Creating a pie chart

To follow this recipe, open B05527_01 – STARTER.twbx. Use the worksheet called Pie, and connect to the Top Athlete Salaries (Global Sport Finances) data source.

The following are the steps to create a pie chart:

Tableau comes with a built-in mark called Pie. When you switch the mark to a Pie, a new property appears under the Marks card called Angle.

To create a pie chart, simply change the mark to a Pie. Drag a measure to Angle, and a discrete field to Color.

Often a pie chart is accompanied by a label containing what the pie is, and what percentage of the pie that slice is. Percent of Total is a readily available Quick Table Calculation.

To add this as a label, you need to add a measure to the Label in Marks card first. This will initially display the actual values of that measure. Once added, you can right-click on this measure and select Quick Table Calculation. This should expand the readily available quick table calculations, which would include Percent of Total.

Pie charts often get a bad reputation in the visual analytics world. One reason is because humans can't naturally compare angles (or pie slices) easily, especially if the pie slices are pretty close in size. Bar charts are often more effective in showing the difference in magnitudes, because all we need to look at are the edges.

I think part of the issue is also abuse. Sometimes there is a tendency to overuse pie charts in presentations—especially the 3D tilted, exploded ones. Comparing angles is hard enough, tilting and exploding the pies do not help clarify the numbers.

However, pie charts can be effective in showing what proportion of the whole is allocated to something. I think pie charts have their place in the visual analytics and reporting world. Just like any other tools in your toolset, we just need to use them in the right place, right time.