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Day 04 · Dashboard layout

7 simple dashboard layout rules

The full checklist from my post, with a before and after for every rule. Make it clean. Make it easy to scan. Works the same in Power BI, Excel, Tableau, Looker Studio, and Google Sheets.

By Dhany Indraswara. Self-taught data analyst, and I've taught 2,500+ people Power BI.

Skip to the checklist ↓

The layout that works almost everywhere

Start here. Most dashboards only need these six blocks, read in this order.

  1. Filters sit on top, because they control everything below.
  2. KPIs: three or four headline numbers, each with a comparison.
  3. Main chart: the one chart that answers the main question.
  4. Supporting chart: explains the main chart, for example by channel or region.
  5. Insights: what it means, in one to three short sentences.
  6. Details: tables and drill-downs come last.

Start with a wireframe

Decide where things go before you build a single chart. Moving boxes on paper takes seconds. Moving charts in Power BI takes an afternoon.

Before

Charts first, layout later

  • 1Charts overlap and fight for space.
  • 2The headline number ended up at the bottom.
After

Boxes first, charts later

  • 1Every box has a job before you build.
  • 2Size follows importance: the main chart gets the most space.

Do this

  • Sketch boxes on paper, a whiteboard, or a slide. Label each box with the question it answers.
  • Give the most important question the biggest box, near the top left.
  • Only open your BI tool when every box has a job.

Quick test

Can you explain every box in one sentence? If a box has no question, it doesn't get a chart.

Three wireframes you can copy

Sales review

For a monthly sales meeting. The hero answers “are we on target?”

Social media

For a content creator or brand. The hero answers “is my reach growing?”

Operations

For a service or support team. The hero answers “are we fast enough?”

Pick one hero chart

Every dashboard has one main question. The chart that answers it is the hero: the biggest one, right under the KPIs.

Before

Six charts, all equal

  • 1Everything is the same size, so nothing says “start here”.
After

One hero, two helpers

  • 1The chart that answers the main question is the biggest.
  • 2Supporting charts are smaller and sit beside it.

Do this

  • Write the main question at the top of your wireframe, for example “Are we on target this month?”.
  • Make its chart about twice the size of any other chart.
  • Everything else explains the hero: by region, by product, by channel.

Match the hero chart to the question

Are we growing?

A line chart over time.

Are we on target?

Bars with a target mark, or a line against a target line.

Who is best and worst?

A sorted bar chart, biggest on top.

What's the mix?

A 100% stacked bar. Not a pie with seven slices.

Where's the problem?

A table with the cells that need attention highlighted.

Group related information

Things that sit close together look like they belong together. Use that: proximity creates meaning.

Before

Everything floats

  • 1The four KPIs are split up across the page.
  • 2Twelve boxes, and no groups to hold on to.
After

Related things sit together

  • 1All KPIs in one labeled row.
  • 2Whitespace separates the groups, not extra borders.

Do this

  • Keep similar items close: all KPIs in one row, all charts about one topic side by side.
  • Use whitespace as structure. A bigger gap between groups works better than another border.
  • Give each group a short title, like “KPIs” or “Sales by region”.

Quick test

Squint at your dashboard until it's blurry. You should see three or four clear groups, not a dozen floating boxes.

Keep spacing consistent

Uneven gaps make a dashboard feel messy even when the charts are good. Pick a few spacing values and repeat them.

Before

Random gaps

  • 1Gaps of 4, 28 and 16 px between the same kind of card.
  • 2Left edges don’t line up.
After

One spacing system

  • 116 between cards, 32 between sections. Every time.
  • 2Everything snaps to the same edges.

Pick three numbers and reuse them

8inside a card: from the edge to the text
16between cards in the same group
32between sections

How to do it in your tool

  • Power BI: turn on View › Gridlines and Snap to grid, then line cards up with Format › Align and Distribute.
  • Excel: build on the cell grid. Leave one narrow empty column between cards and give every card the same column width.
  • Tableau: use containers, and give every container the same inner and outer padding.
  • Looker Studio and Google Sheets: turn on the canvas grid, snap to it, and match chart sizes exactly.

Quick test

Hold a ruler (or any straight edge) against the screen. Left edges should line up, and the gaps should all look the same.

Use fewer sections

Too many boxes create noise. Every extra box makes the others smaller and harder to read.

Before

Sixteen boxes

  • 1Too many boxes: each one is tiny and none is important.
After

Three sections

  • 1KPI summary, main analysis, supporting detail.
  • 2Blocks that answered the same question were merged.

