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How to create Sunburst chart in Tableau

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In this blog, you will learn about how to create Sunburst chart in Tableau. A sunburst chart is a circular chart used to visualize hierarchical data. It shows the relationships between different levels of data, with each level represented by a ring or segment around a central point. The size of each segment reflects its proportion within the hierarchy, making complex, nested data easier to understand.

Components of a Sunburst Chart in Tableau:

  • Central Node: This is the root or top level of the hierarchy and is located at the center of the chart. All other levels radiate from here.
  • Rings: Each ring represents a different level of the hierarchy. The ring closest to the center is the top level, and the rings farther away represent lower levels. Each ring is divided into sections based on the child nodes of the parent node.
  • Segments: These are the different parts within each ring, representing specific categories or items. The size of each section reflects its importance or proportion compared to others at the same level.
  • Labels: These describe each section and ring, usually showing names, identifiers, values, or percentages to give more context.
  • Colors: Colors are used to differentiate between categories or levels, making the chart easier to read.

Use Case of Sunburst chart in Tableau:

  • Organizational hierarchies: Visualize company structures or team setups, making it easy to see reporting lines and role distribution.
  • Website navigation: Track how users move through different sections of the website, helping to optimize site structure.
  • Product categories: For retail or e-commerce, sunburst charts show product categories and subcategories, giving information about product distribution and importance.
  • Financial data: Visualize financial hierarchies, such as revenue distribution across departments, to better understand resource allocation.
  • Project management: Break down project tasks into subtasks, showing how different components contribute to the overall project.
  • Environmental impact: Show the distribution of environmental data, such as emissions or waste, across different regions or categories.

Steps to create Sunburst Chart in Tableau

Step 1: Open Tableau

Step 2: Click on Text file to connect with Tableau

Step 3: Browse csv file (or other file format as your need) and click on Open

Step 4: Click on Sheet 1 (Worksheet) to make visual

Step 5: Go to Marks card and click on Automatic dropdown to select Pie

Step 6: Drag Category over Color under Marks card

Step 7: Click on Standard to select Entire View

Step 8: Drag Value over Angle under Marks card

Step 9: Right click on the field of Columns and click on New Calculation

Right Click

Step 10: Type 0 and press Enter

Step 11: Hold ctrl and drag SUM(0) to right to make duplicate

Step 12: Right click over second SUM(0) and select Dual Axis

Step 13: Go to SUM(0) under Marks card drag Subcategory over Detail

Step 14: click on detail icon (left side of Subcategory) and select Color

Step 15: Click on Size and increase size by drag the bar to right

Step 16: Go to SUM(0) (2) under Marks card and click on Size to increase size

Step 17: Go to SUM(0) under Marks card and right click on Subcategory to select Sort

Step 18: Click on Sort By dropdown to select Field and click on Field Name dropdown to select Value

Step 19: click on dropdown arrow and select Edit Color…

Click here

Step 20: select Department using Shift key; click on Color Palette dropdown to select Blue and click on Assign Palette

Step 21: select Product Line using Shift key; click on Color Palette dropdown to select Orange and click on Assign Palette

Step 22: select Region using Shift key; click on Color Palette dropdown to select Blue and click on Assign Palette then click on OK

Step 23: Go to SUM(0) under Marks card and right click on Subcategory to select Sort

Step 24: select Descending order and close

Step 25: Hold ctrl and drag Subcategory (color) to Label

Step 26: Go to SUM(0) (2) under Marks card; Hold ctrl and drag Category (color) to Label

Step 27: Drag Region text to manage the position of text, do it with all category text

Output:

Conclusion:

Sunburst charts are a great way to show data that is organized in a clear, circular way. Seeing nested links, ratios, and distributions helps you understand complicated data structures and gain new insights. Even though Tableau doesn’t have a sunburst chart tool built in, we can still make one by following the steps above. Dynamic filtering, live dashboards, and custom calculations are some of Tableau’s more advanced features that make sunburst charts even more useful for understanding and improving hierarchical data.

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