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Tableau Desktop

Tableau Desktop

Overview

What is Tableau Desktop?

Tableau Desktop is a data visualization product from Tableau. It connects to a variety of data sources for combining disparate data sources without coding. It provides tools for discovering patterns and insights, data calculations, forecasts, and statistical summaries and visual…

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Learn from top reviewers

Tableau Desktop A Great Analytic Tool.

Rating: 8 out of 10
April 26, 2025
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
I Mainly use Tableau Desktop for my data analysis work. It can connect with various data sources like excel, text files, relational data bases, cloud based data sources like s...
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Manidipa Kundu
Analyst - Quality Assurance
Data Analyst
Gfactors
Tableau Desktop3 years of experience

Tableau user review

Rating: 10 out of 10
March 13, 2025
Vetted ReviewVerified User
I use Tableau Desktop every day and daily basis. I built business and analytics dashboards and analysis with the tool. It visualises my analysis and allows users to help thems...
Continue reading
Jannika Rasi
Analyst - Product Management
Senior Business Analyst
Schibsted Marketplaces
Tableau Desktop5 years of experience

The perfect tool for presenting data.

Rating: 8 out of 10
February 24, 2025
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Tableau Desktop as an application that presents statistics. The first advantage is that you can group different sources of statistics in one place. The second is that t...
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Karol Kozłowski
Project Manager - Product Management
Project manager
WOLTERS KLUWER POLSKA S A
Tableau Desktop7 years of experience

Easy to Use Data Visualization Software

Rating: 9 out of 10
February 24, 2025
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Tableau Desktop to build dashboards for several of our internal and syndicated data sources. It is used by members of out sales, marketing, and finance teams to give th...
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Liz Brandon
Analyst - Information Technology
Sr Manager Performance Analytics
Suntory Global Spirits
Tableau Desktop10 years of experience

Tableau Desktop is a huge timesaver and way easier to learn from scratch than most

Rating: 9 out of 10
February 24, 2025
IncentivizedVetted ReviewVerified User
We use Tableau Desktop to analyze engagement and ROI for clients, create interactive and aesthetically pleasing custom reports as requested by clients, and to examine various ...
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Amanda McCombs
Analyst - Other
Director Client Operations & Analysis
Usherpa
Tableau Desktop5 years of experience
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Pricing

View all pricing

Tableau

$75

On Premise
per month per user

Tableau Enterprise

$115

On Premise
per month per user

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee
For the latest information on pricing, visithttps://www.tableau.com/product-and…

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services

Starting price (does not include set up fee)

  • $75 per month
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Product Demos

Tableau Desktop Tutorial | Tableau Desktop Training | Online Tableau Desktop Training - Youtube

YouTube

- Tableau Demo: Quick Tutorial to Getting Started with Tableau Desktop

YouTube

Tableau Desktop Naming Conventions Part 1

YouTube

Tableau Desktop Introduction Part 1

YouTube
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Features

BI Standard Reporting

Standard reporting means pre-built or canned reports available to users without having to create them.

8.4
Avg 8.2

Ad-hoc Reporting

Ad-Hoc Reports are reports built by the user to meet highly specific requirements.

8.2
Avg 8.0

Report Output and Scheduling

Ability to schedule and manager report output.

8.1
Avg 8.3

Data Discovery and Visualization

Data Discovery and Visualization is the analysis of multiple data sources in a search for patterns and outliers and the ability to represent the data visually.

8.1
Avg 7.9

Access Control and Security

Access control means being able to determine who has access to which data.

8.7
Avg 8.6

Mobile Capabilities

Support for mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

7.8
Avg 7.8

Application Program Interfaces (APIs) / Embedding

APIs are a set of routines, protocols, and tools for used for embedding one application in another

8.1
Avg 7.7
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Product Details

What is Tableau Desktop?

Tableau Desktop supports data-driven decisions by helping users to answer questions more quickly, solve harder problems more easily, and uncover new insights.

Tableau Desktop connects directly to hundreds of data sources, both on-premises or in the cloud, with the goal of making it easier to start analyses. Interactive dashboards, drag and drop functionality, and natural language queries help users of all skill levels quickly discover actionable insights, all from its visual interface. Users can ask deeper questions by quickly building calculations, adding trend lines and seeing statistical summaries, or clustering data to see relationships.


Tableau Desktop Video

In this video, the TrustRadius team will be discussing the top business intelligence tools available: Qlik Sense, Tableau, ThoughtSpot, and IBM Cognos Analytics.

Tableau Desktop Competitors

Tableau Desktop Technical Details

Deployment TypesOn-premise
Operating SystemsWindows, Mac
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

Tableau Desktop is a data visualization product from Tableau. It connects to a variety of data sources for combining disparate data sources without coding. It provides tools for discovering patterns and insights, data calculations, forecasts, and statistical summaries and visual storytelling.

Tableau Desktop starts at $75.

IBM Cognos Analytics, SAP Lumira Discovery, and Qlik Sense are common alternatives for Tableau Desktop.

Reviewers rate Java API highest, with a score of 9.1.

The most common users of Tableau Desktop are from Enterprises (1,001+ employees).
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Comparisons

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Compare with

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ThoughtSpot

ThoughtSpot

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MS SharePoint / SQL

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Oracle Discoverer (discontinued)

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Reviews and Ratings

(2305)

Reviews

(1-5 of 153)

Tableau leads to data analysis capabilities to a new level.

