A data analyst portfolio proves one thing above all: you can turn raw data into a decision. Hiring managers do not want another rainbow dashboard — they want the insight and the business action it supports. Pair this with How to Build a Professional Portfolio and Data Scientist Portfolio Guide.

Projects to Include

  • A polished dashboard (Tableau Public or Power BI Web) on a real dataset
  • A SQL case study with non-trivial joins, window functions, and CTEs
  • An end-to-end analysis: question → data → method → insight → recommendation
  • An A/B test, cohort, or churn analysis

Always Frame the Business Question

For every project, state: the question, the data source, your method, the finding, and the decision it would drive. "Which acquisition channel has the best ROI and where should we move budget?" beats "here is a bar chart."

Where to Host (Free)

  • GitHub — notebooks, SQL, and documentation (GitHub Portfolio Optimization)
  • Tableau Public — free dashboard hosting
  • Power BI Web — shareable reports
  • Kaggle — notebooks, datasets, and competitions

For a personal site that ties it together, see How to Host Your Portfolio for Free and Best Portfolio Website Builders 2026.

Make It Skimmable

Recruiters skim. For each project: a one-line takeaway, a clean visual, and a short write-up. Lead with the insight, not the methodology.

Keep Your Resume and Portfolio in Sync

Your resume, your LinkedIn, and your portfolio should tell the same story — same name, same headline, same top projects — just at different levels of depth. A recruiter who sees a 'Full Stack Developer' resume and a portfolio headlined 'Aspiring Designer' gets confused, and confusion loses interviews. Lock the resume down first with the ATS score checker and an ATS-friendly template, then mirror that exact positioning in your portfolio. When they reinforce each other, every recruiter touchpoint pushes you forward. See How to Add Your Portfolio Link to Your Resume for placing the link correctly.

Common Mistakes

  • Dashboards with no business question or recommendation
  • Toy datasets with no story
  • No SQL evidence (most analyst roles test it)
  • Dead links — run the Portfolio Checklist Before You Apply

Pro Tips

Frequently Asked Questions

How many projects for a data analyst portfolio?

Three to five: at least one dashboard, one SQL case study, and one full analysis with a recommendation.

Tableau or Power BI?

Whichever your target jobs list most. Showing one well is enough; mention the other if you know it.

How do I align my resume?

Use the Data Analyst Resume guide and read Data Analyst vs Data Scientist to position yourself.

Build Your Portfolio Now

You do not need to code a site from scratch or spend a weekend wrestling with a website builder. Turn your existing resume into a live, shareable portfolio website in minutes with the TailorCV portfolio builder — choose a template, upload your CV, tweak the details, and publish a link you can drop straight onto your resume and LinkedIn. Before you start applying, run your resume through the free ATS score checker and switch to an ATS-friendly template so your portfolio and resume tell one clean, consistent story to every recruiter.