Tableau Dashboard

Tableau Dashboard is a View that will display a collection of several worksheets. You can use a single dashboard to analyze the entire Business. This article will show you how to create a Dashboard in Tableau and Device Preview with an example. Device Preview means creating a Dashboard View for Desktop, Tablet, and Mobile Phones.

For this create a Tableau Dashboard demo, we use the below worksheet. It has a Pie Chart, Bar Chart, Dual Combination Chart, Bubble Chart, and Map.

Available Sheets 1

How to Create a Dashboard in Tableau?

Please click on the New tab to create a Dashboard.

Click on the New tab 2

Now you can see the newly created Tableau dashboard.

  1. Device Preview: Use this button to create a View for Phones, desktops, and tablets.
  2. Size: To adjust the display size.
  3. Sheets: List of Sheets that are available to create this.
  4. Objects: Predefined objects that you can use in it.
  5. Name: Right-click and select the Rename Sheet option to rename this.
  6. It is the actual work area.
Interface to Create 3

Tableau Dashboard Objects

The above screenshot shows the list of Objects available in the Tableau Dashboard (marked as 4).

Add Image to Tableau Dashboard

Generally, we used this to add a Logo. Let me drag and drop the Image Object onto the work area. This will open the following window. Please use this window to select the required image.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 2

Now you can see the Image on our dashboard.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 3

Add Web Page to Tableau Dashboard

Let me drag and drop Web Page Object onto the work area of a Tableau dashboard.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 4

Drop the Web page will open a pop-up window to write the URL. For now, we are pointing to SQL Server.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 5

And you can see the Tutorial Gateway web page on our dashboard.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 6

Add Text Object to Tableau Dashboard

When you drop the Text object onto the work area, a new pop-up window called Edit text will open. Use this window to write your custom.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 7

Now you can the Text added to our dashboard.

Tableau Dashboard Objects 8

Add Report or Sheet to Tableau Dashboard

Hover over any sheet of the newly created Tableau dashboard to see the preview, and clicking the marked button will take you to the original. Please refer to Pie Chart, Bar Chart, Dual Combination, Bubble, Map, and Data Labels in the Reports in Tableau.

Add Pie Chart 4

Let me Drag the Pie Chart.

How to Create a Dashboard in Tableau 5

Next, let me add the Bar Chart to the Tableau dashboard. From the below screenshot, you can see that if you are dragging something to the work area, it will ask for the location. I mean Top Right, Top Left, Bottom right, etc

How to Create a Dashboard in Tableau 6

Now you can see two Sheets inside our dashboard.

Add Bar Chart 7

Let me add the Dual Combination Sheet and Bubble Chart as well.

How to Create a Dashboard in Tableau 8

Rearrange Sheets in a Dashboard

To rearrange the Sheets on the already created Tableau dashboard, Please select the Sheet that you want to change the location of and use the marked field.

Rearrange Sheets 9

To demonstrate the same, we placed the Dual Combination at the bottom.

Adjust Reports 10

Delete Sheet from Tableau Dashboard

Please select the Sheet that you want to delete. Next, click the Close button.

Delete Sheet from Dashboard 11

Or click on the Down arrow and select the Remove from Dashboard option.

Remove Sheet from Dashboard in Tableau 12

Either way, it will remove the selected one from it. As you can see, there is no Pie Chart.

How to Create a Dashboard in Tableau 13

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout

This section covers how to Format Tableau Dashboard Layout with an example. For this, we are going to use the below-shown dashboard. To Format Dashboard Layout, we use one we created in our previous section.

Once you have created your dashboard (added required Sheets), you can use the layout tab to format those Sheets or Items per your requirements.

Change the Dashboard Display Size

By default, Fixed Size is selected by Tableau Dashboard, so we have to format or change it. Under the Size, you can change the size of a Dashboard as per your requirement. It can help design your dashboard based on the Size. The automatic option will adjust the Items as per the Screen size.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout by Changing Size from Fixed to Automatic 2

Under the Fixed option, we have multiple options to select. Let me choose the laptop Browser for now.

