Tableau | Data visualisation How to Show and hide sort controls in Tableau Desktop 2019.2 and newer
A quick look at the show and hide sort controls feature new to Tableau 2019.2.
- Hovering above bars reveals a sort icon that cycles through descending, ascending and back to data source order on repeated clicks
- You can hide sort controls from end users via the Worksheet menu by unticking 'Show Sort Controls'
- Even with controls hidden, sorting can still be set manually through the axis caret's Sort options
- Data source order in ascending returns the view to its original exported sort
Tableau 2019.2 added hover sort icons on the axis plus a worksheet setting to show or hide them, letting you control how much sorting flexibility end users get in a published view.
Starting point: a bar chart of a categorical field on one axis and a measure on the other, sorted alphabetically by default.
- Hover above the bars for a sort icon 0:00
Hovering just above the bars reveals a small sort icon on the axis you can click without opening any menu.
- Clicking cycles through three sort states 0:21
Each click on the icon moves through descending, then ascending, then clears back to data source order — in this case alphabetical, since that was the order the data was exported in.
- Hide the control from end users 0:40
In the Worksheet menu there's a 'Show Sort Controls' option; untick it and the hover icon no longer appears, removing that quick-sort ability from viewers of the sheet.
- Manual sorting still works when hidden 1:00
Even with the control hidden, you can still change the sort by clicking the axis caret and going to Sort, which gives you the same full set of sort options as before.
- Getting back to the original order 1:21
If you've sorted by a field and want to return to how the data came in, select data source order in ascending — it restores the exact order the data was exported in, not just alphabetical.
- Hiding the hover control doesn't remove sorting ability entirely — it just moves it behind the axis caret's Sort menu, so it's a UI simplification rather than a lock.
Reach for this when publishing a dashboard to end users and you want a cleaner axis without exposing the hover sort icon, while still leaving sort options available via the caret for anyone who needs them.
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