Do this

  • Combine related blocks. If two charts answer the same question, keep the clearer one.
  • Move rarely used detail to a second page, a drill-through, or a tooltip.
  • Aim for three to five sections per page.

Quick test

Name each section in three words or fewer. If you can't, it's doing too much.

Design the reading flow

People read a dashboard like a page: top left first, then across and down. Put things in the order you want them read.

Before

The eye zigzags

  • 1The detail table is read first.
  • 2The KPIs and the main chart come last.
After

One clear path

  • 1Summary, then trend, then breakdown, then detail.
  • 2Top left to bottom right, once.

Do this

  • Put the headline number top left, where the eye lands first.
  • Follow one order: summary, then trend, then breakdown, then detail.
  • Details come last. Tables belong at the bottom or on the next page.

On a phone, stack it in the same order

Don't shrink the desktop layout. Put the KPIs in a two by two grid, then the main chart, then the insight, then the details. Power BI has a separate mobile layout for this: View › Mobile layout.

Quick test

Show your dashboard to someone for five seconds, then ask what they looked at first. It should be your headline.

Reserve space for insight

Dashboards should explain the takeaway, not just display the data. Leave a box for it in your wireframe from day one.

Before

Just data

  • 1The reader has to work out what it means, and may get it wrong.
After

Data plus the takeaway

  • 1Two short sentences say what changed and what to do.

The insight formula

What changed+why+what to do next

One to three bullets, each under 20 words. Use numbers that are on the dashboard, and end with an action. Insight = action.

Five examples: from data to insight

  • Just dataRevenue: 12.4M
    InsightRevenue is up 8% vs. August, mostly from the Jakarta stores. Keep the weekend promo running.
  • Just dataMargin: 28.6%
    InsightSales are up, but margin fell 2.1 points to 28.6%. Check the discount-heavy products first.
  • Just dataA chart of new users by channel
    InsightInstagram now brings 41% of new users. Move part of the ad budget there.
  • Just dataReturns: 3.2%
    InsightReturns doubled for the Hand Grinder this month. Check the latest batch before restocking.
  • Just dataTarget achieved: 97%
    InsightWe are at 97% of target because Medan and Surabaya are behind. The other three regions are ahead.

Put it together

A sample dashboard that follows all seven rules. The small numbers show where each rule is at work.

Sample Store Sample data

Monthly performance, September 2026

Revenue in millions. Last 12 months.

FiltersMonth: Sep 2026Region: AllChannel: All

KPIs 3

Revenue12.4M▲ 8.1% vs. Aug
Profit3.5M▲ 0.7% vs. Aug
Users1.23M▲ 5.3% vs. Aug
Margin28.6%▼ 2.1 pts vs. Aug

Revenue vs. target 2

Above target for the last three months.

RevenueTarget

Show as table

New users by channel

September, share of new users.

Insights 7

  • Revenue is up 8.1% vs. August and 5% above target, but margin fell 2.1 points to 28.6%.
  • Most of the growth came from discounted bundles. Review the Cold Brew Bundle discount first.
  • Instagram now brings 41% of new users, more than any other channel.

Discounted products, September 6

ProductRevenueDiscountMargin
Cold Brew Bundle1.9M25%12% ▼
Espresso Beans 1kg1.6M20%18% ▼
Hand Grinder1.1M15%21%
Drip Kettle0.9M10%27%

▼ Margin below 20%.

All numbers are made up for practice.

Spot the rules

  1. Wireframe: it follows the six-block layout from the top of this page.
  2. Hero chart: revenue vs. target is the biggest chart.
  3. Grouped: all four KPIs sit in one row.
  4. Spacing: the same gap between every card.
  5. Fewer sections: KPIs, charts, insights, details. That's it.
  6. Reading flow: summary, trend, breakdown, then the detail table last.
  7. Insight: three sentences say what changed and what to do.

Save this layout checklist

Clean structure makes dashboards easier to read and easier to trust. Tick these off on your next dashboard; your ticks are saved in this browser.

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Check your own dashboard with AI

Three prompts that use these rules. Fill in your details once and they drop into every prompt. Works with ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini.

Saved only in this browser.

Plan a new dashboard

Prompt 1 · before you build

    

    
Review a dashboard you already have

    

      
Prompt 2 · attach a screenshot

      

    

    
Write the insight box

    

      
Prompt 3 · paste your numbers

      

    

    
Before you trust the answer
AI can suggest a layout, but it can't see how your team uses the dashboard. Keep what fits, and check every number it writes into an insight against your data.