Dashboards & Visualizations

What Dashboards Are (and Aren't)

A Smartsheet Dashboard (also called a Sight) is a visual, read-only display page that combines multiple widgets into a single view. It is NOT a sheet — you can't edit data in a dashboard. It IS a live view — every widget updates automatically from its source data.

Creating a Dashboard: Home → + New → Dashboard/Sight

The dashboard editor uses a drag-and-drop grid. Add widgets with the + button. Resize and reposition them as needed.

Widget Types

Metric Widget

Displays a single number or text value. The most impactful widget for executives.

Data source options:

• A specific cell in any sheet you have access to
• A Sheet Summary field (covered below)
• A calculated value from a Report

Best for: KPIs like "Total Budget: $1.2M", "Tasks At Risk: 7", "Sprint Velocity: 34 pts", "Portfolio Health: 82%"

Pro tip: Use Sheet Summary fields as metric sources. Summary fields live at the top of a sheet (Smartsheet icon → Sheet Summary) and can contain formulas that aggregate the entire sheet. Example:

Sheet Summary field: "Total At Risk"
Formula: =COUNTIFS([Status]:[Status], "At Risk")

Sheet Summary field: "Budget Remaining"
Formula: =SUM([Budget]:[Budget]) - SUM([Actual]:[Actual])

Then, the metric widget pulls from this summary field. Clean, reusable, and always current.

Chart Widget

Bar, column, line, pie, and donut charts. Data source is either a sheet range or a Report.

Data source strategy for charts:

• Direct from a sheet: works for simple, static categories. Can break if rows are added.
• Via a Report: the most flexible pattern. Create a report that filters and groups your data. Use the report as the chart's source. Change the report criteria → the chart updates automatically.

Chart tips:

• Use column charts for comparing categories (budget by department, tasks by status)
• Use line charts for trends over time (weekly velocity, monthly revenue)
• Use pie/donut charts for showing proportions (only when you have 3–5 categories; more becomes unreadable)
• Label data points directly on charts — avoid making viewers look at the legend

Report Widget

Embeds a live Report directly in the dashboard. Viewers see filtered, sorted data without accessing the source sheet. They can even edit rows if they have edit permissions on the source sheet.

Most powerful widget for operational dashboards. A "At Risk Tasks" report widget shows exactly which tasks are at risk, who owns them, and when they're due — all from a single widget.

Shortcut Widget

Links to other Smartsheet items (sheets, reports, dashboards) or external URLs. Use for navigation between related dashboards or to link out to relevant resources.

Rich Text / Title Widget

Text blocks with formatting support. Use for:

• Dashboard title and subtitle
• Section headers to organize the layout
• Instructions for first-time viewers
• Date of last manual update (if applicable)

Image Widget

Logos, diagrams, screenshots. Use for branding, architecture diagrams, or reference images.

Web Content Widget

Embeds external content via URL: Tableau dashboards, Power BI reports, Google Maps, YouTube videos, external web apps.

Dashboard Design Principles

Audience First

Before adding a single widget, define who will use this dashboard and what decisions they need to make.

• Executive dashboard: 5–7 high-level KPIs. Traffic light health indicators. Links to drill-down dashboards. Minimal detail.
• Team dashboard: Actionable task lists, owner/due date visibility, filter controls. More detail, less KPI.
• Client dashboard: Clean branding, milestone status, progress bars. No internal jargon.

Visual Hierarchy

Your eye should naturally flow from most important → least important.

1. Top of dashboard: Headline KPIs in large metric widgets
2. Middle section: Charts and trends that provide context
3. Bottom section: Detail tables (report widgets)

Color Consistency

Use the same color scheme across every chart and indicator:

• Green = on track / approved / complete
• Yellow / amber = at risk / pending
• Red = off track / overdue / blocked
• Blue = informational / neutral

Don't mix color meanings. If red means "overdue" in one chart and "highest priority" in another, the dashboard becomes confusing.

White Space Is a Feature

A dashboard with 20 widgets is a dashboard nobody reads. Ruthlessly prioritize. 5–8 well-chosen widgets on a clean layout outperforms 15 widgets crammed together.

Grid Alignment

Smartsheet's dashboard grid snaps widgets into a responsive layout. Use it — misaligned, overlapping widgets signal a lack of care and make dashboards look unprofessional.

Real-World Dashboard Examples

PMO Portfolio Dashboard

Row 1: [Total Projects: 24] [On Track: 18 (75%)] [At Risk: 4] [Overdue: 2]
Row 2: [Status Distribution (pie chart)] [Budget by Department (bar chart)]
Row 3: [At Risk Projects Report — Name, PM, Budget, Due Date, Actions]
Row 4: [Shortcut: Project A] [Shortcut: Project B] [Shortcut: Project C]

Sprint Dashboard

Row 1: [Sprint Velocity: 34pts] [Burndown: 68%] [Days Remaining: 5]
Row 2: [Burndown Chart (line — points completed vs days)] [Status Distribution (bar)]
Row 3: [Current Sprint Tasks Report — Task, Owner, Status, Due Date]

Client Onboarding Tracker

Row 1: [Active Clients: 12] [Avg Onboarding Time: 18 days] [Stalled: 2]
Row 2: [Onboarding Stage Funnel (bar chart — count per stage)]
Row 3: [Active Onboardings Report — Client, Stage, Owner, Next Action Due]

Sharing Dashboards

With Smartsheet users: Share the dashboard directly (File → Share). Users need at least Viewer access.

With external stakeholders: File → Publish → Create a public link. Anyone with the link can view it without a Smartsheet account. The data still updates live.

Embed in other tools: Get the iFrame code from Publish settings and embed in Confluence, SharePoint, Notion, or any internal portal.