Dataskera

Radar Chart

The Radar Chart puts every measure on its own axis around a circle, so one shape tells you where a product, a team or a region is strong and where it is thin. It reads a profile at a glance, which a row of bars does not.

Data Requirements

Your Tableau worksheet should include:

  • 1 Dimension for the Axis encoding. One axis per value, for example Criterion or Metric.
  • 1 or more Measures for the Value encoding. One series per measure. With a single measure, add a Series dimension instead for one shape per value.
  • 1 Dimension, optional for the Series encoding. Draws one shape per value, and is only used when a single measure is on the Value shelf.

Add Radar Chart to your worksheet

First, download the manifest file. It tells Tableau where to load the extension from.

Download spiderchart.trex

Direct link: https://dataskera.com/downloads/spiderchart.trex

Then, in Tableau:

  1. On the Marks card, open the Mark type dropdown, and under Viz Extensions choose Add Extension.
  2. In the Add an Extension dialog, choose Access Local Viz Extensions, then open the spiderchart.trex file you just downloaded.
  3. When Tableau asks, allow the extension to access the data in the workbook.
  4. The welcome screen appears. Sign in with your Dataskera account, or on Tableau Desktop choose Use on Desktop without an account. See Signing in & access below.
  5. Build the chart: drag a dimension onto Axis and one or more measures onto Value. To compare groups on one measure, drop that measure on Value and a dimension on Series.
Tableau Server or Cloud:
A site admin must allow the extension by adding its URL to the site's safe list, and the view needs the Download Summary Data permission. Extension URL: https://vizextension.dataskera.com/spiderchart/spiderchart.html

Signing in & access

Radar Chart is free. Whether you need to sign in depends only on what you are doing. Viewing a dashboard never asks for an account, and authoring is free too.

Viewing a dashboard
No account

People who only view a dashboard are never asked to sign in and are never blocked.

Editing on Tableau Desktop
Optional

Sign in, or continue without an account in a single click.

Editing on Server or Cloud
Free account

Sign in with your Dataskera account to author on the web.

No account yet? Create one free in under a minute. No credit card required.

Format panel

Open the Format panel from the extension menu to customize the chart. It is for the dashboard author and is not shown to viewers. It has four tabs:

  • General: grid shape, ring count and their labels, axis labels, the fill and its opacity, line width, point size, and the value scale, which can start at zero or hug the data.
  • Color: a palette, a precise colour per category, and the overall opacity.
  • Legend: show or hide it, its position around the chart, an optional show/hide toggle for viewers, the colour swatch, and the content of each entry.
  • Tooltip: show or hide it, its colours, decimals, and a template you write yourself from the placeholders the chart provides.
Three axes minimum:
A radar needs at least three axes to enclose an area. With one or two, the chart says so instead of drawing a line that would read as a shape.
Different units:
Axes share one scale, so measures in different units are compared on the same ring. Normalise them in Tableau first, or use one measure with a Series dimension.