export size, concurrency, and support ownership.
- Test in the target architecture. Use realistic data, parameters, report complexity, hosting, network paths, permissions, and deployment conditions rather than a minimal demo setup.
- Verify operational prerequisites. Confirm licenses and workspace permissions, gateway or other data connectivity, embedding-token handling, deployment assemblies, and redistribution rights as applicable.
- Estimate lifecycle effort and cost. Include initial integration, report creation or migration, ongoing maintenance, licensing, support, and upgrades.
- Make the decision at report-type level. Keep interactive analysis, formatted documents, and application-specific workflows distinct where their requirements differ.
Performance depends on execution environment, data volume, report complexity, and workload. Microsoft’s service-versus-SSRS/Power BI Report Server guidance flags environment and data volume as important considerations; benchmark the actual reports with representative concurrency, parameters, and exports rather than assuming a universal performance winner.
Make the decision from evidence, not a single feature list
Build when the application has reporting workflows that available products do not fit and the team can own the resulting authoring, data, security, and maintenance work. Choose Microsoft’s reporting options when their distinct interactive and paginated capabilities align with the users’ jobs and their permissions, connectivity, and deployment requirements are workable. Evaluate an embedded suite when its viewer, designer, framework support, migration options, and redistribution terms match the application better than either alternative.
Because the framework version, report inventory, scale, deployment topology, authoring needs, and budget determine the answer, there is no universal winner. The safest commitment is the one supported by a representative report test, verified licensing, and a realistic estimate of who will operate the stack after launch.
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