---
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id: d6eb3ae112980ac91b738d7a53998b660af48af3bf9eefc927a5f04dff4906b4
title: Build a Pie Chart
collection: tableau
version: current
locale: en-us
portal_url: https://docs.salesforce.com/tableau/current/en-us/pro/desktop/buildexamples_pie.md
canonical_url: https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/buildexamples_pie.htm
source_site: help.tableau.com
content_type: documentation
content_hash: dd33ebc9810fa5cf69d5fdb07c96aaf19f2890400a8c4f4861cbbc38e148c53b
description: Build a pie chart to show proportions of a whole using a small number of slices.
---
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# Build a Pie Chart

Use pie charts to show proportions of a whole. It's a best practice to only use pie charts with a small number of slices.

The basic building blocks for a pie chart are as follows:

- **Mark type**: Pie
- **Color**: Dimension.
    - Each member of the dimension is represented as a slice or wedge in the pie. Try to use a dimension with no more than 5 unique values.
- **Angle**: Measure. The **Angle** property appears on the Marks card when the mark type is set to Pie.

To create a pie chart view that shows how different product categories contribute to total profit, follow these steps:

1. Connect to the Sample - Superstore data source (if necessary, you can download it from the [Tableau Public sample data page](https://public.tableau.com/app/learn/sample-data)).
2. Drag the Profit measure to Columns and drag the Category dimension to Rows.

Tableau aggregates the Sales measure as a sum. By default, Tableau displays a bar chart.

![Bar chart of profit by category](/tableau/current/en-us/pro/desktop/en-us/Img/pie_1_10.0.png)5. Click Show Me on the toolbar, then select the pie chart type. Pie charts require at least one dimension and one or two measures. Aggregate fields, such as Profit Ratio, don't contribute to those requirements.

![Show Me menu displaying multiple chart types](/tableau/current/en-us/pro/desktop/en-us/Img/pie_2.png)

Three things happen after you click the pie icon in Show Me:

- The mark type changes to **Pie**.
- The **Profit** measure you placed on the **Columns** shelf, which had been aggregated as SUM, moves to both the **Size** and **Angle** properties on the Marks card.
- The **Category** dimension you placed on the **Rows** shelf moves to the **Color** property on the Marks card.

![A pie chart](/tableau/current/en-us/pro/desktop/en-us/Img/pie_3_10.0.png)

The result is a rather small pie. To make the chart bigger:

1. Navigate to the Fit menu in the toolbar and select Entire View.
2. Click the **Size** property on the Marks card and drag the slider until the pie chart is the size you want.

12. Add labels by dragging the Category dimension from the Data pane to Label on the Marks card.

![A pie chart with sub-category labels](/tableau/current/en-us/pro/desktop/en-us/Img/pie_4.png)

**Note:** Pie charts can also be used as a mark type in a visualization. For more information, see [Pie mark](https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/viewparts_marks_marktypes.htm#PieMark).