PL-300 Visualize and analyze the data Practice Question
You are creating a Power BI report that includes a matrix visual showing sales by year and quarter. Users want to be able to expand and collapse the quarters within each year. What should you do?
⚠ Common exam trap
The trap here is thinking that a special toggle or hierarchy creation is needed; simply adding fields to Rows enables the feature.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Add the Year and Quarter fields to the Rows field well of the matrix visual.
To enable expand and collapse in a matrix, you add the fields that form the hierarchy to the Rows field well. Power BI automatically provides expand/collapse controls for each level. This allows users to drill down from year to quarter as needed.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Create a hierarchy in the Fields pane and add it to the Rows field well.
Why it's wrong here
Creating a hierarchy is not necessary because Power BI automatically creates a hierarchy when multiple fields are added to the Rows field well. While a user-defined hierarchy can be used, it is not required to achieve expand/collapse. The default behavior already supports it, so this action is redundant but not incorrect; however, the question asks for what should be done, and the simplest correct action is to add the fields.
- ✗
Add the Year and Quarter fields to the Columns field well of the matrix visual.
Why it's wrong here
Placing Year and Quarter in the Columns field well would create a cross-tab layout with years and quarters as column headers, not as expandable rows. Users would not be able to expand/collapse in the same way; the matrix would show separate columns for each combination, which is not the desired hierarchical expansion.
- ✗
In the matrix's formatting options, enable the 'Stepped layout' toggle.
Why it's wrong here
The 'Stepped layout' option changes the appearance of the matrix to a stepped format, but it does not enable expand/collapse functionality. Expand/collapse is inherent when multiple fields are placed in the Rows field well. This toggle alone does not provide the required interactivity.
- ✓
Add the Year and Quarter fields to the Rows field well of the matrix visual.
Why this is correct
Placing both Year and Quarter in the Rows field well creates a hierarchy in the matrix. By default, the matrix allows users to expand and collapse levels, so they can drill down from year to quarter. This achieves the requirement without additional configuration.
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Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official Microsoft exam blueprint
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