How to Reorder Stacked Bars on the Fly in Tableau

Here’s how my empty Region set looks:

The key calculated field

Next is the calculation that makes this technique go. Create a calculated field that returns a value higher than any value in your dataset when the dimension member is in the set and returns the true measure value when the dimension member is out of the set. When this is the case and the stacks are sorted in ascending order, the selected dimension member(s) will always show up on the bottom of the stack.

This formula can be written several ways, but one elegant way to write it for my example is:

IIF([Region Set],1000000000,[Sales])

Note I hard-coded 1 billion as the value when the dimension member is in the set; any number greater than the highest value in the dataset will result in the selected dimension member being placed on the bottom of each stack after we apply the sort in the next step.

Setting up the sort for the stacked bar chart in Tableau

To sort the stacks by the newly created calculated field, right-click the dimension on the Color Marks Card and choose “Sort…”. In the dialog that appears, change the “Sort by” dropdown to “Field” and choose the newly created field.

Adding the dashboard actions

Lastly, we need to add two actions: a set action and a highlight action. I typically add actions to sheets on dashboards, so I will place the stacked bar chart created to this point on a new dashboard.

I’ll add the set action first by navigating to “Dashboard > Actions…” in the top menu options. After clicking the Add Action button and choosing “Change Set Values…”, I can set up my action. I will say that if you click on the Stacked Bar Chart, overwrite the Region Set with the selection. If the selection is cleared, I’ll remove all values from the set so it goes back as if nothing happened.

An Introduction to Tableau Dashboard Actions

At this point, clicking a region within any of the stacked bars will already move that region to the bottom of every stack. However, to improve the user experience, I’m going to add a highlight action so the dimension member selected is highlighted across every stacked bar.

Now, clicking any region in any of the four stacked bars will move that region to the bottom and highlight it throughout the chart! Let’s say I’m interested in seeing how the South region is trending but it’s challenging because there are three other regions stacked below the red bar for each year. Now if I click any of the red bars, the South region is moved to the bottom and highlighted throughout the rest of the view.

Ah-ha; the South region started the year strong, fell to its worst performance in the second year, but has been trending up the previous two years.

This technique can also be accomplished with parameter actions, but in this case, set actions have at least two distinct advantages. First, we can clear the selection by clicking the Escape key and the chart will return to its original state. Second, sets allow you to select multiple values. Here’s how the chart looks after clicking a bar for the South region, then holding the Control key while clicking a bar for the East region.

As you can see in the animated .GIF in this post’s introduction, the technique outlined in this tutorial works even better with animated transitions – currently in beta of Tableau version 2020.1.

Thanks for reading,
– Ryan