Tableau Pros and Cons: What You Need to Know Before You Start

Here are some pros and cons of Tableau:

Pros:

1. Easy to use: Tableau features a clear and intuitive interface that allows users to quickly generate visualisations and reports.
2. Powerful data visualization capabilities: Tableau provides powerful data visualisation features, including bar charts, line charts, scatter plots, and maps that can be modified to fit unique needs.
3. Connects to various data sources: Tableau can connect to a variety of data sources, including spreadsheets, databases, and cloud-based platforms, making it easy to work with data from different sources.
4. Collaboration and sharing: Tableau users can share their dashboards and reports with others, making it simple for teams to collaborate and share insights.
5. Scability: Tableau can manage massive amounts of data and is appropriate for enterprises of all sizes.
6. Customization: Tableau’s visualizations are highly customizable, allowing users to change colors, labels, and other elements to make the visualization more meaningful and effective
7. Advanced analytics: Tableau provides advanced analytics options such as statistical modeling, forecasting, and advanced calculations.

Cons:

1. Cost: Tableau can be expensive, especially for larger organizations that require more licenses.
2. Limited data manipulation capabilities: While Tableau is great for visualizing data, it does not offer as many options for manipulating and cleaning data as other tools, such as Excel or SQL.
3. Limited customization options: Few users may find that the customization options available in Tableau are limited, especially compared to other tools like D3.js.
4. Dependence on external resources: Tableau relies on external resources, such as data connectors and servers, to function properly, which can be a problem in some situations.
5. Limited mobile support: While Tableau does offer a mobile app, it is not as fully featured as the desktop version and may not be suitable for all users.
6. Limited scalability: Tableau’s scalability is limited, particularly when working with large data sets.
7. Limited data governance and security: Tableau offers a set of features that allow you to secure and govern your data, but it may not be as robust as other data governance and security solutions.