Welcome to Tableau Desktop

Get Started
Take a tutorial that tells a data story, or follow steps through opening Tableau, building and
enhancing a view, and saving your work. This section includes:
Build-It-Yourself Exercises – Create popular view types based on sample data sources that
come with Tableau.
The Tableau Environment – Learn what elements of the Tableau UI are called.
Tableau Concepts – Dig into the ideas behind the terms and behaviors you see in Tableau.

Connect to and Prepare Data

Connect to a wide variety of data sources, including files, SQL databases, web data, and cube
(multidimensional) databases. Then configure and optimize your data and learn how to keep it
up-to-date. This section includes:
Connect to Your Data – Connect to a variety of data sources, including Microsoft Office files, text
files, and web data.
Set Up Data Sources – Configure and optimize your data source for analysis.
Manage Data Sources – Edit, refresh, replace, export, and upgrade data sources.

Design Views and Analyze Data

Discover the various features at your disposal as you build views, and learn the basic skills you
need to create elegant, insightful views, dashboards, and stories. This section includes:
Building Data Views – Drag and drop fields to create views of your data, then refine the view.
Work with Time – Identify trends and make forecasts by working with date and time fields.
Filter Data from Your Views – Display only the data you choose.
Build and Use Maps – Assign geographic roles, build basic map views, explore data in maps,
and more.
Advanced Analysis – Create custom fields, use the built-in statistical tools, and more.
Optimize Workbook Performance – Speed up your workbooks.
Present Your work – Work with formatting, dashboards, and stories.
Publish Data Sources and Workbooks – Share your work with others using Tableau Online,
Tableau Server, the Tableau mobile app, or on Tableau Public.
Save, Export, and Print – Make your work available to other applications.

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The Tableau Environment
This section provides information on the various panes, shelves, pages, icons, and other
elements that comprise the Tableau Desktop environment.
 Start Page
 Data Source Page
 The Tableau Workspace
 Reorganize your Workspace
 Helpful Visual Cues in Tableau

Start Page
The start page in Tableau Desktop is a central location from which you can do the following:
 Connect to your data
 Open your most recently used workbooks, and
 Discover and explore content produced by the Tableau community.

The start page consists of three panes: Connect, Open, and Discover.

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Connect
Connect to data and open saved data sources.

On the Connect pane, you can do the following:

 Connect to data: Under To a File, connect to data stored in Microsoft Excel files, text
files, Access files, Tableau data extract files, and statistical files, such as SAS, SPSS, and R.
Under To a Server, connect to data stored in databases like Microsoft SQL Server or
Oracle. The server names listed in this section change based on which servers you
connect to and how often.
 Open saved data sources: Quickly open data sources that you have previously saved to
your My Tableau Repository directory. Also, Tableau provides sample saved data
sources that you can use to explore Tableau Desktop functionality. To follow along with
examples in the Tableau Desktop documentation, you'll usually use the Sample –
Superstore data source.

Open
Open recent workbooks, pin workbooks to the start page, and explore sample workbooks.

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On the Open pane, you can do the following:
 Open recently opened workbooks: When you open Tableau Desktop for the first time,
this pane is empty. As you create and save new workbooks, the most recently opened
workbooks appear here. Click the workbook thumbnail to open a workbook, or if you
don't see a workbook thumbnail, click the Open a Workbook link to find other
workbooks that are saved to your computer.
 Pin workbooks: You can pin workbooks to the start page by clicking the pin icon that
appears in the top-left corner of the workbook thumbnail. Pinned workbooks always
appear on the start page, even if they weren't opened recently. To remove a recently
opened or pinned workbook, hover over the workbook thumbnail, and then click the "x"
that appears. The workbook thumbnail is removed immediately but will show again with
your most recently used workbooks the next time you open Tableau Desktop.
 Explore sample workbooks: Open and explore sample workbooks.

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Discover
See popular views in Tableau Public, read blog posts and news about Tableau, and find training
videos and tutorials to help you get started.

Navigating back to the start page

When Tableau Desktop is already open, you can navigate back to the start page by clicking the
Tableau icon in the upper-left corner of the Tableau Desktop workspace.

