Build Accessible Data Visualizations
Learning Objectives
After completing this unit, you’ll be able to:
- Explain why accessibility is important for data visualizations.
- Name the four principles of accessibility standards.
Get Started with Accessibility in Tableau
Tableau's mission is to help all people see and understand data. And that includes people who use assistive technologies while consuming their data. Salesforce strives to conform with WCAG 2.1 AA as a corporate standard. We want everyone who uses our products to be successful with assistive technologies.
So what does this mean for creators of data visualizations? In this module, you learn about accessibility and how to create accessible visualizations in Tableau.
First, let’s go over some of Tableau’s accessibility features.
Tableau is compatible with accessible software. People who are blind or have low vision may use an audible output (such as a screen reader), a tactile output (such as a braille device), or screen magnification software that zooms in on specific portions of the screen. People with learning disabilities (such as dyslexia) may use an audible output device.
Tableau is also operable with keyboard navigation. People with low vision use keyboard navigation to move within our products. And people with fine motor impairments may opt to navigate using a keyboard instead of a mouse.
In addition, Tableau software can pair text with audio so that people who are deaf or hard of hearing may rely on captions and other text labels to consume our content.
Our software can optimize for screens other than a laptop screen or monitor. People can and do consume our products on all types of devices, including phones, tablets, and more.
These are just a few examples. Our technology must work for all people with different abilities and devices. And it’s important to note that while accessibility is essential for people with disabilities, it’s useful for everyone.
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
To help us reach our mission, we strive to follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Under its Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), the W3C outlines four web accessibility principles: web content should be perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. Click each tab to learn more.
Now that you know the basics about accessibility and what kind of accessibility functions are built into Tableau, next learn more about what you can do to keep your visualizations accessible.