Blocks
How a page is built
A page is a stack of rows, top to bottom. A row holds one to four blocks side by side. The blocks in a row share twelve units of width, so a row is always full.
A block has no fixed position. It is as tall as its content and its height setting. In a document, when a page is full, the next rows go onto a new page. On a slide, content that doesn't fit is cut off, and the editor tells you to move blocks to a new slide.
To add, move and resize blocks, see Edit a report and comment.
Text and layout
| Block | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Heading | A section title, at one of three levels: Title, Section or Subsection |
| Paragraph | Your commentary |
| Key takeaway | The thing you want read even if nothing else is. Tone: Neutral, Good, Warning or Bad, with an optional title. Under Points, add up to five short lines to print as a list instead of a paragraph |
| Data note | A caveat about the numbers: a tracking gap, the date a change went live |
| Pull quote | An aside, set apart from the body |
| Image | A logo, a screenshot, a creative. Give it a web address, a description, a height, a position and a fit (Fit or Fill) |
| Divider | A line |
| Section divider | A labeled break between sections |
| Page break | Starts a new page for what follows |
| Contents | A list of your pages, by the names you give them |
The Contents block lists pages by name. A page with no name isn't listed. For a contents page built from your headings, with page numbers, turn on Contents in Design.
Numbers
| Block | What it's for |
|---|---|
| KPI row | Two to six figures, each with its change and what it's compared with, for example "vs Sep 2026". What most reports open with |
| Scorecard | One figure, with its change |
| Gauge | One figure against a target |
| Goal progress | How far through a goal the client is |
A KPI row shows the first six metrics you pick. A figure with no data says No data, never 0. A figure with no comparison says No comparison, and a figure with nothing before it to compare with says New.
Over time
Line, Area, Stacked area, Column and Sparkline.
Comparison
Bar, Donut, Pie and Funnel.
Detail
Table, Table with bars and Table with heatmap.
Findings
These blocks make a report read as analysis, not a pile of charts. You fill them in the block's settings, or Dash fills them.
| Block | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Action plan | What to do next, as a table. Each action has a priority (Now, Soon or Later), a status (Planned, In progress, Done or Blocked), and optionally an owner, a due date and its expected impact. A column that no action fills is left out. Add a Worth in total to show under the plan |
| Score bars | A bar per area, each with a score out of a maximum (20 unless you change it) and an optional note, so a client sees where they stand |
Other
Geo map, Bubble map and Custom markdown.
Custom markdown is your own text, written in Markdown, with optional CSS for that block only. HTML isn't rendered, and url() and @import are removed from the CSS, because the block also shows on the link you send your client.
Block settings
Select a block to open Block settings in the panel on the right. What you see depends on the block.
Data
For a chart, table or figure block:
- Metrics: pick one or more.
- Break down by: the dimensions, or nothing for one total.
The lists show what the block's accounts offer.
Accounts and period
By default, a block uses the report's accounts and period, and follows them when they change.
Turn on Override under Accounts and period to give the block its own accounts, its own period, or both. For example, show this year's trend beside a page about this month. A block with its own period keeps it when the report's period changes. To undo, select Use the report's accounts or Use the report's period, or turn off Override.
When you pick the block's period as a preset, such as Last month, New report from this moves it forward with the new report's period. Dates you pick by hand stay as they are.
Filter and sort
Filter the rows, and sort by any of the block's metrics or dimensions, as on a dashboard widget. Rows to show limits a block with a breakdown to its top rows. Leave it empty to show every row.
Look
- Show as: change the block to a similar type without picking its data again, for example a line to an area, or a table to a table with bars.
- Height: Short, Medium or Tall.
Chart
Legend, Data labels and Grid lines: Theme follows the report's design, or choose Show or Hide for this block.
Numbers
- Format: Full (12,345) or Short (12.3K). For a scorecard or KPI row, also the Decimal places.
- Total row (tables): adds up the rows shown. Rates and averages are left blank, because they don't add up.
- Comparison: turn on Show to show the change against the report's comparison period. Under Shown as, choose Percent (+12%) or Amount (+340).
Goal progress
Under Measure against, choose A goal from your Goals, or A target: a metric and the target for it. The Label is optional and defaults to the goal or metric name.
Width
Width sets the widths of the whole row at once, from the splits that fit the number of blocks in it. You can also drag the line between two blocks on the page.
When a block has no data
A block with no data for the period says so, for example No data for this period. It never shows a zero that isn't in the data.
Next steps
Create a report
Create a report with Dash, from one of 28 templates or from an empty report, as a document or as Slides, then choose its accounts, period and theme.
Edit a report and comment
Edit a report on the page, accept or reject the changes Dash suggests, and comment with your team. Comments never hold a report up.