Rating: 10 out of 10
February 26, 2015
Verified User
Consultant in Information Technology
Retail Company, 51-200 employees
Vetted Review
Verified User
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
I am starting a proof of concept with Tableau to use as a business intelligence tool in a retail company. I found [it to be a] fantastic and very flexible tool.
Pros
  • Tableau is very flexible and generates analysis with graphics quite easily.
  • It is very easy to install and use.
  • Its cost is not absurd as others in its segment tools.
Cons
  • We are doing a proof of concept for the procurement planning and inventory processes of a medium-sized retail company. In this case, the tool cost and flexibility make a difference.
Likelihood to Recommend
The key points in the evaluation of the tools were flexibility, ease of use and cost.

New on the fence about anything but, still 2 feet away from this one

Rating: 9 out of 10
Incentivized
January 31, 2017
Verified User
Analyst in Information Technology
Wholesale Company, 201-500 employees
Vetted Review
Verified User
Tableau Desktop
2 years of experience
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
Currently Tableau is being used to share dashboard metrics with our Retail Development team. Tableau is currently connected to our database server where it allows me to create real-time visuals for market reports and attendance tracking. Before coming to DMC they did not have a Data Analyst or a person that understood what relevant marketing metrics meant to the business. With Tableau, I was able to give VPs and other Execs a look at the business from a high level view as well as dig into the weeds to come out with data relevant for decision making.
Pros
  • Aggregation: SQL aggregate functions are come last to the aggregation power of Tableau. There are various formulas for annual growth, retention, and ratios that can break a query or stress at database. Tableau simplifies that through calculated fields and presets.
  • Mapping: Normally aggregate maps are created in SAS but, Tableau takes the guess work out of creating maps that display various levels of change using metrics.
  • Calculated Fields: If you know SQL or even Excel then calculated fields are the gold nuggets of Tableau. Coding custom formulas that are reusable across workbooks, save so much time.
Cons
  • Measured Names and Values: I struggle getting that blank area of Measured Names to vanish for cleaner reporting but, if you delete one then it removes the metric as a whole.
Likelihood to Recommend
Tableau is great for marketing situations where you need to allocate numbers fast and parse them even faster. It's a great storytelling tool for deep dive analysis but, it lacks creativity in visuals. If I were presenting visuals that required comparing metrics from one year to the next then Tableau doesn't suit my needs in my current role. I still have to build 2 sets of visuals for each branch on order to convey the message of growth.

Tableau user review

Rating: 10 out of 10
March 13, 2025
JR
Jannika Rasi
Senior Business Analyst
Schibsted Marketplaces (Consumer Services, 501-1000 employees)
Vetted Review
Verified User
Tableau Desktop
5 years of experience
View profile
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
I use Tableau Desktop every day and daily basis. I built business and analytics dashboards and analysis with the tool. It visualises my analysis and allows users to help themself for access data. Scope is large, data needs are cross country and and to end. We use ready made sources but also process data straight in Tableau.
Pros
  • Dashboards
  • Simple connections to many sources
  • Visulaisations
Cons
  • When joining keys I would like to see how good is the join
  • labels could have more options in charts
  • sorting does not always work in table charts
Likelihood to Recommend
Wells suited for dashboards with moderate amount of data. Live connection is not actually that live - one needs to pay more attention to this because it created misunderstandings. It's great in visualisimg simple data stuff - creating funnels and more special views is hard- maybe could add feature here. Also would like to see AI suggest me charts.

Self-taught user review

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
May 15, 2019
Verified User
Analyst in Marketing
Automotive Company, 51-200 employees
Vetted Review
Verified User
Tableau Desktop
2 years of experience
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
Tableau Desktop was initially going to be used across the whole organization for internal and external purposes. It was going to help automate much of the reporting so more time could be spent on analyzing the data.
Pros
  • Data visualization
  • Data integration
  • Data clean Up
Cons
  • Sharing reports
  • Duplicating dashboards
  • Overall learning curve
Likelihood to Recommend
If you have a dedicated team that can get up to speed with little to no distractions and it can 100% be used for client delivery then it'll be great as the entire reporting process becomes streamlined.

The joyous ride to developing interactive dashboards with Tableau

Rating: 10 out of 10
Incentivized
May 31, 2016
Verified User
Analyst in Information Technology
Higher Education Company, 1001-5000 employees
Vetted Review
Verified User
Tableau Desktop
2 years of experience
Use Cases and Deployment Scope
We are constantly expanding the tool sets at our office so we can provide our users and stakeholders with richer more visually appealing information in a variety of formats. Tableau desktop helps us develop three such deliverable types in ou portfolio - an online public version of a dashboard, a securely sealed Cloud environment dashboard and an alternative to sending humongous Excel files by sending Tableau workbooks with Tableau reader instructions. All three are unique solutions in terms of data deliverables and though other softwares meet similar criteria, the data compression capability is no where close to Tableau workbooks.
Pros
  • Data compression capability
  • Snappier GUI interface for happier analyst experiences
  • Leading the industry in visually appealing visuals
  • Loads of customization possible
  • Availability of loads of resources online
  • Lots of users to share their experiences and problems online
Cons
  • User service/support from Tableau after product sale needs improvement
  • Many new generation visuals need to be added to defaults and automatic graphs (eg. Sankey, decision trees etc.)
  • Industry specific solutions can help a lot
  • Cost is very high (especially for higher education institutions and non-profits)
Likelihood to Recommend
Tableau Desktop is very much in sync to the new world of big data and data visualization for amazing analytics. Its user GUI is so simplistic that we let new employees especially interns, students and temporary workers start development using ready datasets in tableau. They gain useful experience and we get much more ROI on the short working periods of these employees as they are able to learn fast and produce data reports faster. Users too love the interface and our capabilities to make small tweaks for them easily.
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