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Data Source Page
Before or during your analysis, you may want to make changes to the Tableau data source. You
can do that on the data source page. Tableau takes you to the data source page after you
establish the initial connection to your data. You can also access the data source page by clicking
the Data Source tab from any location in the workbook.
Although the look of the page and the options available vary depending on the type of data that
you are connected to, the data source page generally consists of four main areas: left pane,
canvas, data grid, and metadata grid.

Left pane
The left pane of the data source page displays details about your data, that is the data that
Tableau Desktop is connected to.
For file-based data, the left pane might display the file name and the worksheets in the file.
For relational-based data, the left pane might display the server, the database or schema, and
the tables in the database.

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You can also use the left pane to add more connections to the data source to create cross-
database joins.
The left pane does not display for cube (multidimensional) data.

Canvas
When connected to most relational and file-based data, you can drag one or more tables to the
canvas area to set up your Tableau data source.
When connected to cube data, the top of the data source page displays the available catalog or
queries and cubes to select from to set up your Tableau data source.

Data grid
Use the data grid to review the fields and the first 1,000 rows of the data contained in the
Tableau data source. You can also use the data grid to make general modifications to the
Tableau data source like sorting or hiding fields; renaming fields or resetting field names;
creating calculations; changing the column or row sort; or adding aliases. For the Web Data
Connector, file- and relational-based data sources in Extract mode, you can see extract data in
the grid, including extract only calculations.
To select multiple fields in the grid, click a column, and then drag the mouse to select more
columns. To select all fields, click the area in the upper-left corner of the grid like in the
example, below.

The grid does not display for cube (multidimensional) data.

Metadata grid
Depending on the type of data that you are connected to, click the metadata grid button to
navigate to the metadata grid. The metadata grid displays the fields in your data source as rows

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so that you can quickly examine the structure of your Tableau data source and perform routine
management tasks, such as renaming fields or hiding multiple fields at once.
When connected to cube or some extract only data, the metadata grid displays by default.

The Tableau Workspace

The Tableau workspace consists of menus, a toolbar, the Data pane, cards and shelves, and one
or more sheets. Sheets can be worksheets, dashboards, or stories.
Worksheets contain shelves and cards that you can drag and drop data fields on to build views.

A. Workbook name.
B. Cards and shelves - Drag fields to the cards and shelves in the workspace to add data to your
view.
C. Toolbar - Use the toolbar to access commands and analysis and navigation tools.
D. View - This is the workspace where you create your data visualizations.
E. Go to the start page. For more information, see Start Page.
F. Side Bar. The side bar provides two panes: the Data pane and the Analytics pane.

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G. Go to the data source page. For more information, see Data Source Page.
H. Status bar - Displays information about the current view.
I. Sheet tabs - Tabs represent each sheet in your workbook. This can include worksheets,
dashboards and stories. For more information, see Sheets.

 The Side Bar: Data and Analytics

The Side Bar provides two panes: the Data pane and the Analytics pane.
You can hide and show the Side Bar by clicking the icon in the upper right corner.
To open the Side Bar again, look for that same icon in the lower left corner of the Tableau
window:

Data Pane
Tableau displays your data fields in the Data pane on the left side of the workspace. You can
toggle between the Data and Analytics panes:

Current data sources appear at the top of the Data pane.

Below the data sources in the Data pane are the fields that are available in the currently
selected data source.

Perform common tasks in the Data pane

To view all the data sources used in the workbook, click the drop-down arrow next to the data
source that is displayed.

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To view a context menu for the data source, click Data in the top menu and then click on the
data source in the menu list.
To search for fields in the Data pane, click the magnifying class icon and then type in the text
box.

To see the underlying data, click the View Data icon at the top
of the Data pane.
To convert a measure to a dimension, drag the measure and drop it into the Dimensions area in
the Data pane.

