> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.toucanai.cloud/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.toucanai.cloud/build/dashboards-and-layouts/how-to/add-filters-to-a-dashboard.md).

# Add filters to a dashboard

{% hint style="info" %}
**Target Audience**: Non technical users
{% endhint %}

### Goal

Implement filter components and map them to specific database columns across one or more dashboard charts.

***

### Prerequisites

* An [existing dashboard](/build/dashboards-and-layouts/how-to/create-a-dashboard-with-ai.md) with at least one chart.
* [Charts added to your dashboard](/build/charts/how-to/create-a-chart.md) that you want to filter.
* Identified data columns in the connected database to serve as filter criteria (e.g., `date`, `region`, `status`).

***

### Steps

#### 1. Open the Dashboard Editor

* Navigate to the **Library** tab from the Toucan.ai home page.
* Select the target dashboard to enter the editing interface.

#### 2. Initialize a Filter Component

* Click the **Add Filte**r button in the top-right corner.
* Select a filter type based on the data requirement:
  * **Dropdown**: Restricts selection to a single value.
  * **Multi-select**: Enables selection of multiple values from a list.
  * **Date Range**: Enables selection of a start and end point for date data.

<figure><img src="/files/5RzI46tCiliCHQJ0dAkS" alt="Filter Types"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### 3. Configure Filter Properties

* Input a factual **Name** for the filter (e.g., "Contract Type").
* This name serves as the label visible to end-users in the dashboard.

#### 4. Link Filter to Charts

* Click the **Link Filter** icon (link symbol) located next to the filter name.
* Click on the specific charts that must respond to this filter.
* For each linked chart, select the database column that matches the filter criteria (e.g., map the "Contract Type" filter to the `contract_type` column).
* Repeat this mapping for every chart in the dashboard that shares the relevant data.

<figure><img src="/files/HM1DjvYibShvQpuqAUCA" alt="Apply Filter"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

#### 5. Save and Validate

* Click the **Close** button to finalize the filter configuration.
* Select different values in the new filter to verify that the linked charts update correctly.

***

### Conclusion

The dashboard now includes interactive filters synchronized across the selected charts. Users can now refine the visualized data based on the defined dimensions.

**Suggested Next Steps**: [How-to: Embed a dashboard](/embed/embedding-overview/how-to/embed-a-dashboard.md)