What is an Entity in Microsoft Dynamics 365?

To understand Microsoft CRM, we must understand the basics of Microsoft Dynamics 365. In Microsoft Dynamics 365, an entity is a table that holds a certain type of data, with the attributes (more on those later) functioning as the columns of the table and determining which information goes into the records of that entity type.

What is an Entity in Microsoft Dynamics 365?

An entity in Microsoft Dynamics 365 is a logical data object used to store a particular type of business information. In older Microsoft Dynamics CRM and Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement documentation, the word entity is commonly used. In modern Microsoft Dataverse terminology, the same concept is usually called a table. For example, Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, Case, Quote, Order, and Invoice are common entities in Dynamics 365 CRM applications.

Entity is like a database table, and the entity attributes correspond to the table columns. Entity in Microsoft Dynamics 365 has a set of attributes and each attribute represents a data item of a particular type. When a record is created in Microsoft Dynamics 365, a row is created for that entity.

Microsoft Learn still uses entity terminology in several Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement on-premises articles, while newer Dataverse documentation often uses table, column, and row. You can refer to the official Microsoft documentation for deeper reading: Introduction to entities, Create and edit entities, and Create and edit entity relationships.

Entity, attribute, and record in Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM

The easiest way to understand a Dynamics 365 entity is to compare it with a database table or spreadsheet. The entity defines the structure, attributes define the fields, and records store the actual business data. This comparison is useful for beginners, but Dynamics 365 entities also include metadata, relationships, forms, views, security settings, business rules, and other platform behavior.

Dynamics 365 term	Database-style comparison	Example
Entity	Table	Account entity stores company records
Attribute	Column	Account Name, Phone, Website
Record	Row	One customer company record
Relationship	Table relationship	One Account can have many Contacts
View	Saved list or query	Active Accounts view
Form	Data entry screen	Main Account form

For example, the Account entity stores company or organization information. Its attributes may include Account Name, Main Phone, Website, Address, Owner, and Status. Each customer company entered in Dynamics 365 becomes one Account record.

Why Microsoft Dynamics 365 entities are more than database tables

Although an entity can be compared with a table, it should not be treated as only a database table. A Dynamics 365 entity also controls how data behaves inside the application. It can have forms for data entry, views for lists, charts for reporting, security rules for access control, relationships with other entities, and business logic through workflows, business rules, plug-ins, or Power Automate flows.

• Data structure: Defines which attributes are available for a business object.
• User interface: Provides forms, views, quick create forms, and lookup behavior.
• Relationships: Connects records such as Accounts with Contacts, Opportunities, Cases, or Orders.
• Security: Works with ownership, business units, teams, and security roles.
• Automation: Supports business rules, workflows, plug-ins, and process automation depending on the environment.
• Reporting: Supplies data for views, charts, dashboards, and analytics.

Types of entities in Microsoft Dynamics 365 CRM

Entities in Microsoft Dynamics 365 are categorised in to three type : System entities, business entities and Custom entities.

• System entities : System entities are used by Microsoft Dynamics 365 to handle all internal processes, such as workflows and asynchronous job.
• Business entities : Business entities are part of the Microsoft Dynamics 365 default installation and they appear in the customization user interface.
• Custom entities : Custom entities are created by user.

In practical terms, beginners can understand these categories as follows:

Entity type	Meaning in Dynamics 365	Common examples
System entities	Internal platform entities required by Dynamics 365 for core operations.	Workflow, Async Operation, User, Team, Business Unit
Business entities	Standard application entities available for normal CRM business processes.	Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, Case
Custom entities	Entities created by administrators or customizers to store organization-specific data.	Training Course, Vehicle, Property, Subscription

System entities should be handled carefully because they support internal platform behavior. Business entities can usually be customized to match the organization’s process. Custom entities are useful when the standard entities do not represent a specific business concept clearly.

Common Microsoft Dynamics CRM entities used across modules

Microsoft Dynamics CRM has three modules, they are Sales Module, Service module and Marketing Module. All these module will have set of entities that are shared across module. Some of the Entities in Microsoft Dynamics CRM are

Lead Entity	Opportunity Entity	Quotes Entity
Order Entity	Invoice Entity	Competitor Entity
Product Entity	Goal Entity	Case Entity
Contracts Entity	Queues Entity	Services Entity
Calendar Entity	Campaign	Connection
Account	Publisher	Resource

The purpose of each entity depends on the CRM process where it is used. The same entity may also be visible in more than one module. For example, Account and Contact records are important in Sales, Customer Service, Marketing, and Field Service because they identify the customer.

Entity	Where it is commonly used	What it stores
Lead	Sales and Marketing	A potential customer or enquiry before qualification.
Opportunity	Sales	A potential sale with estimated revenue, stage, and close date.
Quote	Sales	A formal price proposal sent to a customer.
Order	Sales	A confirmed customer order.
Invoice	Sales and billing processes	Billing information related to a sale.
Case	Customer Service	A customer issue, complaint, request, or support ticket.
Queue	Customer Service	A work list for cases, activities, or service items.
Campaign	Marketing	Marketing activity and campaign planning information.
Connection	Relationship tracking	A link that describes how two records are related.
Account	Sales, Service, Marketing	A company, organization, or customer record.

Entity attributes in Microsoft Dynamics 365

An attribute is a field that stores one item of information about an entity record. In modern Dataverse wording, an attribute is often called a column. Each attribute has a data type, such as text, number, date and time, lookup, choice, currency, two options, or owner. The selected data type controls what kind of value the user can enter and how the value behaves in forms, views, searches, and reports.

