# Chart choice and dashboard design best practices

*Tableau Consultant Study Guide · Evaluate Current State · Last updated November 3, 2026 · https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/tableau-consultant/evaluate-current-state/chart-choice-and-dashboard-design-best-practices*

Turn a stakeholder's question into a Tableau design: classify the question into one of nine chart categories, reshape report-style data so Tableau can aggregate it, and lay out a dashboard by priority, view count, display size, device and highlighting.

- Certification: Salesforce Tableau Consultant
- Exam section: Evaluate Current State
- Study guide: https://www.certifyforce.com/study-guide/tableau-consultant

**Official exam objective:**

> Translate analytical requirements into Tableau context by using best practices.

## What the exam expects

- Classify a stakeholder's question (change over time, correlation, magnitude, deviation, distribution, ranking, part-to-whole, spatial, flow) and recommend the chart forms Tableau lists for it.
- Spot when report-style source data must be reshaped (crosstab columns, subtotal rows) before it can answer the requirement.
- Lay out a dashboard for its purpose and audience: most important view in the upper left, two or three views per dashboard.
- Choose fixed, Range or Automatic sizing and device layouts for the displays the audience uses.
- Keep context with highlighting instead of removing data with filters.

Key terms:
- **Chart category:** one of the nine kinds of information Tableau maps to chart types.
- **Row-oriented data:** variables stored in row values under a column, as in a database table.
- **Pre-aggregated data:** sums, averages, subtotals or grand totals stored in the source.
- **Device layout:** a desktop, tablet or phone child layout of the Default dashboard.
- **Highlighting:** coloring related marks and dimming the rest while all marks stay visible.

## Key facts

| Fact | Detail | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Chart categories on the page | Nine, explicitly not a comprehensive list | [Choose the Right Chart Type](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/what_chart_example.htm) |
| Distribution charts | Histograms, population pyramids, Pareto charts, box plots | [Choose the Right Chart Type](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/what_chart_example.htm) |
| Deviation significance | Use a Z-score | [Choose the Right Chart Type](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/what_chart_example.htm) |
| Data shape Tableau prefers | Granular, row-oriented, no extraneous information | [Tips for Working with Your Data](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/data_tips.htm) |
| Subtotals and grand totals | Remove from source; use the totals option | [Tips for Working with Your Data](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/data_tips.htm) |
| Most important view | Occupies or spans the upper-left corner | [Dashboard best practices](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_best_practices.htm) |
| Views per dashboard | Two or three | [Dashboard best practices](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_best_practices.htm) |
| Default dashboard size | Fixed size | [Dashboard best practices](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_best_practices.htm) |
| Add Phone Layouts to New Dashboards | On by default | [Device layouts](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_dsd_create.htm) |
| Desktop and Tablet layouts | Added manually; always independent of Default | [Device layouts](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_dsd_create.htm) |

## Check yourself

- Why does Tableau say its nine chart categories are a starting point rather than a rule?
- When is Tableau Prep needed instead of Desktop's own cleaning?
- Which sizing does a new dashboard use if the author never changes it?
- Which device layouts must an author add manually?

## Sources

- [Choose the Right Chart Type for Your Data](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/what_chart_example.htm)
- [Best Practices for Effective Dashboards](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_best_practices.htm)
- [Tips for Working with Your Data](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/data_tips.htm)
- [Create Dashboard Layouts for Different Device Types](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/dashboards_dsd_create.htm)
- [Highlight Actions](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/actions_highlight.htm)

## About the full unit

The "Core concepts", "Exam traps" and "Worked scenario" sections of this unit, its 10 linked practice questions, and unlimited timed mock exams are included with the Tableau Consultant pack (USD $19): https://www.certifyforce.com/practice-exams