Donut chart in tableau

by Juhie Radia

I am going to attempt to teach you how to make a donut chart.

A donut chart is similar to a pie chart but allows for it to be a little more effective as you can include a BAN or some text about the data in the centre, in a concise way. I'd advise that donut charts only be used for data with 3-4 segments otherwise it becomes a little cluttered and hard to read. Donut charts are a good way to compare parts of data to a whole at a glance, especially when the segments are quite different, unlike in the data I've chosen here :(.

step 1: click on the downward arrow and create a calculated field, a window should pop up

step 2: write sum(0) in the calculated field and call the calculation white circle then press ok to return to your workbook

step 3: drag the white circle field you just calculated from the pane on teh left to the columns section at the top of the workbook, do this twice. An AGG will be added to your calculated field once this happens because your calculation has now been aggregated.

step 4: right click on the field in the columns section and select dual axis. Your pie charts will be on top of each other which is why it looks like there is only one.

step 5: drag the category and sum(quantity) fields off the 2nd mark card in the pane. Just drag them in to the empty space below the card and they should disappear. There is no longer anything to define colour which is why the pie chart is grey.

step 6: select the colour icon in the second marks card

step 7: select white. The pie chart is still there, only the pie chart at the front has changed colour from grey to white.

step 8: click on the other marks card

step 9: select the size icon

step 10: increase the size by dragging the little rectangular marker towards the right. You should now see the coloured pie chart in the back appear behind the white circle

step 11: now increase the size of the small white circle by selecting the 2nd marks card, clicking on the size icon and dragging the little rectangular marker to the right in the same way. Your donut chart will start to take form.

step 12: right click on the screen and select format. Then select the icons shown and remove lines, by pressing 'none',  until the ones on the workbook disappear. It should be the row divider in the borders section, however that isn't always the case for everyone.

step 13: right click on the axes at the top and bottom and untick the 'show header' option and you should be left with your donut chart

step 14: drag the quantity field from the left hand side pane over the 'label' icon on the 2nd marks card and the sum quantity number should appear in the centre of the donut chart

step 15: you can edit and format the text in the centre by clicking the 'label' icon

step 16: click on the 3 dots next to <SUM(Quantity)> and a text window should appear

step 17: change the text to whatever you want and the size, ensure that the text fits in the centre of the donut chart. Then press ok and your donut chart is complete.

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Juhie Radia

Fri 08 Sep 2023

3 mins read

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