As of the 2021.4 release of Tableau Desktop, the following features are screen reader accessible. As of January 2025, the university uses 2025.1.4 or later.
Accessible Dashboard Elements
Overall (dashboards and worksheets)
- Workbook tabs
- List (single value or multi value)
- Relative date
- Titles
- View caption (when visible)
- Categorical legend
- Parameter controls
- Set controls
- Data highlighter
- View data window (when enabled via permissions, this is enabled by default when publishing to the university site)
- Dynamic zone visibility (if the parameter controlling is displayed)
- Mark selection or interactivity within a view
- Text table navigation
- Vizzes in the “show me” pane
- Maps
- Tableau Tables and Tableau Sankey Viz extensions
- Actions
Dashboard Objects
- Text
- Web page
- Image
- Export button
- Navigation button
- Collapsible containers
Inaccessible Dashboard Elements
Overall (dashboards and worksheets)
- Tooltips
- Hidden text (such as title on worksheets or captions)
Accessibility Best Practices – Text
- Titles and captions should describe the visualization and what you are showing.
- Avoid acronyms, jargon, or abbreviations.
- Do not include words like “image of” or “picture of” in descriptions as screen readers may already announce this info.
- Avoid using all capital letters for headings.
- Refer to controls (such as filter and legends) by purpose to help users understand the relationship between the controls and the data.
Accessibility Best Practices – Charts
- Aggregate data whenever possible. Use calculated fields, groups, or bins to do so.
- Add shapes to a line chart – do not rely only on color.
- Utilize dual axis chart to reinforce what is shown in color. It is recommended to use shapes and colors.
- Use the university’s color-blind palette. It is available at brand.osu.edu.
- Use contrast analysis tools to select the best backgrounds with sufficient contrast ratios.
Miscellaneous Accessibility Best Practices
- Eliminate redundant information.
- Remove unnecessary filter options such as ‘All’ or ‘More/Fewer’.
- Turn off tool tips.
- Use alternate text on dashboard objects.
- Display captions for worksheets
- Upgrade to Tableau Desktop 2021.3 or later. The 2021.3 Desktop version introduced screen reader movement from left to right, top to bottom. This eliminates the need for the developer to edit the xml file.
Accessibility Best Practices - Design
When designing, questions to ask yourself include:
- Does this make sense?
- How does my audience plan to use this information?
- How long would it take for the user to understand this information?
- Is everything clearly labeled?
- Does everything on the dashboard belong together and serve a purpose?
- Is my work consistent throughout? Are my filters always in the same location? Do I avoid using the same color to mean two different things?
- Could I understand this in black and white?
Additional Tableau Accessibility Resources
- Walk-through of making an existing dashboard more accessible
- Keyboard Navigation Instructions
- Effective Alternative Text
- Color Contrast Checker
Important Information
- To view a tutorial on designing accessible dashboards, please complete the Accessibility and Tableau Dashboard Design course in BuckeyeLearn.
- Use the Tableau accessibility checklist as the final step to ensure your dashboard is accessible
- If your dashboard does not meet all items in the accessibility checklist or uses inaccessible elements, please work with your accessibility coordinator to file an exception.
- All dashboards should complete a keyboard test prior to publishing. Creators must include or link to the keyboard navigation instructions