How the Data pane is organized

The Data pane is organized into several areas:

 Dimensions - fields that contain data like text or dates. This is called category data.
 Measures - fields that contain numbers. Numerical data can be aggregated.
 Sets - subsets of data that you define, for example if you want to create a report that
shows only data you specify.
 Parameters - dynamic placeholders that can replace constant values in calculated fields
and filters so that view designers can give data consumers choices about what they see.
By default, Tableau treats all relational fields containing numbers as measures. However, you
might decide that some of these fields should be treated as dimensions. For example, a field
containing ages might be categorized as a measure by default in Tableau because it contains
numeric data. However, if you want to look at each individual age rather than an axis, you can
convert the Age field to a dimension.
Drag the Age measure and drop it into the Dimensions area in the Data pane. When you drag
the Age field to the Rows or Columns shelf, it creates column headers (1, 2, 3, etc.) instead of a
continuous axis.

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Analytics Pane
The Analytics pane provides quick and easy access to common analytic features in Tableau. You
can drag reference lines, box plots, trend lines forecasts, and other items into your view from
the Analytics pane, which appears on the left side of the workspace. Toggle between
the Data pane and the Analytics pane by clicking one of the tabs at the top of the Side Bar:

There isn't anything you can add to a view from the Analytics pane that you couldn't add by
some other means—for example, reference lines and bands are available when you edit an axis,
and trend lines and forecasts are available from the Analysis menu. The Analytics pane just
makes the process easier by offering drag-and-drop access for the various options.

 Shelves and Cards

Every worksheet in Tableau contains shelves and cards. By placing fields on shelves or cards,
you can create the rows and columns of a data view, exclude data from the view, create
pages, and control mark properties. You should experiment placing fields on different
shelves and cards to find the optimal way to look at your data.

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 Parts of the View
This section describes the basic components of the views you can create in Tableau. The parts of
a view can be categorized as either table components, which are part of every view, or optional
components, which can be turned on or off.
Table Components
Data views are displayed in a table on every worksheet.
A table is a collection of rows and columns, and consists of the following components: Headers,
Axes, Panes, Cells, and Marks. In addition to these, you can choose to show Titles, Captions,
Field Labels, and Legends.

 A. Field label - The label of a discrete field added to the row or column shelf that describes
the members of that field. For example, Category is a discrete field that contains three
members; Furniture, Office Supplies and Technology.
 B. Title - The name that you give your worksheet, dashboard, or story. Titles display
automatically for worksheets and stories and you can turn them on to display them in your
dashboards.
 C. Marks - The data that represents the intersection of the fields (dimensions and measures)
included in your view. Marks can be represented using lines, bars, shapes, maps and so on.
 D. Legend - A key that describes how the data is encoded in your view. For example if you
use shapes or colors in your view, the legend describes what each shape or color represents.
 E. Axis - Created when you add a measure (fields that contain quantitative, numerical
information) to the view. By default, Tableau generates a continuous axis for this data.
 F. Headers -The members of a field.

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 G. Caption - Text that describes the data in the view. Captions can be automatically
generated and can be toggled on and off.

Workbooks and Sheets

Tableau uses a workbook and sheet file structure, much like Microsoft Excel.
A workbook contains sheets, which can be a worksheet, a dashboard, or a story.
A worksheet contains a single view along with shelves, legends, and the Data pane.
A dashboard is a collection of views from multiple worksheets.
A story contains a sequence of worksheets or dashboards that work together to convey
information.
Within a workbook, you can create new sheets, clear an entire worksheet, duplicate sheets, hide
or show a worksheet, and delete a sheet.
Tableau has several ways to view and organize the sheets in your workbook.

