How to display 40 + columns in Tableau?

Question

I am trying to do a list report with about 40 columns(Dims+measure) but not able to get it right, the requirement pushes the Tableau limitation by exploiting its limit to only 16 columns.

How can I get this done?

I read this

Here is my Tableau workbook with 16+ columns but no column header

Nabob

1. What problems are you encountering with the blog post? 2. Do you really really need to display 40 columns of data? – Duumvir

I'm able to add the columns now,but the column names is what i'm unable to display. – Nabob

Answer 1

Go to Analysis-->Table Layout -->Advanced and change the number in Rows and Columns as per your need.

You can't add more than 16 to this, but increase it to 16 (for identification). So, save the Tableau file with extension .TWB. Then open this file in notepad.

Then search for the text: attr='row-levels'.

You will find something like:

<format attr='row-levels' value='16' />
          <format attr='row-horiz-levels' value='16' />

Change the value of 16 to desired column numbers. Save the notepad file. Open it in Tableau.

Assuntaassur

I dont know how to thank you enough other than upvoting you answer! – Llovera

Seems to work but Tableau (desktop) doesn't offer a horizontal scroll bar ... but Worksheet | Export | Crosstab to Excel has the wider list of columns OK. The up and down keyboard arrows scroll the Tableau table but the left and right arrows do not scroll or move active cell ... and the Tab key doesn't move cursor in Tableau either .. – Beitz

@AllanF To get the horizontal scroll bar in Tableau change the "Size" of the dashboard to Custom Size and change the width to a large enough number so that all your columns fit, e.g. 8000. – Constrict

Answer 2

The measures names and measures values special fields can help here and covers most use cases. (Using the measure names and values fields is likely a better choice than creating 40+ marks cards as you did in your posted example)

Put Measure Names on the column and filter shelves and measure values on the text shelf. Then add the measure fields you want to the Measures Values shelf. Then put the dimensions that you wish on the rows shelf.

A single field+aggregation can only be on the Measure Values shelf once, but a field can repeat with different aggregations -- so you can show the min, avg and max of a measure in 3 different columns.

As you mentioned, you can increase the max col and row headers up to 16 each via the Analysis->Table Layout->Advanced menu and panel. Beyond that point, adjacent columns will still display, just be coalesced for display.

Still you can have an apparently arbitrary number of fields on the measures values shelf, so can display as many columns of measures (data) as you wish, even though adjacent header columns for dimension (~category) get coalesced for display once you hit the header limit.

Tableau is optimized for summarizing data for efficient interpretation by humans, so displaying extremely wide tables of data is not the best fit for the tool (or a human reader frankly). Importing and exporting large tables is certainly possible.

Prostate

Thanks,I ended up in exporting the report into excel,the issue doesnt exist when you export to excel.:D – Nabob

Answer 3

At the 2015 conference I went to a session called "Use Tableau Like a Sith" and they showed us how to change the XML to workaround the 16 limit. Caveat being this is not supported.

Find the entries in the attached image and change their value to 40. In the screenshot, the Sith presenters were changing them to 36.

Sennight

Ya,this is kinda hack but haven't seen any practical application,if you have found it,then pls. share the sample workbook.Thanks! – Nabob

Answer 4

Here is a workaround for some data sets:

• convert your fields from Dimension to Measure, and then
• display using Measure Names / Measure Values, as @Alex Blakemore suggested.

For example, Boolean fields can be converted to numeric using INT().

PROS:

1. It is easier to change which fields to plot using Measure Names / Measure Values.
2. Faster performance, at least for some data sets.

CONS:

1. Often data sets have some fields that cannot or should not be converted to measure.
2. Not as easy or straightforward as changing Analysis > Table Layout > Advanced settings, or the xml-editing workaround suggested by @Cyndi1976.

Zadoc

Answer 5

There are Two ways:

1. Edit the saved .twb file and edit the Below xml code by opening the workbook with Notepad

     <format attr='row-levels' value='16' />
     <format attr='row-horiz-levels' value='16' />
   

2. Create 3 different worksheets each consisting multiple column but each worksheet consisting columns >16 and place them in single dashboard. So you will get one view with 40 columns.

Retentivity

Answer 6

A good way to do this is to create groups and filters. I'm sure, out of 40+ columns, a good number of them can be converted to either of the above, giving a neater look to your dashboard, making it easy to comprehend your data.

Let us assume you're creating a dashboard to show the overall split of mobile recharges for a company x.

One of the option is to have multiple columns; each for:

1. the mobile OS
2. OS version
3. service provider
4. recharge rank
5. Sub-category (Prepaid / Postpaid)

...

the easier and elegant way to reduce the number of columns is to populate a dropdown list with these values. Not only this will make the dashboard easier to comprehend, it will reduce the number of columns one has to refer to interpret the data and would also reduce the technical limitations imposed on the number of columns.

to create a group in Tableau:

1. include the fields in the result set i.e. use the column[s] in select statement.

select os, os_version, service_provider, rank, subcategory ... from schema.recharge_table [where...];

2. In the Sheets view of Tableau, right click on the field to create group. Let's create a split on subcategory.

3. Group the sub-categories, give them proper alias to be recognised easily.

4. Drag the Group to filter and you've successfully and elegantly reduced one column.

Connelly

Answer 7

16 is the maximum limit for row/column labels in tableau table.

Snook

Answer 8

Put 20 columns on one sheet and 20 one the other dashabord. Drag and drop both sheets on to your dashbaord, and you should be having 40 columsn.

Bucktooth