Tableau licence types
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In today's demanding work environment, access to data is crucial for enhancing job performance. We understand that people have different relationships with data. Tableau’s role-based licences cater to users of all skill levels, allowing you to deploy data throughout your organisation in a trusted and governed manner.
Our licence types – Creator, Explorer and Viewer – offer varying capabilities to meet different needs. Creators have full functionality access to Tableau Prep Builder, Tableau Desktop, and Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud. They can design, clean and curate data sources, and create interactive visualisations and dashboards. Explorers, on the other hand, have a subset of Creator capabilities through Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud, enabling them to author new content based on existing data sources and workbooks. Viewers can view and interact with published visualisations and dashboards, benefiting from guided drill paths, filters and subscription options.
Whether you’re a data enthusiast, a line-of-business user or someone who needs data-driven insights without deep analytics expertise, we have a licence type tailored for you. By allocating the appropriate licences and providing the necessary education, you can ensure that users in your organisation have the right tools to excel in their roles.
Tableau Creator
The Creator licence is designed for users who create content. This can include the design, cleaning and curation of data sources, which others will use to analyse governed data, or the creation of visualisations and dashboards with which other users will interact. It also includes designing governance and permissions models that control which information users may find.
You might be a Creator if…
Analytics is a fundamental part of your daily responsibilities.
You frequently merge multiple data sources for analysis.
You develop or curate data sources for others.
You engage in data cleaning and transformation alongside analysis.
- You will manage or administer a Tableau Server or Cloud implementation.
You can access the full functionality of the applications below to create content:
- Tableau Prep Builder
- Tableau Desktop
- Tableau Server/Cloud
Tableau Explorer
The Explorer option provides governed authoring and data exploration capabilities for users who don't require the complete data transformation functionalities of Tableau Prep Builder or the ability to connect to raw data sources. Explorers have the freedom to access and analyse published data, create and distribute their own dashboards, and manage the content they have built or been granted permission to edit.
You might be an Explorer if:
You are a line-of-business data user who enjoys hands-on data exploration.
You prefer creating visualisations using curated data sources from others.
You want to customise or edit visualisations and dashboards built by others.
You are responsible for administering content on a Tableau Server or Cloud site.
As an Explorer, you have access to a subset of Tableau Creator capabilities specifically via Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud for authoring new content based on existing published data sources and workbooks.
Tableau Viewer
Tableau Viewers have the ability to view and interact with published visualisations and dashboards. These users can be granted permission to access published content, explore guided drill paths, apply filters, and even subscribe to dashboards for regular updates and data-driven alerts.
You might be a Viewer if:
You require data-driven insights for your job but lack the time or skills for extensive analytics.
You prefer interacting with visualisations created by others rather than building your own.
As a Tableau Viewer, you receive a limited set of capabilities in Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud based on the requirements of someone who primarily views and interacts with data.
The allocation of Creator, Explorer and Viewer licence types within different business groups in your organisation will depend on their respective interests and needs. Ensure that users with specific responsibilities are assigned the appropriate licence type and provided with the necessary training and education.