Files and Folders

You can save your work using several different Tableau specific file types: workbooks,
bookmarks, packaged data files, data extracts, and data connection files.
Each of these file types are described below.
 Workbooks (.twb) – Tableau workbook files have the .twb file extension. Workbooks
hold one or more worksheets, plus zero or more dashboards and stories.
 Bookmarks (.tbm) – Tableau bookmark files have the .tbm file extension. Bookmarks
contain a single worksheet and are an easy way to quickly share your work.
 Packaged Workbooks (.twbx) – Tableau packaged workbooks have the .twbx file
extension. A packaged workbook is a single zip file that contains a workbook along with
any supporting local file data and background images. This format is the best way to
package your work for sharing with others who don’t have access to the original data.
 Data Extract (.tde) – Tableau data extract files have the .tde file extension. Extract files
are a local copy of a subset or entire data that you can use to share data, work offline,
and improve database performance.
 Data Source (.tds) – Tableau data source files have the .tds file extension. Data source
files are shortcuts for quickly connecting to the original data that you use often. Data
source files do not contain the actual data but rather the information necessary to
connect to the actual data as well as any modifications you've made on top of the actual
data such as changing default properties, creating calculated fields, adding groups, and
so on.
 Packaged Data Source (.tdsx) – Tableau packaged data source files have the .tdsx file
extension. A packaged data source is a zip file that contains the data source file (.tds)
described above as well as any local file data such as Extract files (.tde), text files, Excel
files, Access files, and local cube files. Use this format to create a single file that you can

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 then share with others who may not have access to the original data stored locally on
your computer.
These files can be saved in the associated folders in the My Tableau Repository directory, which
is automatically created in your My Documents folder when you install Tableau. Your work files
can also be saved in other locations, such as your desktop or a network directory.

Changing the Repository Location

You can specify a new location for the Tableau repository if you are not using the default
location in your Documents folder. For instance, if you are required to have your data on a
network server instead of on your local machine, you can point Tableau at the remote
repository.
1. Select File > Repository Location.
2. Select a new folder that will act as the new repository location in the Select a Repository
dialog box.
3. Restart Tableau so that it uses the new repository.
Changing the repository location does not move the files contained in the original repository.
Instead, Tableau creates a new repository where you can store your files.

Status Bar

The status bar is located at the bottom of the Tableau workspace. It displays descriptions of
menu items as well as information about the current view.
For example, the status bar below shows that the view has 143 marks shown in 3 rows and 12
columns. It also shows that the SUM(Sales) for all the marks in the view is $2,297,201.

You can hide the status bar by selecting Window > Show Status Bar.
Occasionally, Tableau will display warning icons in the bottom right corner of the status bar to
indicate errors or warnings.

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Reorganizing the Workspace
Every worksheet contains a variety of cards, shelves, legends, and so on. You can reorganize the
workspace by rearranging cards, hiding and showing specific parts of the workspace, and hiding
everything but the view using Presentation Mode.

Rearranging Cards

A worksheet contains several cards that contain shelves, legends, and other controls. Each card
can be rearranged to create a custom workspace. To move a card, point the cursor at the title
area of the card you want to move. When the cursor becomes the move symbol , click and
drag the card to a new position. As you drag the card around the worksheet, the possible
positions for it are highlighted with a black bar.

You can restore the worksheet windows to their default state by selecting Reset Cards on the
Show/Hide Cards toolbar control.

Showing and Hiding Parts of the Workspace

Just about everything in the workspace can be turned on and off so you can avoid cluttering the
worksheet with unnecessary cards, shelves, etc.

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  To show and hide the toolbar or status bar, select Window and then select what you
want to hide.
 To show and hide the window on the left side, which is either the Data pane (for
worksheets), the Dashboard pane (for dashboards), or the Dashboards and Sheets pane
(for stories); click the Minimize button in the upper right corner of the pane. The
pane is minimized to the bottom left corner of the workbook. Click the same button
again to restore the pane.

 To show or hide a card click Show/Hide Cards on the toolbar and then select the
card you want to show or hide.
You can restore the worksheet windows to their default state by selecting Reset Cards on
the Show/Hide Cards toolbar control.

Presentation Mode
Sometimes you may want to use Tableau to present your findings. Rather than hiding each card
or shelf one at a time, you can switch to presentation mode. Presentation mode hides
everything on the sheet except for the view and its associated legends, filter cards, parameter
controls, and worksheet tabs.

 To switch in and out of presentation mode, click the Presentation Mode button on
the toolbar or select Window > Presentation Mode.

Use the presentation mode controls in the bottom right corner to move between sheets and
more. Each presentation mode control is described below.

