How to Create a Side-by-Side Bar Chart in Tableau

A side-by-side bar chart is one of the clearest ways to compare data across multiple distinct categories. Instead of getting lost in a spreadsheet, you can instantly see how different segments perform relative to each other. This article provides a step-by-step guide on how to create a visually effective side-by-side bar chart in Tableau, along with tips to make your comparisons even more insightful.

What Exactly is a Side-by-Side Bar Chart?

A side-by-side bar chart, also sometimes called a grouped bar chart, is used to display and compare values for different sub-categories within a main category. Imagine you want to see your total sales for different regions (your main category). A standard bar chart works great for that. But what if you need to know how product types like 'Technology', 'Furniture', and 'Office Supplies' (your sub-categories) are performing within each of those regions?

That's where the side-by-side chart comes in. It places the bars for each sub-category next to each other, grouped by the main category, making direct comparisons effortless. You can quickly answer questions like:

• Which product category is the bestseller in the West region compared to the South?
• How did marketing campaign performance differ across different social media channels for Q1 versus Q2?
• Which sales team is closing the most deals for Enterprise clients versus Small Business clients?

When to Use a Side-by-Side Bar Chart vs. a Stacked Bar Chart

People often get these two confused, but their use cases are distinct. Both charts break down a category into smaller segments, but they emphasize different insights.

• Use a side-by-side bar chart when your primary goal is to compare the magnitude of the sub-categories against each other within each main group. For example, comparing the raw sales numbers of 'Phones' vs. 'Laptops' in each state. The focus is on the direct comparison between 'Phones' and 'Laptops' in each location.
• Use a stacked bar chart when your goal is to show the total for each main category and understand the proportional contribution of each sub-category to that total. It's less about comparing sub-categories to each other and more about understanding the overall composition of each bar.

For this tutorial, our focus is on making those direct, easy-to-read comparisons.

Preparing Your Data

The foundation of any great visualization is clean, well-structured data. For a side-by-side bar chart in Tableau, your data should ideally contain:

• At least two Dimensions: These are your categorical fields. In our example, Region will be our primary dimension and Product Category will be our secondary dimension.
• At least one Measure: This is the quantitative, numerical data you want to analyze, such as Sales, Profit, or Quantity.

A simple spreadsheet with columns for 'Region', 'Product Category', and 'Sales' is a perfect starting point. When you connect this data to Tableau, it will automatically identify 'Region' and 'Product Category' as Dimensions (blue pills) and 'Sales' as a Measure (a green pill), making the chart-building process intuitive.

Step-by-Step Guide: Building Your Side-by-Side Bar Chart in Tableau

We'll use the "Sample - Superstore" dataset that comes with Tableau to walk through this example. Our goal is to create a chart that shows Sales by Region, broken down by Product Category.

Step 1: Connect to Your Data Source

First, open Tableau and on the Connect pane, select "Microsoft Excel." Navigate to your Tableau Repository/Datasources folder and choose the "Sample - Superstore" file. Tableau will load the data, and you can click on the "Sheet 1" tab at the bottom to go to the worksheet view.

Step 2: Create the Initial Bar Chart

Your workspace is divided into shelves (Columns, Rows, Pages, Filters) and panes (Data, Analytics). All your dimensions and measures are listed in the Data pane on the left.

To start, drag your primary dimension, Region, from the Data pane onto the Columns shelf. Then, drag your measure, Sales, onto the Rows shelf. Just like that, Tableau generates a basic bar chart showing total sales for each region. It's a good start, but we need more detail.

Step 3: Introduce the Second Dimension to Create the Groups

This is where the magic happens. Find your second dimension, Category, in the Data pane. Drag the Category pill and drop it onto the Columns shelf, placing it to the right of the Region pill.

You’ll immediately see the chart transform. Tableau now creates clusters of bars, each cluster represents a region, and within it are separate bars for 'Furniture', 'Office Supplies', and 'Technology'. This is technically a side-by-side bar chart, but it's not very easy to read yet.

Step 4: Use Color to Differentiate the Bars

While the bars are grouped correctly, they're all the same color, making it hard to quickly identify which bar represents which product category. Let's fix that.

Find the Category dimension in the Data pane again. This time, drag it and drop it onto the Color card in the Marks pane. Tableau instantly assigns a different color to each product category and generates a legend. Now, your chart is clear and easy to interpret at a glance.

Step 5: Add Data Labels for Precision

Visual comparison is great, but sometimes you need to see the exact numbers. Drag the Sales measure from the Data pane onto the Label card in the Marks pane. This will add the total sales amount on top of each bar, providing precise values without needing to hover.

Customizing and Refining Your Chart for Maximum Impact

You've built the chart, but a few formatting tweaks can turn it from good to great. Here are a few ways to refine your visualization.

Sorting Your Data

By default, Tableau sorts your categories alphabetically. For more insight, you might want to sort by sales volume. You can do this by clicking the sort icon on the axis or right-clicking on the Region pill in the Columns shelf and selecting "Sort." You can sort in ascending or descending order by the Sales field. This instantly highlights your top and bottom-performing regions.

Editing Tooltips

Tooltips are the little info boxes that appear when you hover over a data point. Tableau creates a default tooltip, but you can customize it to be more useful.

• Click on the Tooltip card in the Marks pane.
• An editor window will pop up.
• You can add more text, reformat the existing text, or include more data fields by clicking the "Insert" menu. For example, you could add the Profit measure to the tooltip to see both sales and profitability for each bar.

Adjusting Titles and Colors

Give your chart a clear, descriptive title. Double-click the sheet title ("Sheet 1") and change it to something like "Sales Performance by Region and Product Category."

If the default colors don't match your brand or preference, click the Color card, select "Edit Colors...," and choose from dozens of pre-built color palettes or create your own custom theme.

Common Pitfalls and Best Practices

Keep these points in mind to make your side-by-side bar charts as effective as possible.

• Avoid Overcrowding: A side-by-side bar chart is most effective with a limited number of sub-categories. Once you go beyond four or five bars per group, the chart becomes cluttered and difficult to read. If you have too many sub-categories, consider grouping smaller ones into an "Other" category or choosing a different chart type.
• Maintain a Zero Baseline: Bar charts represent data through the length of the bar. To avoid misleading your audience, always start your numerical axis at zero. Tableau does this by default, but it's a critical rule to remember.
• Use Color Thoughtfully: Color should be used to add clarity, not confusion. Stick to a simple, distinct color palette. Ensure your color choices are accessible for users with color vision deficiencies, Tableau has dedicated color palettes for this purpose.
• Always Provide Context: A chart by itself is just a picture. In a dashboard or report, pair it with key takeaways, explanatory text, or summary numbers (known as BANs or Big-Ass Numbers) to tell the full story. Explain what the insights mean for the business.

Final Thoughts

Building a side-by-side bar chart in Tableau is an essential skill that turns flat data into a powerful comparative analysis. By dragging your dimensions and measures to the right shelves and using color to add clarity, you create a visualization that immediately highlights key differences and performance trends across various segments of your business.

We know that tools like Tableau require some practice to master, and building reports can often feel like a set of manual steps you have to repeat. That's why we created Graphed. We connect directly to your data sources and allow you to build charts and entire dashboards just by asking questions in plain English. Instead of dragging and dropping pills, you can simply type, "Create a side-by-side bar chart comparing sales by region and product category," and our AI data analyst builds it for you in real-time, helping you get to the insights faster.