How to Remove ABC Column in Tableau

Nothing brings a promising Tableau text table to a screeching halt quite like that mysterious "ABC" column appearing at the end. It's a common bump in the road for new and experienced users alike, but the good news is that you’re just a few clicks away from a clean, professional-looking table. This tutorial breaks down why that column appears and shows you three easy ways to remove it for good.

So, What Is the 'ABC' Column in Tableau?

Before we make it disappear, let's quickly understand why Tableau adds this column in the first place. When you build a view by dragging dimensions onto the Rows and/or Columns shelves, you're creating the structure or framework for your data. Tableau's default mark type, "Automatic," assumes you'll also want to drop a measure (a number field) onto the "Text" shelf in the Marks card.

When you don't add a measure, Tableau still needs something to put inside the cells of the crosstab you’ve built. The "ABC" that you see is simply a placeholder. It's Tableau's way of saying, "I've created the table layout you asked for, but I'm waiting for a number or text value to display here."

Essentially, it’s not an error. It's just a default behavior. Luckily, we can easily override it.

Method 1: Change the Mark Type to 'Polygon' (The Go-To Fix)

Believe it or not, the fastest and most common way to hide the ABC column is by changing the mark type to something that doesn't use text placeholders. 'Polygon' is the perfect candidate.

This method is elegant, fast, and what most experienced Tableau developers use. It directly tells Tableau that text labels are not needed for this particular visualization, causing the 'ABC' placeholder to simply vanish.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Create your text table by dragging one or more dimensions onto the Rows shelf. For example, you might drag 'Category' and 'Sub-Category' to Rows. You'll immediately see the ABC column appear.
2. Look at the Marks card to the left of your visualization.
3. You'll see a dropdown menu that says "Automatic." Click on it.
4. From the list of mark types, select Polygon.

The moment you select "Polygon," the ABC column will disappear completely, leaving you with a perfectly clean list of your dimension members. This works because polygonal shapes are defined by path and order, not by holding text values, so there’s no need for Tableau to insert a text placeholder.

Method 2: Use an Empty Calculated Field

Another reliable method involves replacing the "ABC" with something that takes up space but is invisible: an empty string. You can do this by creating a simple calculated field.

This technique can be particularly useful in edge cases where the Polygon method might subtly affect other aspects of your viz alignment or for users who want a more declarative "I'm putting nothing here" solution.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. In the Tableau menu, go to Analysis > Create Calculated Field.
2. A dialog box will appear. Name your calculated field something descriptive, like "Blank" or "Empty Column."
3. In the formula box, type two double quotes with nothing in between:
4. Click OK. You'll now see your new "[Blank]" field in the data pane (likely under measures).
5. Simply drag this new [Blank] calculated field and drop it directly onto the Text box in the Marks card.

This replaces the ‘ABC’ placeholder with your empty string. You'll notice, however, that the column now has a header named "Blank" (or whatever you named your field). To get rid of that, just right-click on the column header in your viz and select Hide Field Labels for Columns. Now the entire column is truly gone, both placeholder and header.

Method 3: Manually Reduce the Column Width to Nothing

If you're in a real hurry and need a quick fix without creating anything new or changing settings, you can simply shrink the problem column until it’s invisible. Think of this as the "brute force" approach.

While effective, it’s the least elegant of the three methods because the column still technically exists - it’s just squished down to zero-pixel width. This can occasionally leave a double border or be tedious to adjust perfectly.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Move your cursor to the dividing line on the right side of the 'ABC' column header.
2. Your cursor will change into a resizing icon (a line with two arrows).
3. Click and drag this border all the way to the left until the column completely disappears from view.

You can adjust it to be incredibly thin, to the point where it's no longer noticeable. It works in a pinch for dashboards that won’t be heavily scrutinized, but for true polish and a structurally clean table, one of the first two methods is preferable.

Choosing the Right Method for You

How do you know which method to use? Here's a quick cheat sheet:

• Use the Polygon Method 95% of the time. It's the cleanest, quickest, and most universally accepted best practice. It’s what BI professionals expect to see.
• Use the Blank Calculated Field Method when... the Polygon trick just isn't working for you, or if changing the mark type interferes with other dashboard elements or actions. It gives you precise control over what goes in that empty space.
• Use the Manual Resize Method when... you're building a quick proof-of-concept and need a fast and temporary fix. It's perfectly fine for analysis on the fly, but it's not the robust solution you’d want for a final, published dashboard.

Final Thoughts

Disappearing the 'ABC' column in Tableau is a rite of passage for every new user. Now you know that this placeholder is just a sign that Tableau is waiting for a measure, and you can easily hide it by either changing the mark type to 'Polygon', using an empty calculated field, or resizing it.

Constantly navigating menus for formatting tweaks can sometimes pull you away from the actual goal: getting insights. We built Graphed to bypass this entire process. Instead of dragging and dropping dimensions and fighting placeholders, you can just ask in plain English, "Show me a yearly breakdown of sales by category," and watch as the perfect chart appears instantly. Our AI handles the nuances of visualization for you, making sure your reports are always clean and ready for analysis, so you can focus on making data-driven decisions.