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Getting Started with Dashboards

Learn how Dashboards can give you visual access to all of your SmartSuite data and helpful information.

Written by Peter Novosel

Feature Overview Video

Plan Availability

All plan types

Permissions

All Roles can create and edit dashboards.

Platform

Web

Related Reading

Dashboards: Record Selector Widget

How to Create a Dashboard

Dashboard Settings

Mobile Dashboard Widgets: Supported Features and Limitations Guide.

What Are Dashboards?

Dashboards in SmartSuite are special Views that allow you to pull data from any table in your workspace. They help you visualize and interact with data across multiple workflows. For example, a Product Manager can use Dashboards to combine data from CRM, Marketing, Customer Support, and other workflows to prioritize new features.

Key Features of Dashboards:

  • Widgets : Dashboards are built from various widgets that display data and visuals. These widgets include charts, metrics, banners, and more.

  • Custom Layouts: Dashboards support unique layouts, making them feel more like website pages.

  • Permissions: Record and field-level permissions apply to Dashboard data, ensuring security.

  • Sharing Options: Dashboards can be shared in a view-only state with people outside your workspace, such as clients.

A Risk Dashboard with summary cards, a bar chart, a donut chart, a world clock, a countdown and a bar chart by analyst.

Dashboard Widgets

There are several types of widget available, including the following categories:

  • Page Display: Widgets that enhance your Dashboard with visually striking elements, providing users with valuable context. Examples include:

    • Hero - Enhances dashboards with striking top visuals.

    • Simple Banner - Adds customizable, interactive banners atop dashboards.

    • Heading - Organizes dashboards with customizable headings.

    • FAQ - Enhances dashboards with customizable FAQ sections.

    • Webpage - Embeds webpages directly into dashboards.

    • Text Block - Embeds rich text documents into dashboards.

    • Spacing - Adds optional spacing to organize dashboard layout.

    • Divider - Separates dashboard sections with customizable dividers.

The Page Display widgets in the Widget Library: Hero, Simple Banner, Heading, FAQ, Webpage, Text Block, Spacing and Divider.

  • Record Display: Widgets that give you detailed looks into specific records.

    • Record Selector - Dynamically controls dashboard content via user selections.

    • Record Details - View and edit fields directly on dashboards.

    • Record History - Displays record changes and updates.

    • Record Comments - Displays record comments.

    • My Work - Displays My Work on Dashboards.

The Record Display widgets: Record Selector, Record Details, Record History, Record Comments and My Work.

  • Actions: Widgets that can further organize and filter information.

    • Filter Widget - Applies filters across multiple dashboard widgets.

    • Button Row - Adds interactive, customizable buttons to dashboards.

    • Filter Banner - Applies filters in the style of a banner.

The Actions widgets: Filter Widget, Button Row and Filter Banner.

  • Metrics: Widgets that summarize data from your SmartSuite Tables and compare key indicators

The Metrics widgets: Comparison Metric, Progress Metric and Summary Card.

  • Views: Widgets that display different view types directly from Dashboards.

The Views widgets: Grid, Calendar, Chart, Pivot Table, Gantt, Timeline, Kanban and Map.

  • Charts: Include visual charts and graphs on your dashboard to visualize data.

The chart types Bar, Stacked Bar, 100% Stacked Bar, Column, Stacked Column, 100% Stacked Column, Donut, Pie, Area and Stacked Area.
The chart types 100% Stacked Area, Line, Heatmap, Bubble and Scatter.

  • Video: Display Vimeo or YouTube videos on your dashboard.

    The Video widgets: Vimeo and YouTube.

  • Utilities: Apply custom filters across multiple widgets on the same dashboard tab.

The Utilities widgets: Data Schema and Custom Code.

  • Project Related: Countdown to a date, embed a Web page or view a world clock.

  • Social Media: Embed content from Facebook, LinkedIn or X.

    The Social Media widgets: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

  • Conferencing: Include links that let you start an online meeting with a click.

    The Google Meet and Zoom conferencing widget cards with the Install Widget link.

  • Design: Embed Figma and InVision in your dashboard.

    The Design widgets showing embedded Figma and InVision files.

  • Google: Embed Google Docs, Meet, Sheets or Slides.

The Google widgets: Google Docs, Google Meet, Google Sheets and Google Slides.

Every widget has its own article; the full list is in How to Create a Dashboard.

Adding a Dashboard Widget

Widgets are the building blocks of your dashboard, each offering a different way to display data, metrics, and content. To add widgets:

  1. Enable Edit Mode
    Click the View/Edit toggle to Edit mode.

  2. Click "Add Widget"
    In the upper-right corner of your dashboard, select the Add Widget button.

  3. Choose Your Widget
    A popup will display SmartSuite's library of widgets, including text, charts, banners, and interactive widgets. Use the search bar or scroll through the categories to find and select the right widget for your dashboard.

  4. Customize Your Widget
    After selecting a widget, you can configure its settings (e.g., text, images, data sources, and layout) to match your specific needs.

A dashboard in Edit mode with the Add Widget button highlighted and the Add New Widget panel open.

Drilling Into Data

Drill deeper into your data directly from your Dashboard:

  • Click on Metric Widgets or Charts to view underlying data.

  • Use the reporting toolbar to customize the layout.

  • Export data by selecting "Export" in the top-right corner.

A Tasks Overdue grid opened from a dashboard widget, with the reporting toolbar and the Export button in the top-right corner.

Practical Scenarios and Use Cases

Three ways teams use dashboards:

1. Project Tracking

Scenario: A project manager needs to monitor progress, milestones, and team tasks.

Solution: Create a Dashboard with Progress Metrics, Summary Cards, and a Timeline View.

2. Client Reporting

Scenario: A consultant wants to share project updates with clients.

Solution: Design a client-facing Dashboard with a combination of Metrics, Hero visuals, and Text Blocks summarizing milestones.

3. Departmental Insights

Scenario: The Marketing team requires a high-level view of campaign performance.

Solution: Use Charts, Comparison Metrics, and a Filter Widget to display real-time data insights.

Next step: Invite your team and set roles in your first week.

Last verified 22 Oct 2026.

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