Under the Size Fixed, Choose the laptop Browser option 3

You can see that our Tableau dashboard work area has adjusted to the laptop Browser resolution.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout 4

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout items

The layout tab is used to format individual Items in a dashboard. To format the dashboard layout, you have to select a particular item. Checkmark Show Title to display the Item or Sheet Title; otherwise, uncheck Show Title

Change Items 5

Format Dashboard Item Border

By default, there will be no Borders for any Item in a Tableau dashboard. To change the border of any item, select the sheet and change its border.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout  - Change the Border Line style and color 6

See the Pie Chart with Red Colored Dotted Lines Border.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout 7

Change the Tableau Dashboard Item Background Color

By default Background of any Item in a dashboard is None. To change any item’s background, select the sheet and change its background.

Change Background color 8

See the Bubble chart with Light Sky Blue background.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout 9

Format Tableau Dashboard Item Hierarchy

You can see the Item hierarchy here. You can edit, remove, or even delete them from it.

Change Item Hierarchy Layout 10

To remove everything from it, right-click on the Tiled and select Remove Container.

Select Remove Container option 11

This will ask you to delete the Container and the Items (Sheets or Charts) present inside the Container.

Choose Delete option 12

Format Dashboard Item Inner Padding

You can change the Space inside an Item by changing the Inner padding settings of the Tableau Dashboard. To do so, please select the Sheet and change its padding.

Change the inner padding top, bottom, left, and right 13

Format Dashboard Item Outer Padding

You can change the Space Outside a Dashboard Item by changing the Outer padding settings. For this, select the Sheet and change its Outer padding.

Change the top, left, right, bottom of Outer padding 14

I think you don’t understand the Change. Let me add Borders to Pie Chart and change the padding. Now, see the space outside the Pie Chart because we changed the Outer padding to 54 on all sides.

Add Border to chart 15

Use the Dashboard layout to Floating the Item

By check-marking the Format Tableau dashboard layout Floating property, you can float one item on top of another. We used this property on Pie Chart.

Floating property to float pane 16

Either you can use Position (x, y) or Size (w, h) to adjust the position and size or use your mouse.

Format Tableau Dashboard Layout 17

Create a Tableau Dashboard Device Preview

The Device Preview button on the left side of a Tableau Dashboard will help you to create different dashboard views for Mobile Phones, tablets, and desktops. Click on the Device Preview button to see them.

Click on the Device Preview 2

You can see the Device Preview option on the Top of the Tableau Dashboard.

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 3

Use this button to Change the View from Landscape to Portrait and vice versa.

Change Preview from Landscape to Portrait 4

You can see the list of available views under the Device Type

Available Device Types 5

Create a Desktop Preview of a Tableau Dashboard

Please select the Device type as the Desktop. You can see the list of available Desktop models under the Model drop-down list. Let me choose the Generic Desktop Monitor.

list of available Desktop models 6

Click on the Add Desktop Layout button to add the layout for the selected Model.

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 7

We selected the Size of a Desktop to Fit all

Set the Size of a Desktop to Fit all 8

Create a Tablet Preview of a Tableau Dashboard

Please select the Device type as Tablet. You can see the list of available tablet models under the Model drop-down list. Let me choose the Generic Tablet.

list of available tablet models 9

Click on the Add Tablet Layout button to add the Tablet device layout preview for your Tableau Dashboard.

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 10

We removed the Bubble Chart from the Dashboard to fit the tablet Width. It means that when you select the dashboard on Tablet, you can only see the Pie Chart, Bar Chart, and Dual Combination Chart.

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 11

Create a Phone Device Preview of a Tableau Dashboard

Please select the Device type as Phone. You can see the available Mobile Phone models list under the Model drop-down list. Let me choose the iPhone 7 Plus and click the Add Phone Layout button.

list of available Mobile Phone models 12

You can see the boundaries of the Mobile phone screen

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 13

To fit the Mobile Phone screen, we removed the Bubble Chart and Dual Combination Chart from the Dashboard. It means that when you select the dashboard in Mobile Phone, you can only see the Pie Chart and Bar Chart.

Phone Layout and size fit all 14

Let me change the Model to the Samsung Galaxy S family to check the screen

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 15

Once you have finished creating the Device previews, click on the Device Preview to go back to the normal display.

Create Tableau Dashboard Device Preview 16

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