Show Filmstrip - shows the sheets as thumbnails at the bottom of the workspace.

Show Tabs - shows the sheet tabs at the bottom of the workspace.

Previous/Next Sheet - advances forward or backward through the sheets in a

workbook.

Enter/Exit Full Screen - switches between expanding the workbook to fill the entire
screen and showing it in a window.

Exit Presentation Mode - returns the workbook to showing the entire workspace
including the menus, toolbar, and the Data pane.

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Visual Cues and Icons in Tableau Desktop
Tableau provides many visual cues to help you evaluate the type of data that’s displayed in the
Data pane and the state of a data view.

Data sources in the Data pane

The following table explains each of the icons used to describe the type of data sources in the
Data pane. Each icon in the table can be modified by one of two indicators.

 A blue check mark indicates that the data source is the primary data source in the
workbook.

 An orange check mark indicates that the data source is the secondary data source in the
workbook.

Visual Cue Description

The workbook is directly connected to a relational data source or file.

The workbook is connected to a cube (multidimensional) data source. In

Tableau, cube data sources are supported only in Windows.

The workbook is connected to an extract that still references the underlying

data.

The workbook is connected to a data source that has been published to Tableau
Server.

Fields in the Data Pane

The following table explains each of the icons displayed in the Data pane. Each icon in the table
can be modified by one of four indicators.
 Blue icons indicate that the field is discrete.
 Green icons indicate that the field is continuous.

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  Icons preceded by the equal sign (=) indicate that the field is a user-defined calculation
or a copy of another field.

Visual Cue Description

The field contains text values.

The field contains numeric values.

The field is a calculation defined on the server.

The field contains only date values.

The field contains both date and time values.

The field contains geographical data and has been assigned a geographic role.
Use these fields when building map views.

The field contains geographical data from an active custom geocoding file.

The field contains Boolean (true or false) values.

The field is a calculation that is defined in the database by an administrator.

These fields are marked with a cylinder icon and are not available for all data
sources.

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The field is a user-defined set..

The field is a server named set.

The field is a set that was automatically created as a result of an action.

The field is a user filter, used when publishing to the web.

The field is a numeric bin.

The field is a group..

The field is a relational hierarchy.

A folder that contains one or more fields. Folders are used to organize fields in
the Data pane.

The field is an attribute of a cube (multidimensional) data source. In Tableau,

cube data sources are supported only in Windows.

The field is a varying attribute of a cube (multidimensional) data source.

The field is a level in a multidimensional hierarchy. Levels greater than five are
shown without numbers.

The field is blended with a field from another data source.

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 The field is not blended with a field from another data source.

Fields on Shelves
Fields placed on shelves use a combination of icons, colors, and text styles as visual cues.

Visual Cue Description

A blue field on a shelf indicates a discrete field. In most cases,

adding a dimension to a shelf results in a blue field. Blue fields
are discrete—they contain a finite number of values. Adding a
blue field to a shelf creates headers.

A green field on a shelf indicates a continuous field. In most

cases, adding a measure to a shelf results in a green field.
Green fields are continuous—they contain an infinite number
of values. Adding a green field to a shelf creates an axis.

The Sort icon indicates a field that has either a computed or

manual sort order applied.

The sigma icon indicates a slicing filter in a multidimensional

(cube) data source.

The Venn diagram icon indicates a set.

A field name shown in italics indicates a filtered set.

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 A gray field on the Filters shelf indicates a context filter.

The delta icon indicates that the field is a table calculation.

The plus and minus controls appear when the field is part of a
hierarchy that you can traverse.

The arrow icon indicates that a forecast is being displayed for

the field. This icon is also used on the Forecast Indicator field,
which is an automatic field used to distinguish between actual
and forecast values.

The field is from a secondary data source.

The field is assigned to a specific worksheet.

The field is assigned to all worksheets with the same data

source.

The field is incompatible with one or more other fields in the

view.

Fields on the Marks card

Fields placed on the Marks card use specific icons to describe how they appear in the view.

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Visual Cue Description

The field is applied to Color on the Marks card.

