This is the second blog in the Tableau charts series where we explore different charts offered in Tableau. In the previous blogs we discussed Line and Bar charts in detail, today, we will learn how to make Area charts, Tree maps and Bubble Charts.
You can check out the first blog here.
Let's get started.
Again, we will be using the Superstore dataset. Although it is already available in Tableau please download it from below here since some changes have been made to it for the purpose of this tutorial.
By now, you know how to load the data and you are also familiar with the worksheets. So just get to the workspace so that we can begin.
Area Charts
An area chart combines the line chart and bar chart to show how one or more groups' numeric values change over the progression of a second variable, typically that of time.
An area chart is distinguished from a line chart by the addition of shading between lines and a baseline, like in a bar chart.
If we use a line chart to visualize the trend of two or more quantities, sometimes it becomes a haphazard as shown below.
It becomes difficult to understand the chart shown above. This is where Area charts comes to our rescue.
The chart shown above has 'Month' (continuous) field as Column and the Sales (continuous) field as row which is filtered on 'Category' field. To convert this chart into an area chart we just have to select the 'Area' option in the dropdown menu of the Marks card.
And now we have our Area chart. The chart becomes more readable.
An alternate way to create the area chart is to use the 'Show Me' option and selecting the 'Area chart' option. (Note: It provides you with a separate option to build the chart for continuous and discrete variables. You can select the one as per your requirements.)
We can also choose a different palette of color using the 'Color' option in the Marks card as shown below and we can also highlight different sections using the legend.
Tree Maps
Tree map is a method for displaying hierarchical data using nested figures, usually rectangles.
Here each rectangle represents a group and its size increases with the value of the group and vice-versa. Thus it makes it easy to notice which group dominates over the others in comparison.
When we don't want to show too much of information we use tree maps for visualization.
To make a Tree map we need 1 or more fields as Dimensions and 1 or 2 fields as Measures.
Let's create a new sheet and Drag the 'Category' field into the 'Text' option on Marks card (You must have noticed that in earlier cases when we dragged fields into columns and rows shelves we this option was displayed as 'Labels'). We repeat the same process with the 'Sub-Category' field.
We now have bunch of names corresponding to the respective fields we have dragged in the view area and with this we have fulfilled the requirement of having 1 or more Dimensions.
We are just one more step away from getting a tree map.
We drag the 'Sales' field into the 'Size' option on the Marks card and fulfil the requirement of having 1 or 2 Measures. And there we have it!
And of course you can make the tree map using the 'Show Me' option as well. The process is shown below.
The only difference in this chart and the one above is that of the color scheme. To make the previous chart the same as this one you just have to drag the 'Sales' field into the 'Color' option on the Marks card.
To add some more detail into the tree map we can drag the 'Sales' field into the 'Label' option. On doing this the 'Sales' corresponding to each category will be displayed in the rectangles.
Try doing this with other columns as well and see what happens. That way you will learn more.
There are some rectangles which are not showing any labels as the map is a bit compressed. This can be rectified by selecting the 'Entire View' option from the dropdown menu on the toolbar.
We can also enhance this tree map by mapping the color of the rectangles to Profit. You must have guessed how to do it and you are correct. We drag the 'Profit' field into the 'Color' option on Marks card.
Bubble Charts
This type of chart is the same as tree map, the only difference is that rectangles are replaced by bubbles.
A Bubble chart is a type of chart that displays three dimensions of data.
A Bubble Chart is a multi-variable graph that is a cross between a Scatterplot and a Proportional Area Chart.
The requirements to build a Bubble chart is also the same as a tree map. Remember that we use such visualizations when we just want to paint a broad picture without being too precise.
You can simply make a bubble chart using the 'Show Me' option.
or
You can do it from scratch by first dragging the 'Sub-Category' field into the 'Text' option and then selecting 'Circles' from the dropdown menu on the Marks card.
At this stage we have circles of equal size representing the sub-categories. We now have to change the size of these circles according to the 'Sales' (or any other field that you want as per your requirement). We can achieve this by dragging the 'Sales' field into the 'Size' option on the Marks card.
Also, we drag the 'Category' field into the 'Color' option on the Marks card to map the colors of these circles to the categories of each 'Sub-Category'.
And that's all. We have made a Bubble chart. You can add labels and change color palettes the usual way to enhance your chart.
At last, I urge you all to explore the functionalities on your own. Let your curiosity unfold to discover the potential of Tableau.
We will meet in the next blog to explore more charts, till then stay tuned.
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If you need implementation for any of the topics mentioned above or assignment help on any of its variants, feel free to contact us.
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