Multiple data sources in Tableau - Dashboard Guide

Dashboard Mode - Multiple data sources

Business Question

How can we combine sales data and customer data from two different sources to analyze total sales by customer region?

Sample Data

Sales Data (Source 1)

Order ID	Customer ID	Sales Amount
1001	C001	250
1002	C002	450
1003	C003	300
1004	C001	150
1005	C004	500

Customer Data (Source 2)

Customer ID	Customer Name	Region
C001	Alice	East
C002	Bob	West
C003	Charlie	East
C004	Diana	South
C005	Eva	West

Dashboard Components

• KPI Card: Total Sales
  Formula: SUM([Sales Amount])
  Result: 1650
• Bar Chart: Sales by Region
  Data: Join Sales Data and Customer Data on Customer ID
  Calculation: Sum of Sales Amount grouped by Region
  Results:
  • East: 700 (Alice 250+150 + Charlie 300)
  • West: 450 (Bob 450)
  • South: 500 (Diana 500)
• Table: Sales Details with Customer Info
  Columns: Order ID, Customer Name, Region, Sales Amount
  Data: Joined data from both sources

Dashboard Layout

+----------------------+-----------------------+
|      Total Sales      |     Sales by Region    |
|       (KPI Card)      |       (Bar Chart)      |
+----------------------+-----------------------+
|          Sales Details Table                |
|                                              |
+----------------------------------------------+

Interactivity

A filter on Region allows users to select one or more regions. When a region is selected:

• The Sales by Region bar chart updates to show only the selected regions.
• The Total Sales KPI card recalculates the sum of sales for the selected regions.
• The Sales Details table filters to show only orders from customers in the selected regions.

This filter connects both data sources through the Region field after the join.

Self Check

Question: Add a filter for Region = East. Which components update and what are their new values?

Answer:

• Total Sales KPI card updates to 700.
• Sales by Region bar chart shows only the East region bar with value 700.
• Sales Details table shows orders 1001, 1003, and 1004 with customer names Alice and Charlie and their sales amounts.

Key Result

Dashboard combining sales and customer data from two sources to show total sales and sales by customer region.