The field is applied to Size on the Marks card.

The field is applied to Label on the Marks card.

The field is applied to Shape on the Marks

card.

The field is applied to Detail on the Marks

card.

The field is applied to Tooltip on the Marks

card.

The field is applied to Path on the Marks card.

Path is only available when the Line or Polygon
mark type is selected from the Marks drop-
down menu.

Sheets in the Dashboards and Worksheets pane

The following table explains each of the icons used to describe the type of sheet that can be
placed in a story. A blue check mark indicates that a sheet is being used in one or more story
points.

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Visual Cue Description

The sheet is a worksheet.

The sheet is a dashboard.

Tableau Concepts
Why are some fields dimensions and others measures?
What effect will adding a filter have on my view?
Why is the background color blue for some fields, and green for others?
The topics in this section attempt to clarify these and other questions about what you can see
and experience as you use Tableau Desktop.

 Data Types
 Field Types
 Aggregations

Data Types:
All fields in a data source have a data type.
The data type reflects the kind of information stored in that field, for example integers (410),
dates (1/23/2015) and strings (“Wisconsin”). The data type of a field is identified in the Data
pane by one of the icons shown below.

Data type icons in Tableau

Icon Data type

Text (string) values

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Icon Data type

Date values

Date & Time values

Numerical values

Boolean values (relational only)

Geographic values (used with maps)

You can change the data type for a field either on the Data Source page or in the Data pane.

Change the data type for a field in the Data Source page
Sometimes Tableau incorrectly interprets the data type of a field.
For example, Tableau might interpret a field that contains dates as an integer data type, rather
than a date data type.
You can change the data type for a field that was part of the original data source (as opposed to
a calculated field created in Tableau) on the Data Source page.
1. Click the field type icon for the field (as shown in the table above).
2. Choose a new data type from the drop-down list:

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Change the data type for a field in the Data pane
To change the data type of a field in the Data pane, click the icon to the left of the field name,
and then choose a new data type from the drop-down list.

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Change the data type for a field in the view
To change a field's data type in a view, right-click (control-click on a Mac) the field in
the Data pane, choose Change Data Type, and then select the appropriate data type from the
drop-down list.

Field Types

When you connect to a new data source, Tableau assigns each field in the data source to either
the Dimensions area or the Measures area of the Data pane, depending on the type of data the
field contains. If a field contains categorical data (such as names, dates, or geographical data),
Tableau assigns it to the Dimensions area. If a field contains numbers, Tableau assigns it to the
Measures section.
So is it correct to say that a dimension is a field that contains categorical data, such as names,
dates, or geographical data, and that measure is a field that contains numbers? Those assertions
are accurate enough as a starting point, but as you work in Tableau, remember that you control
the definition of a field in the view. Most fields can be used as either a dimension or as a
measure, and can be either continuous or discrete, according to the requirements of the user.
Tableau's initial assignment of fields to either the Dimensions area or the Measures area
establishes a default. When you click and drag a field from the Data pane to a view, Tableau
continues to provide a default definition for the field. If you are dragging a field from the
Dimensions area, the resulting field in the view will be discrete (with a blue background). If you
are dragging a field from the Measures area, the resulting field will be continuous (with a green
background).
By default, dimensions are discrete and measures are continuous, but in fact all four
combinations are possible:

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discrete dimensions

continuous dimensions (possible only

with Date dimensions)

discrete measures

continuous measures

Dimensions and Measures

When you connect to a data source, Tableau assigns each field in the data source as playing one
of two possible data roles: dimension or measure. What effect do these assignment have when
you start working with data in Tableau?

Dimensions
When you first connect to a data source, Tableau assigns any fields that contain discrete categorical
information (for example, fields where the values are strings or Boolean values) to
the Dimensions area in the Data pane.
When you click and drag a field from the Dimensions area to Rows or Columns, Tableau creates
column or row headers.

