What is Running Total in Tableau?

A running total is one of the most useful calculations for understanding how a metric accumulates over time. Instead of just seeing daily spikes and dips, a running total gives you the bigger picture, showing you progress towards a goal. This article will walk you through exactly what a running total is and how to create one in Tableau using two different methods.

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What is a Running Total, Anyway?

A running total, also known as a cumulative sum, is the summation of a sequence of numbers, updated each time a new number is added to the sequence. Think of it like a snowball rolling downhill - it gets bigger as it picks up more snow along the way.

In a business context, it helps you track performance over a period, like quarter-to-date revenue or year-to-date website traffic. It answers questions like, "How are our sales accumulating this month?" or "Are we on track to meet our quarterly goal?"

Here’s a simple example of tracking weekly website visits:

• Week 1: 1,500 visits. Running Total: 1,500
• Week 2: 1,800 visits. Running Total: 3,300 (1,500 + 1,800)
• Week 3: 1,200 visits. Running Total: 4,500 (3,300 + 1,200)
• Week 4: 2,000 visits. Running Total: 6,500 (4,500 + 2,000)

While the weekly visits went up and down, the running total gives you a clear, upward-trending line that shows the overall growth for the month. This cumulative view is incredibly powerful for spotting long-term trends that might be missed when only looking at individual data points.

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Method 1: The Quick Table Calculation in Tableau

Tableau makes creating a running total incredibly simple with its built-in Quick Table Calculations. This is the fastest and most common way to get the job done, and it’s perfect for most situations. Let's use the Sample - Superstore dataset included with Tableau for this example.

Imagine you want to see how your sales for the year are adding up month by month.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Set Up Your View: First, create a basic visualization. Drag the Order Date dimension to the Columns shelf. Right-click the blue YEAR(Order Date) pill and select Month (the one with the green calendar icon for a continuous date). Then, drag the Sales measure to the Rows shelf.
2. Apply the Quick Table Calculation: Find the green SUM(Sales) pill on the Rows shelf. Right-click it to open the context menu.
3. Select Running Total: From the menu, hover your cursor over Quick Table Calculation and then click on Running Total from the list that appears.

That's it! Your line chart will instantly transform. Instead of jagged peaks representing monthly sales, you’ll now see a smooth, upward-climbing line representing your cumulative sales for the year. The value for February is now January + February, the value for March is January + February + March, and so on.

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Customizing the Calculation Direction with "Compute Using"

A quick table calculation works along a specific direction, which Tableau refers to as "Compute Using." By default, it computes Table (across), which works perfectly for a simple time-series chart.

But what if your table is more complex? Imagine you have Order Date (Years and Quarters) on the Columns shelf and Region on the Rows shelf. The "Compute Using" option gives you control over how the total accumulates.

• Table (across): The running total restarts for each row (i.e., for each Region). It adds up the quarters for the Central region, then starts over for the East region.
• Table (down): The running total restarts for each column (i.e., for each Quarter). It calculates the running total of Regions for Q1, then restarts for Q2.
• Pane (across): This is similar to Table (across) but the calculation restarts for each pane. If Years are your highest level of detail, the running total will restart for each new year. This is great for year-over-year comparisons of cumulative growth.

To change this, right-click the green pill with the running total calculation (it will have a small triangle icon on it) and select Compute Using, then choose the direction that best fits your analysis.

Method 2: Using a Calculated Field with the RUNNING_SUM Function

While Quick Table Calculations are fast, sometimes you need more flexibility. Maybe you want to use your running total calculation as part of another, more complex formula. In these cases, creating a dedicated Calculated Field is the best approach. This gives you a reusable measure in your data pane.

We'll use the RUNNING_SUM() function to build our own calculation.

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Open the Calculated Field Editor: In the top menu, click on Analysis > Create Calculated Field.... Or, you can right-click anywhere in the Data pane on the left and select Create Calculated Field....
2. Write the Formula: A new window will pop up. First, give your calculation a logical name, like "Cumulative Sales". Then, in the formula box, type the following:
3. Use Your New Calculated Field: Your new "Cumulative Sales" field will now appear in the Data pane under Measures. You can drag and drop this field onto your sheet just like any other measure. Drag it to the Rows shelf to replace your original SUM(Sales) pill.

Your chart will look identical to the one created with the quick table calculation, but you now have a standalone field. This is powerful because you can, for instance, create another calculation that subtracts the "Cumulative Sales" from a sales target field to calculate your variance.

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Practical Examples of Running Totals

Now that you know how to create them, where can you use running totals to get better insights?

• Sales Performance Tracking: Create a dual-axis chart. On one axis, show the monthly sales as bars. On the other, show the cumulative sales as a line. Add a reference line for your annual revenue target to see if your cumulative sales line is on track to meet the goal.
• Project Management: If you are logging hours worked per week on a project, a running total will show you the cumulative hours spent to date. You can compare this to the total budgeted hours to monitor project pace and prevent budget overruns.
• Marketing Campaign Analysis: Track registrations for a webinar. A daily count might be erratic, but a running total will show you the momentum of sign-ups as the event date approaches, helping you decide if you need to boost your promotional efforts.
• Inventory Management: For a specific product, you can calculate a running total of units sold, helping you visualize how quickly you're moving through your stock and when you might need to reorder.

Final Thoughts

A running total is a small calculation that delivers big insights. It transforms your raw, often noisy data into a clear story of cumulative progress. Whether you use the quick one-click method or a more robust calculated field, adding running totals to your Tableau dashboards will help you better understand trends and measure performance against goals.

Manually refreshing reports and building calculations - even straightforward ones - can be a huge drain on time, especially when you’re pulling data from multiple places like Google Analytics, Shopify, and Salesforce. That's why we created a tool to automate this process. At our core, Graphed connects to all your data sources and lets you build real-time dashboards using plain English. You can simply ask, "Show me a line chart of the running total of our revenue from Stripe for the last six months," and the dashboard is built for you instantly, always staying up-to-date.