The Short Answer
The Salesforce Certified Tableau Desktop Foundations exam (formerly the Tableau Desktop Specialist) has 40 scored multiple-choice/multiple-select questions plus up to 5 unscored, a 70-minute time limit, a 48% passing score for the English version, a US$75 registration fee, a free retake and no prerequisite. It currently tests on Tableau 2022.3 (checked in October 2026 against the official exam guide).
This is the entry credential for Tableau. It asks whether you can connect to data, build the standard charts, filter and calculate, and publish a dashboard in Tableau Desktop, and whether you understand the ideas underneath: dimensions and measures, discrete and continuous fields, and aggregation. If you've used Desktop for about three months, it's within reach.
Exam Details at a Glance
| Detail | Tableau Desktop Foundations |
|---|---|
| Questions | 40 scored multiple-choice/multiple-select, plus up to 5 unscored |
| Time limit | 70 minutes |
| Passing score | 48% (English); 55% (Japanese) |
| Registration fee | US$75 (JPY 10,000), plus applicable taxes |
| Retake fee | Free |
| Prerequisite | None |
| Product version | Tableau 2022.3 |
| Delivery | Proctored, online or at a testing center |
| References allowed | None |
| Maintenance | None required at this time |
| Exam code and level | Analytics-101, Foundational |
| Languages | English, Japanese, French, Spanish |
Source: the exam guide for every row except the last two, which come from the Trailhead Academy exam page. All checked in October 2026.
48% of 40 is 19.2, so you need about 20 correct answers and can miss around 20. You get roughly 1.5 minutes for each of up to 45 questions, which is plenty for short "which field type" or "which chart" questions. Because the retake is free, the cost of a first attempt is low; for fees and retake rules on other exams, see Salesforce certification cost and retake fees.
On the name. Tableau's certifications now sit in the Salesforce program, and tableau.com's certification page lists this exam as Salesforce Certified Tableau Desktop Foundations, level Foundational. The old Desktop Specialist page on tableau.com now redirects to this exam, so study material that says "Desktop Specialist" covers the same credential. Trust the Salesforce Help guide over older prep sites for fees and the pass mark.
Who the Exam Is For
The exam guide describes candidates with foundational knowledge of Tableau Desktop and at least 3 months of applying it in the product. It says the credential validates core Tableau knowledge for "employees, partners, customers, and freelancers" who work with Tableau Desktop, so you don't need a Salesforce background.
That makes it a sensible first credential for analysts moving off spreadsheets, Salesforce admins who've been handed a Tableau license, and students building a portfolio. If you're still choosing between first certifications, our guide to which Salesforce certification to get first compares the entry options.
When you're ready for the next step, the Tableau Data Analyst exam adds Tableau Prep, LOD expressions and publishing to Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud; our Tableau Data Analyst exam guide covers it.
The Four Exam Sections and What They Test
All weights and objectives come from the official outline.
| Section | Weight | About this many questions (of 40) |
|---|---|---|
| Connecting to and Preparing Data | 23% | 9 |
| Exploring and Analyzing Data | 37% | 15 |
| Sharing Insights | 25% | 10 |
| Understanding Tableau Concepts | 15% | 6 |
Connecting to and Preparing Data (23%)
Live connections and extracts, saving a data source as a .tds, multi-connection data sources, relationships, joins and unions, and field properties: renaming, aliases, geographic roles, data types and default properties.
Watch for:
- Live versus extract. Tableau's extract page lists what an extract buys you: large data sets, better performance, functions the source may not support, and offline access in Desktop. The cost is freshness: an extract is refreshed, fully or incrementally, rather than querying the source each time.
- Relationship versus join. The data model page puts relationships ("noodles") in the logical layer and joins and unions in the physical layer. Relationships keep tables separate at their own level of detail and let Tableau pick join types per query, while a join merges tables before analysis and can duplicate or drop rows. If a question mentions inflated totals after combining tables, think join.
- .tds versus .tdsx. Per Save Data Sources, a .tds holds only the connection information and your metadata, while a .tdsx also packages local file data or extracts.
Exploring and Analyzing Data (37%)
The biggest section: the core chart types, groups, sets, hierarchies, filters (including date filters), sorts, reference lines, quick table calculations, bins and histograms, calculated fields, parameters and totals.
Watch for:
- Combined axis versus dual axis. Tableau's multiple measures page describes a shared (blended) axis, where measures share one scale, and dual axes, which are two independent axes layered on top of each other. Different units or scales point to dual axis.
- Density map versus highlight table. A density map shows concentration where map points overlap; a highlight table compares categories in a text table using color.
- Group versus set versus filter. A group combines members, such as fixing "CA" and "California". A set defines a subset you can show as In/Out, and a dynamic set's members change with the data. A filter removes data from the view.
