Raw data is helpful and is needed either for tables or for presentations, and Tableau provides an option of exporting the data behind the visualizations in an MS Access database format. This allows the user to get data from a different source, aggregate/manipulate the data, and export it to a database for further use.
Let's use the sample file Sample – Superstore Sales (Excel)
. Open a new worksheet and select Sample – Superstore Sales (Excel) as the data source.
Once the data is loaded on the worksheet, perform the following steps to export a simple visualization in an image format:
If all the default options are selected, Tableau will export the underlying data supporting the visualization to an MS Access database. If any filters are applied in the visualization, Tableau will export only the data that was not excluded because of filters, that is, the exact same data that is supporting the current visualization. You can expect the exported table DATA
to look similar to the one in the following screenshot: