Blog

Rounded Corner Maps in Tableau

2026-03-05 by Johan de Groot

Version 2026.1 of Tableau is released with – among other features and improvements – Rounded Corners! A long awaited feature by many, with some doubts on the necessity by others…

According to the New Features list:

Set a corner radius for dashboard objects directly in Tableau Desktop and Web Authoring. Say goodbye to jumping through hoops with annotations or images. Just set the radius value to create a simple rounded corner or a more extreme corner radius to create different shapes.

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Improving Radar Charts: Showing Overview and Details

2026-02-26 by Johan de Groot

In previous posts, I explored when to use radar charts and how to build them flexible and modular in Tableau. But as we’ve seen, this format has a notorious ‘blind spot.’ While it works well for showing a recognizable shape, the granular details often get drowned out in the overall picture.

Now we are taking the next step: improving the legibility of the radar chart by zooming in on individual spoke values without losing the context of the whole.

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Create a Radarchart in Tableau – Modular and Simple

2026-02-11 by Johan de Groot

In an earlier post, Radar Charts: Practical tips for when and how to use them, I explored when radar charts work well, when they don’t, and the common pitfalls that make them misleading or hard to read. This article builds on that foundation.

Instead of revisiting the theory, I’ll focus on how to construct a radar chart in Tableau in a different way than usual. The new way is is more modular, provides more options, and might be easier.

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Radar Charts: Practical tips for when and how to use them

2026-01-25 by Johan de Groot

Radar charts (also known as spider charts, web charts, or even Kiviat diagrams) are among the most recognizable – and controversial – chart types in data visualization.

They promise a compact way to compare multiple metrics at once, which is why they often show up in dashboards, even when they create more confusion than clarity.

This article explains

What a radar chart actually encodes
Where radar charts can be effective
Why they often fail in analytical contexts
Practical guidance for using them responsibly

The goal is not to ban radar charts, but to use them deliberately and with clear awareness of their trade-offs.

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Smarter dashboard design – with fewer tooltips

2026-01-07 by Johan de Groot

Tooltips can make or break a Tableau dashboard. Used well, they uncover extra detail with a simple hover, keeping your visuals clean but insightful.
But used poorly, they confuse users, slow performance, and hide the very insights you’re trying to show.

Too many tooltips turn a dashboard into a reactive experience instead of an intuitive one, users spend time chasing popups instead of insights.

In this article, I’ll show how to use tooltips smartly: when to reveal detail, when to stay silent, and how these small choices can make your dashboards clearer, faster, and far more actionable.

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