Tableau Free Trial: Length, What’s Included, and How To Extend

As one of the kingpins of data visualization, Tableau, comes up often for businesses looking to understand their data.

The user interface and accessibility of the Tableau platform help its popularity.

Checking out the free trial is one way to experiment before committing to a plan.

So, let’s check out what the Tableau free trial offers and if it will be enough to get a handle on what the platform does.

Is Tableau Free or Paid?

Tableau has a free and paid option for its platform services, including the Desktop, Server, and Prep Builder applications.

The paid option for Tableau uses a monthly subscription model, with the price based on the number of users and the type of license they need.

Creator licenses go for $70 per month per user, while an Explorer is only $15 per user per month.

For larger enterprises, the cost can quickly reach four or five figures per month.

A free trial version exists for each of these applications, meaning users can explore how to prepare, visualize, and share data throughout the free trial.

Does Tableau Have A Free Trial?

Tableau does have a free trial, but it works a little differently than most other software platforms.

How Long Is the Tableau Free Trial?

Tableau’s free trial lasts for 14 days.

Once the free trial ends, you will receive a charge for the first year’s worth of licenses based on the plan you created with Tableau.

Does Tableau Require a Credit Card to Activate a Free Trial?

Tableau does require a credit card to activate its free trial.

Once the free trial ends, you will receive a charge for the first year of your plan.

So, if you sign up for a free trial, keep an eye on the calendar!

How Much Is Tableau After the Free Trial?

Tableau doesn’t have a set price for its services since you buy several licenses for your team based on their roles.

Individuals looking to review data won’t need the same level of access as those creating the graphics.

The prices for the different licenses are:

• Creator: $840 per year per user
• Explorer: $504 per year per user
• Viewer: $180 per year per user

What Comes With the Tableau Free Trial?

Several features come with Tableau’s free trial, including all the features you would see in the paid version of the platform.

Features You Can Test With a Free Trial

Here are the main features you’ll be testing with a Tableau free trial:

1. Intuitive User Interface

Part of the initial initiative behind Tableau was the idea that data needed to be approachable to more people.

The user interface design of the platform focuses on removing as much technical content as possible to help users get into their data and what it means.

2. Powerful Analytics

While you don’t have to use powerful data analysis tools, data scientists and other technical experts will appreciate the data aggregation and analysis tools Tableau brings.

It can work with manually entered data and data coming in from external sources.

Think of something like Google Analytics but with data tailored to your business.

3. Research-Based Learning

To help users get into the platform, Tableau features courses that use research-backed techniques to help teach concepts quickly.

Doing this practice helps Tableau users learn the platform faster and without getting overloaded with information too quickly.

4. Integrated Platform

All of Tableau’s services work with one another, making importing and exporting data and analysis reports faster.

Tableau also works with roughly 100 other software, helping to bring data together from all across your ecosystem.

5. Accessible Community

Tableau users can use the forums to ask questions and read up on answers to past problems.

These forums are valuable resources, especially when paired with Tableau’s customer service team and help pages.

Tableau Free Trial Limitations

Tableau doesn’t limit users during their free trial. However, you will need to select the best license for you when choosing your free trial.

The Creator and Explorer licenses will work best for fully seeing what Tableau can offer.

Is Tableau Customer Support Included With Free Trials?

Tableau does offer customer support for their free trial users.

These users can also head over to the forums to ask questions while their free trial is in effect.

How To Claim a Tableau Free Trial

It doesn’t take much to sign up for a free trial with Tableau, as the process is streamlined and Tableau’s support team will help you along.

Follow along with these steps to get the ball rolling:

1. Navigate to the trial page of the Tableau website.
2. Select the “Start a Free Trail” option.
3. Enter your business and contact information.
4. Select “Request Free Trial.”

Once you submit your application, someone from Tableau will reach out about the free trial.

In addition to helping you choose the correct licenses, they will also work with you through any questions or issues you have during setup.

How Do I Get the Most From My Tableau Free Trial?

To get the most from your Tableau free trial, you should explore all the ways that the platform can integrate with your data and analyze the data you provide it.

Use the visualization tool to see what improvements or changes can be implemented using the platform.

If you can see patterns in your data or suggestions for changes, that could be a sign that Tableau will be a useful tool long term for your business.

How Do I Make My Tableau Free Trial Longer?

Tableau doesn’t offer extensions for their free trial, unfortunately.

Outside of creating a different account to try a free trial again, there isn’t any way to extend your free trial period.

However, this method isn’t recommended, and it likely won’t work if you only need to use Tableau for one business.

Does Tableau Automatically Charge Users After Their Free Trial Ends?