Any field you drag from the Dimension area will initially be discrete when you add it to a view,
with a blue background. For this reason, it might be easy to assume (incorrectly, as it turns out)
that a field's background color indicates whether it is a dimension or a measure. But Date
dimensions and numeric dimensions can be either discrete or continuous, and all measures can

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be discrete or continuous. A field's background color indicates whether it is discrete (blue) or
continuous (green).
After you drag a dimension to Rows or Columns, you can change the field to a measure just by
clicking the field and choosing Measure. Now the view will contain a continuous axis instead of
column or row headers, and the field's background will become green:

If you want to make a dimension continuous (without first converting it into a measure), your
options are limited. This is only possible with Date dimensions, which can be discrete or
continuous but are always dimensions, and with numeric dimensions. You cannot convert
dimensions containing strings or Boolean values.
Tableau does not aggregate dimensions. If you want a field's values to be aggregated, that field
must be a measure. When you convert a dimension into a measure, Tableau will always prompt
you to assign it an aggregation (Count, Average, etc.). Aggregation means collecting multiple
values (individual numbers) into a single number by, for example, counting the number of
individual values, averaging them, or displaying the smallest individual value for any row in the
data source.
In Tableau queries, dimensions in the view are expressed in SQL as "Group By" clauses.

Measures
When you first connect to a data source, Tableau assigns any fields that contain quantitative,
numerical information (that is, fields where the values are numbers) to the Measures area in
the Data pane.
When you drag a field from the Measures area to Rows or Columns, Tableau creates a
continuous axis.

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Any field that you drag from the Measures area will initially be continuous when you add it to
the view, and so its background will be green. But if you then click the field and choose Discrete,
the values become column headers.

Tableau continues to aggregate values for the field, because even though the field is now
discrete, it is still a measure, and Tableau will always aggregate measures.

Continuous and Discrete

Continuous and discrete are mathematical terms. Continuous means "forming an unbroken
whole, without interruption"; discrete means "individually separate and distinct."
In Tableau, fields can be either continuous or discrete.
When you drag a field from the Measures area to Columns or Rows, the values are continuous
by default and Tableau creates an axis.
When you drag a field from the Dimensions area of the Data pane to Columns or Rows, the
values are discrete by default and Tableau creates column or row headers. Let's consider why
this is so.
 Continuous fields produce axes
 Discrete fields create headers

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Recognizing the difference
If a field is continuous, the background color is green. If it is discrete, the background color is
blue.
Background color does not indicate dimension vs. measure — it indicates continuous vs.
discrete.
What tells you whether a field in the view is a measure or a dimension is whether it is
aggregated.
On the left below you see a view where Quantity, which was dragged from the Measures area
of the Data pane, has been converted from a measure to a dimension but is still continuous,
with an axis along the bottom of the view. We know that the field is continuous because of the
axis and because the background is green. We know that it is a dimension because it is not
aggregated.
On the right, you see a view where that view has been further modified by clicking Quantity on
the Columns shelf and choosing Discrete. Now there are headers along the bottom of the view,
instead of an axis.

Continuous Discrete

Aggregations
Sometimes it is useful to look at numerical data in an aggregated form such as a summation or
an average.

The mathematical functions that produce aggregated data are called aggregation functions.
Aggregation functions perform a calculation on a set of values and return a single value.

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For example, a measure that contains the values 1, 2, 3, 3, 4 aggregated as a sum returns a
single value: 13. Or if you have 3,000 sales transactions from 50 products in your data source,
you might want to view the sum of sales for each product, so that you can decide which
products have the highest revenue.
You can use Tableau to set an aggregation only for measures in relational data sources.
Multidimensional data sources contain aggregated data only.

Tableau provides a set of predefined aggregations that are shown in the table below. You can
set the default aggregation for any measure that is not a calculated field that itself contains an
aggregation, such as AVG ([Discount]).

