# Numbers and data widgets > Tables, spreadsheets, charts, headline numbers and a calculator for your desk, and how they work together to turn a desk into a dashboard. Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/widgets-numbers-and-data Section: Widgets > Numbers and data Plans: All plans Updated: 2026-10-10 The Numbers & data widgets keep figures on a desk and show what they add up to. Use them to track orders, a budget, leads, hours or anything else you count, and to see the totals without leaving the desk you are working on. There are six of them: | Widget | What it is for | Quick key | | --- | --- | --- | | **Metrics** | A few numbers that are read together, such as this month's orders, sales and returns, each worked out from a table. | None | | **Stat card** | One number worth watching, with a small line that shows how it has moved. | None | | **Table** | Rows and typed columns: the place your data lives. It has six views, filters and grouping, and an AI that proposes columns and rows. | `T` | | **Chart** | A Bar, Line, Area, Pie or KPI chart drawn from a table. | None | | **Spreadsheet** | A PlexiiSheets spreadsheet with formulas. It is the same file you see in Office. | None | | **Calc** | A small calculator with a keypad. | `C` | ## Before you start - Every Numbers & data widget is on every plan. - Open the desk you want to add to. The **Add widget** button and the quick-add keys work only on an open desk. - Two parts of these widgets use AI: **Build** in a number's data source, and a table's assistant for columns and rows. They run on PlexiDesk credits while you are signed in, or on your own Anthropic key. See [AI credits and where your AI runs](https://plexiidesk.com/help). ## Add a Numbers & data widget 1. Open the desk. 2. Click **Add widget** in the centre of the header. 3. Click **Metrics**, **Stat card**, **Table**, **Chart**, **Spreadsheet** or **Calc**. The **Add widget** menu groups widgets into columns by what they are for. These six are in the **Numbers & data** column, in the order above. Type numbers in the search box at the top of the menu to show just this column, or type a widget's name and press `Enter` to add the first match. The new widget appears beside the widget you touched last. A **Spreadsheet** first asks whether to **Create new**, **Import a file** or **Place an existing one**. See [Spreadsheet widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-spreadsheet). ### Other ways to add one - **Single keys.** Click an empty part of the desk so that nothing is selected and you are not typing, then press `T` for a Table or `C` for Calc. The **Add widget** menu shows these keys in grey beside the widgets. See [Add widgets with a single key](https://plexiidesk.com/help/quick-add-keys). - **The command palette.** Press `⌘` `K` on a Mac or `Ctrl` `K` on Windows, type the widget's name and choose its **Add** command, such as **Add Metrics** or **Add Stat card**. See [Search and commands (Cmd+K)](https://plexiidesk.com/help/command-palette). - **The tool rail.** In the tool rail's **Add widget** picker, **Metrics**, **Table** and **Chart** are under **Tools**, and **Spreadsheet** is under **Files**. **Stat card** and **Calc** are under **Advanced**. See [The tool rail on the right of a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-tool-rail). ## Table or Spreadsheet? Both hold rows and columns, but they suit different work. **Use a Table** when each row is one thing, such as an order, a lead or a booking, and each column is a fact about it. Every column has a type, such as Short text, Number, Checkbox, Date or Single select, so the values stay tidy. A table can be shown as a grid, a list, cards, a Kanban board, a calendar or a Gantt chart, and it can be filtered and grouped. Charts, Metrics and Stat cards read their numbers from tables. See [Table widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table). **Use a Spreadsheet** when you need cells and formulas: a budget, a forecast, or a sum that refers to other cells. It is a PlexiiSheets file, so you can also open it from Office, and you can start one from an Excel (.xlsx) or CSV file. See [Spreadsheet widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-spreadsheet) and [PlexiiSheets overview](https://plexiidesk.com/help). > **Note:** > Charts, Metrics and Stat cards read from tables, not from spreadsheets. If your figures are in a CSV, JSON or Excel file, import them into a table first. See [Import CSV, JSON or Excel into a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-import). ## Turn a desk into a dashboard A table holds the rows. The other widgets read them and show what they add up to. - A **Chart** draws a table's rows as bars, lines, areas, a pie or a single KPI figure. Several charts on one desk make a dashboard. See [Chart widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-chart). - A **Metrics** widget shows a few headline numbers from your tables side by side. See [Metrics widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-metrics). - A **Stat card** shows one number, how much it has changed and a small line of how it got there. See [Stat card widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-stat-card). Each number in a Metrics widget or a Stat card is connected to a table in the same **Data source** editor. You choose what to measure, which rows count and, if you want a trend, how to split the rows by date. You can also describe the number in a sentence and let AI fill in the settings. See [Connect a number to a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-number-from-table). These widgets can read any table in your workspace, including a table on another desk, and they update when the table changes. For a walk-through from an empty desk, see [Build a dashboard on a desk from a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widgets-dashboard). ## Quick sums with Calc Calc is a small calculator that sits on the desk, for working something out without leaving what you are doing. Click its keys to build a sum; the widget keeps what you typed. See [Calc widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-calc). ## Every article in this group - [Metrics widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-metrics): several numbers read together. - [Stat card widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-stat-card): one number with its trend line. - [Connect a number to a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-number-from-table): the data source editor used by Metrics and Stat card. - [Table widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table): add a table and find your way around it. - [Six views of every table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/table-views): Table, List, Cards, Kanban, Calendar and Gantt. - [Table columns and field types](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-columns): add, change, move and resize columns. - [Filter and group table rows](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-filter-group): show only the rows you want, grouped the way you want. - [Build a table with AI](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-ai): describe what you need and approve columns, then rows. - [Import CSV, JSON or Excel into a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-import): bring data in from a file. - [Move around a table and copy cells](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-keyboard): keyboard moves, selecting blocks, copy and paste. - [Chart widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-chart): bar, line, area, pie and KPI charts from a table. - [Spreadsheet widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-spreadsheet): a PlexiiSheets spreadsheet on your desk. - [Calc widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-calc): a keypad calculator. - [Build a dashboard on a desk from a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widgets-dashboard): put it all together. ## Common questions **Can a chart or a Metrics widget read a spreadsheet?** No. Charts, Metrics and Stat cards read tables. Import the data into a table, then connect to that. See [Import CSV, JSON or Excel into a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-table-import). **Do I need a separate table for each chart or number?** No. One table can feed as many charts, Metrics numbers and Stat cards as you like, on any desk in the workspace. **Why does a number show a dash instead of a figure?** A dash means there was nothing to measure, for example no matching row had a number in the column you chose. See [Connect a number to a table](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-number-from-table). **What do people see on a live view of my desk?** A Table shows as a table of up to 500 rows. Metrics and Stat cards show as a placeholder rather than their numbers. See [Publish a live view of a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/share-live-web-view). ## Related tasks - [Add a widget to a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/add-a-widget) - [Add widgets with a single key](https://plexiidesk.com/help/quick-add-keys) - [Use a widget's AI button](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-ai) - [The controls on every widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-title-bar)