Tableau automatically charges when your 14-day trial period ends.

At the end of your free trial, the service will charge you the annual fee for the licenses you chose for the free trial.

When you sign up for the free trial, set a reminder for the end of the two weeks so you can remember to cancel your subscription if needed.

Can You Cancel Tableau After the Free Trial Ends?

You have until the end of your 14-day free trial to cancel Tableau.

Once the free trial ends, you will have to work with customer service to remove any charges you receive, which could be more difficult than canceling before the end of the trial.

How To Cancel Tableau Free Trial

Canceling your free trial is as simple as signing up for it.

To cancel your free trial, follow these steps:

1. Go into your customer dashboard.
2. Look for the cancellation form in the Account settings. Filling out this form will start the process of canceling your trial.

Once you’ve submitted the form, you’ll hear back from Tableau about your cancellation.

How To Remove Card Details From Tableau

To remove card information from Tableau, you’ll have to go to your customer dashboard and do the following:

1. When on your dashboard, look for your payment options.
2. Find the card you want to remove and select the Remove option.

Unless you want to cancel your account, you’ll have to keep at least one payment option in Tableau while using it. 

Is Tableau Worth Paying For?

Overall, Tableau is a great tool for large businesses and enterprises to understand their data.

In our Tableau review, we found that the visualization tools and analysis measures helped us understand the data we fed the software.

Learning how to navigate the user interface and use the tool took some learning, but the process was easier with some experience.

Manually resetting the data can take a while on the online version of the service, though.

This fact is especially true with large datasets, making Tableau less ideal for mobile review and analysis.

What To Expect From a Tableau Subscription

With your Tableau subscription, expect to find a myriad of ways to input and review data from across your business.

All of these tools utilize a drag-and-drop interface that doesn’t require coding to learn how to use.

Tableau works well at bringing together the technical review of data with the executives who need data to make high-level decisions.

Tableau provides these tools in a way that folks from both technical and executive positions can understand.

It won’t be among your analytics tools for a website, but it will help direct your business with data.

What Is a Free Alternative to Tableau?

If you want a free alternative to Tableau, check out Zoho Analytics.

This platform also offers data visualization and analysis tools, but with a free plan instead of simply a free trial.

While you can use all of the features without limit, Zoho Analytics can fill the gap Tableau might create for small businesses due to its high pricing.

Other Ways To Save on Tableau Pricing

There are several ways you can try to cut costs when buying Tableau:

1. Tableau Promo Codes

Tableau doesn’t offer many promo codes for their platform, making these codes rare.

The most well-known codes are for students that provide a discount to college students attending classes in universities not partnered with Tableau.

2. Tableau Discounts

Getting a discount on Tableau is just as rare as a promo code.

Still, there are some discount codes and offers that flat around online from time to time.

3. Tableau Black Friday & Cyber Monday Specials

Most Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals relate to Tableau’s certification program.

This program helps data analysts show their understanding of using the Tableau ecosystem to potential employers.

These discounts tend to be a flat percentage of the base price of the classes and exams.

4. Is There a Tableau Student Plan?

Both students and teachers can access Tableau for up to a year for free.

These plans require a partnership between Tableau and an accredited university, meaning students will access Tableau through a software portal on campus rather than through Tableau directly.

Other Free Trials To Check Out

While Tableau is great for visualizing data, it might not be the best choice for your business.

Here are some other free trials to check out:

1. Semrush Free Trial: Overview

Semrush is an SEO tool meant to help individuals and business improves their standing in search page results.

The Semrush free trial lasts for seven days.

For businesses looking to draw in more organic search traffic, Semrush is a good option to review when you check out other SEO tools.

2. Ahrefs Free Trial: Overview

Ahrefs is another SEO tool meant to help businesses score better in search traffic.

Unlike Semrush, the Ahrefs free trial doesn’t involve limited-time access to a subscription but instead asks users to review the free tools Ahrefs provides.

There are some limitations to these free tools, such as the number of keywords you can review.

Still, Ahrefs doesn’t require you to commit credit info before signing up.

3. Jasper AI Free Trial: Overview

For those who need written and marketing content, the Jasper free trial gives you access to this writing assistant’s suite of templates and plagiarism-free content creation features.

There is no limitation on the features, and the free trial lasts for five days.

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some answers to the common questions out there about Tableau:

Wrapping Up

Tableau offers powerful data analysis tools to businesses or enterprises looking to integrate everything.

While the platform is pricey, the tools and insights might provide massive upsides for your business.

Still, it doesn’t solve everything your business might need.

Folks who need help with SEO could instead opt for one of the alternatives we listed earlier.

The help Tableau can provide depends on the data you have and the practices in place at your business.