• Text attribute: Stores names, descriptions, codes, or notes.
• Date and time attribute: Stores dates such as estimated close date or follow-up date.
• Choice attribute: Stores one value from a defined list.
• Lookup attribute: Connects the current record to another entity record.
• Currency attribute: Stores money values such as estimated revenue.
• Owner attribute: Identifies the user or team responsible for the record.

Choosing the correct attribute type is important because changing data types later can be difficult after records have been created and integrations have started using the field.

Entity relationships in Microsoft Dynamics 365

Entity relationships define how records from different entities are connected. Without relationships, each entity would behave like an isolated list. Relationships allow Dynamics 365 users to move from an Account to its related Contacts, Opportunities, Cases, Orders, and Activities.

Relationship type	Meaning	Example
One-to-many	One record can be related to many records in another entity.	One Account can have many Contacts.
Many-to-one	Many records can point to one parent record.	Many Opportunities can belong to one Account.
Many-to-many	Many records on both sides can be connected.	Many Contacts can be linked to many Marketing Lists.

Relationships also affect lookup fields, related record views, cascading behavior, reporting, and how users navigate between records. For example, if a Contact is linked to an Account, users can see the company context while working with that Contact.

Custom entity example in Microsoft Dynamics 365

A custom entity is created when the standard Dynamics 365 entities do not fit a business requirement. For example, a training company may create a custom entity called Training Course. This entity can store course name, duration, trainer, fee, start date, and status. It can also be related to Accounts, Contacts, Leads, or Opportunities depending on the business process.

Custom entity design point	Example decision
Entity name	Training Course
Primary field	Course Name
Important attributes	Duration, Fee, Start Date, Trainer, Course Status
Relationship	One Account can have many Training Course registrations
Views	Active Courses, Upcoming Courses, Completed Courses
Security	Sales users can read courses; training managers can create and update courses

Before creating a custom entity, check whether a standard entity already meets the requirement. Creating unnecessary custom entities can make the system harder to maintain, especially when reporting, security, integrations, and data migration are involved.

Entity versus table in Dynamics 365 and Dataverse

In many Dynamics 365 CRM tutorials, entity is the familiar term. In Microsoft Dataverse, the same basic idea is now commonly described as a table. Similarly, attributes are often called columns, and records are often called rows. Both sets of terms may appear in documentation, training material, and older CRM projects.

Older Dynamics CRM term	Modern Dataverse term	Beginner meaning
Entity	Table	Type of business data being stored
Attribute	Column	Field on the record
Record	Row	One saved item of data
Option Set	Choice	Dropdown or selectable values
Entity relationship	Table relationship	Connection between records

When learning older Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement content, expect to see entity terminology. When working in Power Apps maker experience or newer Dataverse documentation, expect to see table terminology. The underlying business idea is similar, but the exact screens and labels depend on the product version and interface.

Difference between CRM entities and Finance and Operations data entities

Microsoft Dynamics 365 also has Finance and Operations applications, where the phrase data entity has a more specific meaning. In Finance and Operations, data entities are used to represent and move business data for integration, import, export, and data management scenarios. This is different from the CRM entity/table concept used in Dynamics 365 Customer Engagement and Dataverse.

For beginners, the distinction is simple: in CRM, an entity normally means a business table such as Account, Contact, Lead, or Case. In Finance and Operations, a data entity often refers to a structured data object used for data exchange and integration. If you are reading documentation, always check whether it is for Customer Engagement, Dataverse, or Finance and Operations.

Best practices before creating a Dynamics 365 custom entity

Creating a custom entity is easy in many Dynamics 365 environments, but designing it correctly requires planning. A poorly designed entity can create duplicate data, confusing forms, weak reporting, and complicated security. Use these checks before creating a new custom entity.

• Check whether a standard entity can be configured instead of creating a new one.
• Choose a clear singular and plural display name for the custom entity.
• Define the primary field carefully because users will see it in lookups.
• Create only the attributes that users and reports actually need.
• Use lookup relationships instead of repeating the same information in many entities.
• Plan ownership, security roles, and record access before users start entering data.
• Test forms, views, search, dashboards, and reports with realistic sample records.
• Document the purpose of the custom entity for future administrators and developers.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 entity FAQ

Editorial QA checklist for this Dynamics 365 entity tutorial

• Does the tutorial clearly explain that entity is older Dynamics CRM terminology and table is common in modern Dataverse terminology?
• Are entity, attribute, record, relationship, form, and view explained with Dynamics 365 CRM examples?
• Does the page distinguish CRM entities from Finance and Operations data entities?
• Are standard entities such as Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, and Case described in business terms?
• Does the custom entity section warn against creating unnecessary entities?
• Are official Microsoft Learn links included for entity concepts, entity customization, and entity relationships?
• Do the FAQs answer beginner questions about Dynamics 365 entities, attributes, Dataverse tables, and custom entities?

Conclusion

An entity in Microsoft Dynamics 365 represents a business data object such as Account, Contact, Lead, Opportunity, or Case. Attributes define the fields, records store the actual data, and relationships connect one entity to another. In newer Dataverse wording, entities are usually called tables, but older Dynamics CRM tutorials and many Customer Engagement resources still use the entity term. In our next Dynamics 365 tutorial, we will learn about each entity and its features in more detail.