Tableau Software Reviews

“strong data blending”

Pros

Pulling in data from multiple sources and cleaning it up is one of the biggest strengths here and the dashboards also come out looking professional and clean.

Cons

Pricing runs on the expensive side so smaller companies that could really benefit from it may still struggle to fit it into their budget.

“See your data from any angle”

Pros

Its flexibility when working with data is a big plus and it makes it simple to present that information clearly and give it strong visibility.

Cons

There is a natural learning curve at the beginning but it is not hard to get past because the software provides plenty of helpful learning materials.

“Analytics from any data source”

Pros

One of the biggest advantages of this program is how well it works with a wide range of data sources, from Excel to MSSQL and just about everything in between. It does a really good job with data manipulation and the interactive charts and graphs make analysis much more engaging and useful. Having access to multiple tables with primary key support is also a big plus.

Cons

There is definitely a learning curve especially for someone new to it so training is pretty important at the beginning. It is also not the cheapest option out there but in many cases the value matches the price.

“Great visuals with minimal effort”

Pros

Tableau is an excellent tool packed with practical features that are simple to use, making it possible to build highly informative visualizations with very little effort. It lets you present a large amount of data within each chart effectively. If you're familiar with how powerful pivot tables are in Excel, you can bring that same strength into Tableau to create really impressive visuals.

Cons

I'd like it even more if it included a wider range of analytical tools.

“Strong dashboards with nice visuals”

Pros

Being able to embed dashboards is a big plus and it creates really impressive visual reports.

Cons

The downside is that it can become quite expensive for small businesses.

“good visualizations!!”

Pros

Creating visualizations is very easy and putting together dashboards for different company projects is just as simple. It's also convenient to upload files like Excel and CSV into Tableau and turn them into business intelligence, metrics and comparisons.

Cons

At this point I haven't run into any issues during all the time I have been using it.

“Easy visuals with strong tools”

Pros

There are honestly so many good things to say about Tableau that it's hard to know where to start but the biggest one is how approachable it makes data visualization. It takes something fairly complex and turns it into a very organized process from beginning to end. Connecting to data is flexible since it works with a huge range of sources like Excel, Access oracle, SQL, Salesforce and more. Building out Measures and Dimensions, then adding color, tooltips and interactive legends to the visualizations, all seems very natural. Even without any formal training, I was able to teach myself the software within a month or two and put together good visuals in under 30 minutes. The interface is user friendly and the overall usability is excellent.

Cons

There really are not many downsides for me but I do wish it would combine more of its products like Tableau Prep, Desktop, Online, Mobile and the rest into something much simpler to understand as a package. Desktop itself is incredibly powerful and simple but the other tools, while also capable take a lot more explanation before it's clear why you would use them. It's not even that they are harder to use than Desktop as it's more that it does not provide a clear cheat sheet or simple guidance on its website explaining what each product or service is meant to do and that feels like a missed opportunity.

“Nice visuals for your data”

Pros

Creating useful data visualizations with Tableau is pretty easy and it integrates well with multiple data sources.

Cons

One limitation is that it doesn't offer many third-party integrations which holds back some of its overall potential.

“Great insights for financial data”

Pros

It gives me the ability to break down and understand financial data at multiple levels, whether I am looking at the entire company, product groups, individual products or even specific customers.

Cons

Building reports can be difficult unless you already know the software very well.

“Lots of features but hard to learn”

Pros

Since I mostly work on queries and don't spend much time on data visualization, Tableau still comes across as a very feature-rich product with a lot built into it.

Cons

Getting comfortable with it wasn't very easy. It offers a lot of functionality but that also makes the learning curve feel pretty steep.

“Easy visuals for large datasets”

Pros

Tableau works really well for company presentations especially when I am working with large datasets. The feature set is easy to use, the interface is user friendly, the transitions look professional and the color schemes are appealing. It also fits a lot of different use cases when presenting dynamic data.

Cons

One thing that gets frustrating is how much time it can take to adjust the data so the visuals look the way I want. When I place several charts together in the same space, they can end up looking cluttered or overlapping and I have had to manually fix the layout to make everything presentable.

“helpful maps”

Pros

It has been a really strong tool for data visualization and the mapping features are especially easy to work with.

Cons

There is a bit of a learning curve at first although it is definitely manageable.

“Great visuals every single time”

Pros

This is an excellent tool for creating top-quality visuals.

Cons

A few of the video tutorials haven't been updated and feel outdated.

“Drag and drop to build great visuals”

Pros

During my postgraduate Data Visualisation course, Tableau was the primary tool we worked with. Its drag and drop functionality was a big advantage and once you get the basics down, it becomes fairly simple to make sense of your data. Compared with tools like D3, where you need to write code to build visualisations, Tableau makes the process much more accessible.

Cons

The interface does feel user friendly to a degree but the official website could do a better job with its tutorials. That said, there are plenty of online crash courses available that can help you get up to speed with the basic features.

“Flexible dashboards with reliable performance”

Pros

Working with Tableau has been very easy for both developers and end users. Its dynamic behavior makes it really convenient to update graphs frequently whenever the underlying data changes. It is powerful, dependable and consistently performs well and it's also a plus that there's a mobile app available for both Android and iOS.

Cons

At times, the pricing feels a little on the high side and there are occasional concerns around data security and keeping information safe.

“Visual data flow that works well”

Pros

Turning data fields into visual charts and graphics is not a hassle with Tableau which makes presenting information much more effective.

Cons

As with any software, there's still a learning curve and you need to spend some time understanding how to use it properly.

“Quick setup”

Pros

Getting started with the basics is really quick and I was able to build graphs and charts almost immediately. It's incredibly flexible too so putting together more advanced visuals doesn't take long. Being able to duplicate charts and carry over formatting saves me a huge amount of time. At this point I hardly use Excel anymore.

Cons

One area that still feels awkward is presenting directly from it since it's not as user friendly as the rest of the platform. A lot of people still need to print reports or paste them into PowerPoint and that part of the functionality still seems to be catching up.

“Flexible connections”

Pros

Right from the start Tableau felt accessible no matter the user's skill level. Being able to import Excel files and Google Sheets is a huge plus and the drag and drop setup makes it quick to build reports and charts. It's also really useful that dashboards can be published online and shared directly with executives. On top of that it integrates with SFDC and lets you build custom data tables from it. Considering the price, it offers excellent value.

Cons

It is quick and user friendly overall but I do wish more attention was given to refreshing the look of some graphs and bar charts. Other competing tools are starting to pull ahead when it comes to how polished and modern their charts and tables appear.

“Great visuals for presentations”

Pros

Tableau gives me a lot of different ways to present data which is especially useful when I am putting together academic presentations or posters. Strong data visualization matters more and more in today's workplace and this tool does a really good job of helping with that.

Cons

Getting started with it isn't always easy and it can take some time to learn. I really wish there were a free, step by step training option to help new users get up to speed.

“Save hours of work with Tableau”

Pros

Bringing Tableau into our workflow has saved the team countless hours and freed up time for more valuable work across the company.

Cons

The licenses are expensive and integrating it with other SaaS tools can take a while.