There are several options available for viewing, creating, and publishing Tableau content.
To get started, we recommend that you begin with a free Tableau trial license and take the free Getting Started online training offered by Tableau. Tableau Desktop users should not install or upgrade beyond the current Tableau Server version, which can be found in the blue footer below.
Please review the Software Overview section or select what you are looking for from the following options.
You are eligible for a free 1-year license of Tableau Desktop (see details below) through Tableau's Academic Program.
You need to obtain a Tableau Desktop (see details below) license. See the Tableau Desktop alternate download site to install the appropriate version. Workbooks created in a later version of Tableau Desktop cannot be published to earlier versions of Tableau Server. For example, workbooks created in Desktop 9.1 cannot be published to Tableau Server 9.0.
Afterwards, please review the Publishing & Security section of our Using Tableau page.
A Tableau Desktop license is not required. You may use the free Tableau Reader (see details below). However, the appropriate report viewer roles must be assigned by the report publisher. Learn more about Tableau User Roles on our Using Tableau page.
License ownership is managed using the Tableau Customer Portal or contact Tableau Customer Support for assistance.
Please review our information for developers and publishers, on our Using Tableau page.
Software Overview
Tableau Reader
A free desktop application that allows a user to open and interact with visualizations that have been built with Tableau Desktop and saved in a *.twbx format.
Tableau Public
A free service that lets anyone publish interactive data to the web. Once on the web, anyone can interact with the data, download it, or create their own visualizations of it.
NOTE: Tableau Public should never be used to publish/share Protected Health Information.
For additional information on Tableau Public, see Tableau's Community Forums.
Tableau Creator/Explorer/Viewer
The authoring and publishing software used to visualize and analyze data, create workbooks, visualizations, dashboards and stories. It is available for Windows and Mac operating systems and can be purchased directly from Tableau. Please note: Full-time Duke students and Instructors are eligible for a free 1-year license of Tableau Desktop through Tableau's Academic Program.
NEW: Tableau Desktop is included with Tableau Creator.
NOTE: Current licensed users with Tableau Desktop may continue with the same maintenance agreement.
For new users, there are three Tableau client products (pdf) available via subscription. To view a full comparison click here. See Tableau’s subscription pricing billed annually*.
*Prices are subject to change without notice. Contact Tableau for the Education/Non-Profit pricing or Perpetual License pricing (long term greater than 2 years).
There is also a free trial available for download and evaluation.
Tableau Server
Duke’s privately managed business analytics platform which offers mobile and browser-based analytics and works with multiple data sources. Workbooks and dashboards published to Tableau server are made available to groups of users within the Duke Community by publishers. Access is controlled by active directory and uses Shibboleth protocols. Please review our information on accessing the Duke Tableau server (see Supported Web Browsers).
Tableau Mobile
Tableau views are optimized to deliver touch experiences when accessed on the Apple iPad or an Android tablet. Unfortunately, mobile devices using the Tableau Mobile app are currently not supported due to an issue with Shibboleth Authentication, but access via a web browser on the iPad does work.