- When to use a parameter. The parameters page defines one as a workbook variable that can replace a constant in a calculation, filter or reference line. If the scenario has a viewer changing a threshold or "top N", the answer is usually a parameter.
Sharing Insights (25%)
Formatting (color, fonts, shapes, size, legends and animations), building dashboards with filters, highlighters, tooltips and actions, device-specific layouts, stories, and sharing: packaged workbooks, PDF and image exports, publishing, viewing underlying data and exporting to PowerPoint.
Watch for:
- Device layouts. The device layouts page treats the Default dashboard as the parent and the desktop, tablet and phone layouts as its children, each starting with every item in Default.
- Packaged workbooks. A .twbx packages the workbook with local file data and background images, so it's the answer when the recipient can't reach your files or your server.
- Animations. Viz animations come in simultaneous and sequential styles and play on filter, sort and zoom changes, among others.
- PowerPoint export. Tableau's export page says each selected sheet becomes an image on its own slide, reflecting the current filters and selections.
Understanding Tableau Concepts (15%)
Dimensions and measures, discrete and continuous fields, and aggregation. Only six or so questions, but the ideas run through every other section.
Watch for:
- Blue and green. The field types page says discrete fields are blue and create headers, while continuous fields are green and create an axis. Dimension and measure is a separate question from discrete and continuous.
- Dates. Per Continuous Dates, dates come into the view as discrete date parts (such as year or month) by default, while continuous date truncations (such as March 2020) build an axis.
- Aggregation. The aggregation page says a measure is aggregated as soon as it enters the view, shown in its name (Sales becomes SUM(Sales)). Adding a dimension splits that one aggregate into one value per member.
The 2022.3 Product Version
The guide says the exam is "Currently testing on 2022.3". Relationships, Show Me and the blue/green model are all in that version, so current Help pages teach them correctly. Newer Desktop features you'll see in today's product, such as Tableau Agent, aren't in the outline. When a menu path in a newer release differs from an old tutorial, learn what the feature does rather than memorizing where it sits.
A Three-to-Four-Week Study Plan
- Read the exam guide and score yourself. Rate each objective from 1 to 3. Our guide to using the exam outline to plan your study shows how to turn weights into study time.
- Take a baseline. Try the 18 free Tableau Desktop Foundations practice questions to see the question style and find your weakest section.
- Read the study guide's free sections. The Tableau Desktop Foundations study guide has 26 units mapped to the outline, and every unit's summary, key facts and self-check questions are free to read.
- Build with Superstore. Recreate every chart in section 2.1, then add a group, a set, a parameter-driven reference line and a quick table calculation. Switch a date between discrete and continuous and watch the view change.
- Ship one dashboard. Add a filter action and a highlight action, a phone layout, and a two-point story, then export it to PDF and PowerPoint and save a .twbx.
- Take the official training if you want structure. The guide lists Tableau's free how-to videos, Tableau Help, the Visual Analysis Best Practices guidebook, and the instructor-led Tableau Desktop I: Fundamentals (TTD101) class. The Trailhead Learn About Tableau module is a free warm-up.
- Practice under time. Book the exam when you're steadily well above the pass mark and can say why each wrong option is wrong. Our guide to answering Salesforce scenario questions helps with select-two questions.
Tableau Desktop Foundations Practice on Certifyforce
Certifyforce has a practice bank and study guide written to this exam's outline and checked against Tableau Help and the Salesforce exam guide. It isn't affiliated with Salesforce or Tableau, and it contains no recalled exam questions or brain dumps.
- 18 free practice questions spread across the four sections by weight, each with the answer, why the other options are wrong and the page it was checked against. No account needed.
- The Tableau Desktop Foundations practice exam: 152 reviewed questions with timed exams, section practice, and an explanation and source for every answer.
- The Tableau Desktop Foundations study guide: 26 units, each linked to the practice questions that test it, so a missed question takes you straight to the lesson.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many questions are on the Tableau Desktop Foundations exam?
40 scored multiple-choice/multiple-select questions plus up to 5 unscored ones, in 70 minutes, per the exam guide.
What is the passing score?
48% for the English version and 55% for the Japanese version.
How much does it cost?
US$75 (JPY 10,000) plus applicable taxes, and the retake is free, per the exam guide.
Is Tableau Desktop Foundations the same as Tableau Desktop Specialist?
It's the same credential under its Salesforce name. Tableau's old Desktop Specialist page now redirects to the Desktop Foundations exam, and tableau.com lists only the Salesforce-named Tableau certifications.
Does the certification expire?
The guide says there's no required maintenance for this certification at this time.
Do I need Salesforce experience?
No. The exam is about Tableau Desktop only, and the guide's only expectation is about three months of hands-on Desktop use.