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Dashboards

You'll learn how to create and share Databricks AI/BI dashboards in ~10 min.

Prereqs: Databricks AI/BI

Why this matters​

Dashboards are the most common way stakeholders consume data. Databricks AI/BI dashboards query Unity Catalog tables directly — no data extracts, no stale copies. Row- and column-level security from Unity Catalog applies automatically, so every viewer sees only the data they are authorized to access.

How it works​

A dashboard is a collection of visualizations (charts, tables, counters) backed by SQL queries. You build them in a drag-and-drop editor, add filters and parameters, and publish to share with your team. Dashboards can run on a schedule to keep cached results fresh.

Create the first dashboard​

This video walks through building a dashboard from scratch:

Embed dashboards in external applications​

Dashboards can be embedded in internal portals, wikis, or custom apps using iframe embedding. This extends their reach beyond the Databricks workspace.

When to use / when not to​

Use dashboards when:

  • Stakeholders need a visual, regularly refreshed view of key metrics.
  • You want governance (row/column security) to carry through to the presentation layer.
  • The audience is comfortable with a standard reporting experience (charts, tables, filters).

Use Genie Spaces instead when:

  • Users want to ask ad-hoc questions rather than browse a fixed set of charts.
  • The questions change frequently and a static dashboard would require constant rebuilding.

Common pitfalls​

  • Too many queries on one dashboard — each visualization runs its own query. A dashboard with 20+ charts can be slow to load. Group related metrics and split large dashboards into focused pages.
  • Not scheduling refreshes — by default, dashboards query live data on every page load. For stable reporting, schedule periodic refreshes so viewers hit cached results instead of queuing warehouse compute on every visit.

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