Aggregation Description Result for

measure that
contains 1, 2,
2, 3
N/A
Attribute Returns the value of the given expression if it only has a single
value for all rows in the group, otherwise it displays an asterisk
(*) character. Null values are ignored. This aggregation is
particularly useful when aggregating a dimension. To set a
measure in the view to this aggregation, right-click (control-
click on Mac) the measure and choose Attribute. The field then
changes to show the text ATTR:

3 values (1, 2,
Dimension Returns all unique values in a measure or dimension.
3)
1 value (8)
Sum Returns the sum of the numbers in a measure. Null values are
ignored.
1 value (2)
Average Returns the arithmetic mean of the numbers in a measure. Null
values are ignored.
1 value (2)
Median Returns the median of the numbers in a measure. Null values
are ignored.

Count Returns the number of rows in a measure or a dimension. 1 value (4)

When applied to a dimension, Tableau creates a new
temporary column that is a measure because the result of a
count is a number. You can count numbers, dates, booleans,
and strings. Null values are ignored in all cases.
1 value (3)
Count Returns the number of unique values in a measure or
(Distinct) dimension. When applied to a dimension, Tableau creates a
new temporary column that is a measure because the result of
a count is a number. You can count numbers, dates, booleans,
and strings. Null values are ignored in all cases.
Minimum Returns the smallest number in a measure or continuous 1 value (1)

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 dimension. Null values are ignored.

Maximum Returns the largest number in a measure or a continuous 1 value (3)

dimension. Null values are ignored.
1 value. The
Percentile Returns the value at the specified percentile for the measure.
value for
When you select this aggregation, you must choose from a
PCT50 would
submenu offering a range of percentile values: 5, 10, 25, 50, 75,
be 2 for the
90, 95. When you set this aggregation on a field in the view, the
given data.
field shows PCT and the percent value assigned.

Std. Dev Returns the standard deviation of all values in the given 1 value
expression based on a sample population. Null values are (0.8165)
ignored. Returns a Null if there are fewer than 2 members in
the sample that are not Null. Use this function if your data
represents a sample of the population.

Std. Dev Returns the standard deviation of all values in the given 1 value
(Pop.) expression based on a biased population. Assumes that its (0.7071)
arguments consist of the entire population. Use this function
for large sample sizes.

Variance Returns the variance of all values in the given expression based 1 value
on a sample. Null values are ignored. Returns a Null if there are (0.6667)
fewer than 2 members in the sample that are not Null. Use this
function if your data represents a sample of the population.

Variance Returns the variance of all values in the given expression based 1 value
(Pop.) on a biased population. Assumes that its arguments consist of (0.5000)
the entire population. Use this function for large sample sizes.
4 values (1, 2,
Disaggregate Returns all records in the underlying data source. To
2, 3)
disaggregate all measures in the view, select Aggregate
Measures from the Analysis menu (to clear the check mark).
Tableau allows you to view data in disaggregated form
(relational databases only). When data are disaggregated, you
can view all of the individual rows of your data source.

Example – Scatter Plots and Aggregation

If you place one measure on the Rows shelf and another measure on the Columns shelf, you are
asking Tableau to compare two numerical values. Typically, Tableau chooses a scatterplot as the
default visualization in such cases. The initial view can be disappointing—a single mark, showing
the sum for all values for the two measures. There are various ways to add detail to a basic
scatterplot: you can use dimensions to add detail, you can add additional measures and/or
dimensions to the Rows and Columns shelves to create multiple one-mark scatter plots in the
view, or you can disaggregate the data. (Or you can use any combination of these options.) This

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topic looks at these alternatives, and uses the Sample-Superstore data source. To create the
initial view, follow these steps:
1. Place the Sales measure on the Columns shelf.
2. Place the Profit measure on the Rows shelf.
The measures are automatically aggregated as sums. The default aggregation (SUM) is indicated
in the field names. The values shown in the tooltip show the sum of sales and profit values
across every row in the data source.

Follow the steps below to use dimensions to add detail to the view and to disaggregate data.

 Using Dimensions to Add Detail

Drag the Category dimension to Color on the Marks card.
Drag the State dimension to Detail on the Marks card.

 Adding More Fields to the Rows and Columns Shelves

Drag the State dimension to the Columns shelf.
 Disaggregate Data
Another way to modify your original one-mark scatter plot to display more marks is by
disaggregating the data.
Select Analysis >Aggregate Measures.

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