Daily DAX : Day 390 ORDERBY

Power BI DAX: ORDERBY Function

Overview

The ORDERBY function is used in DAX (Data Analysis Expressions) to define the sort order of columns in a table when creating calculated tables or modifying table structures.

Note: ORDERBY is not a standalone function you use in measures or regular calculations. It is used inside table functions like SUMMARIZECOLUMNS to control sorting.

Syntax

ORDERBY ( <expression> [, ASC|DESC] [, <expression> [, ASC|DESC] ]... )

• <expression>: A column or expression to sort by.
• ASC (default): Sort in ascending order.
• DESC: Sort in descending order.

Use Case Example

Suppose you want to create a summary table of Total Sales by Product Category, sorted by Sales descending, then by Category Name ascending.

Sample DAX Code

Sales Summary = 
SUMMARIZECOLUMNS(
    Products[Category],
    "Total Sales", SUM(Sales[Amount]),
    ORDERBY("Total Sales", DESC, Products[Category], ASC)
)

Result

The resulting table will show:

• Highest-selling categories first
• Within same sales amount, categories sorted alphabetically

Key Points

• Only works inside SUMMARIZECOLUMNS (or other table functions that support it).
• Multiple sort levels are allowed.
• Improves report performance and readability when pre-sorting data.
• Does not affect visual-level sorting — use visual settings for that.

When to Use ORDERBY?

Use it when:

• Building calculated tables for dashboards
• Pre-sorting data for consistent output
• Combining with TOPN or ranking logic

Pro Tip: Use ORDERBY in calculated tables to avoid relying on visual-level sorting, ensuring consistent results across reports.