Dimensions in Business Central, Part 1: Busting the 4 Biggest Myths

At my recent DynamicsCon session, “Dimensions Are Power,” I was truly encouraged by the energy in the room. The nods, the follow-up questions, and those lightbulb moments when people finally saw how powerful dimensions could be—that’s what this community is all about.

After the session, one thing was clear: there’s still a lot of confusion around dimensions in Business Central. And if you’re not using them well (or at all), you’re missing out on some of the best reporting and analysis tools the system has to offer.

So we’re kicking off a 4-part series to change that—starting with the biggest myths I hear every week. For those who have been following my Inventory Costing Series – don’t worry! We’ll jump back on the next in that series next week.

First Things First: What Are Dimensions, Anyway?

Dimensions in Business Central are tags that you attach to transactions to make your data more meaningful. Think of them like flexible labels that help you understand why something happened—not just what happened.

In the old days, we often segmented our chart of accounts with dots and dashes creating hundreds of extra G/L accounts so we can get a breakdown by department or cost center. With dimensions, you don’t need any of that and you can get the answers to your burning questions such as:

• What are my sales by product line?
• Which department is driving the most expense?
• How much did we spend on a specific project or campaign?
• Are my West Coast customers more profitable than the East?

Dimensions give you a smarter, cleaner way to slice and dice your data, unlocking insights across sales, purchasing, inventory, jobs, and more. Used correctly, they’re one of the most powerful tools in Business Central for driving visibility and better decisions.

Myth #1: “You Can Only Have 8 Dimensions”

This is the myth I hear most.

Yes, Business Central gives you eight shortcut dimensions—but that doesn’t mean you’re limited to eight dimensions total.

Here’s how it works:

• Global Dimensions (2) are used in most standard reports and are the only dimensions that update historical entries when changed. They’re deeply embedded in reporting, filters, and data tables.
• Shortcut Dimensions (up to 8) show up directly on transaction screens for easy entry. They include your global dimensions, but you can define up to six more for convenience.

But the truth is: you can create and assign as many dimensions as your business needs.
They just won’t appear in drop-downs or filters unless you’ve configured reports or views to include them. You can still use them in Power BI, custom reports, or extended analysis views.

This misunderstanding leads many companies to oversimplify their reporting or cram too many concepts into just a few dimensions—which usually backfires. When in doubt, define the dimensions that make sense for your business model, and use reporting tools to bring them to life.

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Myth #2: “Dimensions in Business Central Will Slow Down the System”

I’ve heard this one since the NAV days: “Don’t go crazy with dimensions—they’ll slow everything down.”

Let’s be honest. In the past, yes—poor dimension design could affect performance, especially in older systems with inefficient customizations or large datasets.

But in modern Business Central, especially in the cloud, Microsoft has optimized how dimensions are stored and processed. You can build and use robust dimension structures without grinding your system to a halt.

So don’t fear dimensions. Design them thoughtfully and your system will run just fine.

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Myth #3: “Dimensions Only Work with G/L Accounts”

Many users associate dimensions only with general ledger transactions, and it’s easy to see why—that’s where they’re most visible.

But here’s the truth: dimensions are used across Business Central, not just the G/L.

You can assign dimensions to:

• Customers
• Vendors
• Items
• Resources
• Projects
• Fixed Assets
• Sales and purchase documents
• Job planning lines
• And more…

And guess what? You can use dimensions in analysis reports, filtering, Power BI, and custom dashboards—far beyond financials.

Stay tuned for the rest of this series where we’ll dive into how to use dimensions in operational reporting, including item-level profitability, regional sales trends, and resource utilization.

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Myth #4: “Dimensions Are Hard”

Let’s call this one what it is: a fear of the unknown.

Yes, dimensions can be confusing—especially when you’ve never been shown how to use them properly. Folks can also get analysis paralysis when trying to figure out what their dimensions should be. I’ve even heard consultants say “you probably don’t want to use dimension.” What? That’s just crazy talk. But here’s the good news: once you understand how dimensions fit into your reporting strategy, they become one of the most powerful tools in your Business Central toolbox.

A few smart practices can take them from scary to strategic. First, don’t ask yourself “what should my dimensions be?” Instead, look at what your business needs to analyze to make smart and fast business decisions. THe dimension question will answer it’s self naturally if you think about your reporting and analysis needs first.

So no, dimensions aren’t hard. They’re just misunderstood. If your consultant says don’t use them, get a new one.

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The Real Problem: Inconsistent Use

Here’s what actually breaks your reporting:

• Assigning dimensions sometimes and forgetting others.
• Letting users freestyle dimension values without structure.
• Changing your mind midstream and ending up with fragmented data.

That’s why the next step in your dimension journey is building controls and discipline into the process. Even the best reports are useless if the data behind them is messy.

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What’s Next: Build Control Into Your Dimension Strategy

As you start to embrace dimensions more fully, here are three core practices we’ll cover in the next articles:

1. Be Consistent

Don’t let dimensions be optional when they shouldn’t be. If you’re tagging sales by customer group, every customer must have that dimension. If some do and some don’t, your reporting falls apart.

2. Use Dimension Posting Rules

These rules help ensure consistency without relying on users to “do it right every time.”
In Part 2, we’ll explore the difference between:

• No Code
• Code Mandatory
• Same Code

And how each one helps you enforce dimension discipline in Business Central.

3. Have a Real Plan

Dimensions aren’t something you bolt on after the fact. The best implementations start with reporting goals, then define dimensions to match.

We’ll walk you through how to design a dimension framework that can scale with your business and unlock better insights—not just plug holes in your G/L.

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Final Thoughts: Dimensions Aren’t Just “Nice to Have”

If you’re serious about reporting, accountability, and decision-making in Business Central, dimensions aren’t optional—they’re essential.

But they don’t have to be overwhelming. With the right approach, dimensions become your competitive edge, letting you see your business from every angle.

Stay tuned for Part 2: “Posting Rules and Controls: Building Discipline into Your Dimensions.”
We’ll walk through how to set posting rules, enforce dimension logic, and make sure your reports tell a consistent story.

Want more practical insights like this? Subscribe to the Dynamics Power Play blog so you never miss a post in this series. We’re just getting started—and coming soon, we’ll be sharing quick, no-fluff YouTube videos that walk you through how to actually use dimensions in Business Central, with real-world examples and tips from the field. If dimensions have ever felt confusing or underwhelming, this is your chance to see what they can really do. Stay tuned—because once you get a taste of what’s possible, you’ll never look at your reports the same way again.