Tableau to Excel, Microsoft to the Rescue

I know, I know—you’re probably trying to avoid this. Your client has just dropped the dreaded request: ‘We need to export the data to Excel.’ How hard could it be, right?

Well, in theory, it shouldn’t be hard. But here’s the reality: Tableau’s export capabilities are, well… limited. If you’ve been in the trenches like I have, you’ve probably tried every trick in the book—and still, it’s not quite enough.

I’ve read (and tested) all the brilliant hacks from the DataFam, including Andy Kriebel’s legendary post: The Greatest Tableau Tip EVER: Exporting Made Simple! I even went beyond those tips (and I might share those experiments in a future post). But despite all that effort, I kept hitting the same wall: Tableau just wasn’t cutting it for what I needed.

But here’s the kicker: after months of fighting with Tableau’s constraints and trying to meet every single export specification, I realized something. If the end goal is Excel… why not just use Excel? Wait, what? Yes, you heard me. What if I told you the simplest, most flexible solution was hiding in plain sight all along? Sharepoint’s (or OneDrive’s) native Excel Downloadable Links.

Voilà! No more workarounds. Just a clean, straightforward solution that actually works. Let me show you how I cracked the code.

Tutorial

Note: This tutorial uses OneDrive Microsoft 365 free version, but works equally well with other Office 365 subscriptions.

Excel Setup Steps

Step 1: Prepare Your Excel File

Ensure your Excel file contains the data you want users to download from your Tableau dashboard.

Step 2: Upload Excel File to OneDrive

Sign in to your OneDrive account
Upload your Excel file to OneDrive
Navigate to the uploaded file

Step 3: Create a Shareable Download Link

Right-click on your Excel file in OneDrive
Select “Share” from the context menu
Click “Copy link” to generate a shareable URL

Copying shareable link

The original link will look something like this:

https://1drv.ms/x/c/b15e6371a994770c/Ea7NEbnw94ZKoR66vwT7C34Bhf5jZi3x4pCq5dpk13mlfA?e=WZHBSY

Step 4: Modify the Link for Direct Download

Copy the shareable link to a text editor
Replace the query parameters (everything after the ?) with ?download=1

Your modified link should look like this:

https://1drv.ms/x/c/b15e6371a994770c/Ea7NEbnw94ZKoR66vwT7C34Bhf5jZi3x4pCq5dpk13mlfA?download=1

Tableau Dashboard Steps

Step 5: Build Your Dashboard

Create your visualizations and design your dashboard layout as needed.

Step 6: Prepare the Download Icon

Download an Excel icon of your preference
- I downloaded mine from: Microsoft Office Icons from Figma Community
- Save the icon to your computer

Step 7: Add the Download Button to Your Dashboard

In your Tableau dashboard, drag an Image object from the Objects panel
Set it as a Floating element for flexible positioning
Browse and select your downloaded Excel icon
Position the image element where you want the download button to appear

Step 8: Configure the Download Functionality

Right-click on the image object and select Edit Image
In the image properties dialog:
- Locate the URL field (labeled “URL Opened When Image is Clicked”)
- Paste your modified OneDrive download link from Step 4
Click OK to save the changes

Adding the download link to the image button in the Tableau workbook

Step 9: Test Your Dashboard

Publish your dashboard to Tableau Public or Tableau Server
Test the download functionality by clicking the Excel icon
Verify that the Excel file downloads correctly

Example Dashboard

You can see this functionality in action here: Tableau to Excel, Microsoft to the Rescue

Tips for Success

Ensure your OneDrive sharing permissions allow public access
Test the download link in a private/incognito browser window to verify it works for users without OneDrive access
Consider using a visually clear icon that clearly indicates “Download Excel” functionality
Position the download button in an intuitive location on your dashboard

Note: The content of this blog post has been enhanced with the assistance of Generative AI tools while maintaining my authentic voice and technical expertise. I believe in transparency about AI usage in content creation

Graphika Analytics