Connecting to Data: Excel, CSV, Google Sheets & SQL Databases0%
Connecting to Data: Excel, CSV, Google Sheets & SQL Databases
Beginner12 min read•Updated: Jul 11, 2026
Connecting to Data: Excel, CSV, Google Sheets & SQL Databases
Reading Time: 8 Mins | Level: Beginner to Advanced
1. Data Connection Types
Tableau connects to virtually any corporate data source:
- To a File: Microsoft Excel, Text/CSV, JSON, PDF, Spatial Files, Statistical Files (SPSS, SAS, R).
- To a Server: Microsoft SQL Server, PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, Snowflake, Google BigQuery, Amazon Redshift, Salesforce.
2. The Data Source Page
Upon connection, the Data Source Page allows you to:
- Drag tables onto the canvas to form the data model.
- Set field data types (Number, Date, String, Geographic Role).
- Apply Data Source Filters (restricting the data loaded across all sheets).
Interactive Quiz
Multiple Choice Questions
Question 1
Can Tableau directly connect to live Google Sheets spreadsheets?
Question 2
What does a 'Data Source Filter' in Tableau accomplish?
Question 3
What feature allows Tableau to extract structured tabular data from a PDF report?
Question 4
What is 'Custom SQL' in Tableau?
Question 5
Can Tableau join tables from two completely different data sources (e.g. an Excel sheet and a SQL Server database)?
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Practice Quiz
Test your understanding of this lesson with 5 questions. Each question has one correct answer.