IF()

IF() evaluates a condition and returns one of two results depending on whether it's true or false — the most basic branching function in DAX.

IF(LogicalTest, ResultIfTrue, [ResultIfFalse])

Basic Example

Sales Status =
IF([Total Sales] > 100000, "On Target", "Below Target")

Total Sales = 150,000  -> "On Target"
Total Sales = 80,000   -> "Below Target"

The Third Argument Is Optional

Omitting ResultIfFalse returns BLANK() when the condition isn't met, rather than an explicit value.

High Value Flag =
IF([Total Sales] > 100000, "High Value")

Total Sales = 150,000 -> "High Value"
Total Sales = 80,000  -> BLANK

This is a reasonable choice when "not flagged" should genuinely look empty in a table, rather than showing a literal "No" or "False" in every other row.

Nesting IF, and When to Stop

IF() can nest inside itself for more than two outcomes, but it gets hard to read fast.

Sales Tier =
IF(
    [Total Sales] > 500000,
    "Platinum",
    IF(
        [Total Sales] > 100000,
        "Gold",
        "Silver"
    )
)

Total Sales = 600,000 -> "Platinum"
Total Sales = 200,000 -> "Gold"
Total Sales = 50,000  -> "Silver"

This works, but each additional tier adds another level of nesting. See SWITCH for the point where SWITCH(TRUE(), ...) becomes the more readable choice — as a rough rule, more than two or three conditions is usually that point.

IF vs. SWITCH

Reaching for SWITCH() on a true yes/no condition is the opposite mistake — a single IF() is more direct than a SWITCH() with one real case and a default.

A Common Trap: IF Inside an Aggregation

Total High Value Sales =
SUMX(
    FactSales,
    IF(FactSales[SalesAmount] > 1000, FactSales[SalesAmount], 0)
)

This is a correct and common pattern — IF() used inside an iterator to conditionally include each row's value. It's a different thing from using IF() to branch an entire measure's logic, and it's worth recognizing the two shapes are solving different problems.

Common Mistakes

Nesting Past the Point of Readability

More than two or three nested IF() calls is a strong signal to switch to SWITCH(TRUE(), ...) instead — see SWITCH for the equivalent pattern.

Comparing to BLANK() Incorrectly

Status = IF([Total Sales] = BLANK(), "No Sales", "Has Sales")

This works but ISBLANK([Total Sales]) is clearer and is the idiomatic way to test for blank specifically, rather than an equality comparison against BLANK().

Returning Inconsistent Types

Result = IF([Total Sales] > 0, [Total Sales], "N/A")

Returning a number in one branch and text in the other forces an implicit type conversion that can produce unexpected formatting — keep both branches the same data type.

Best Practices

• Keep IF() to genuinely binary conditions; move to SWITCH() once there are more than two or three outcomes.
• Use ISBLANK() to test for blank specifically, rather than comparing to BLANK() with =.
• Return the same data type from both branches to avoid implicit conversion surprises.

Next Steps

• SWITCH
• Iterators
• Filter Context