Filters in Platform Analytics

  • Release version: Zurich
  • Updated August 25, 2025
  • 2 minutes to read
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    Summary of Filters in Platform Analytics

    Filters in Platform Analytics allow ServiceNow customers to refine data on inline and technical dashboards by various criteria such as data values, boolean states, or dates. These filters enhance the ability to analyze and visualize data effectively, either by focusing on specific subsets or by applying broad, dashboard-wide filtering.

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    Inline dashboards are created and managed within the inline dashboard editor and support straightforward filter creation and application. Technical dashboards, built using UI Builder, offer greater flexibility but require advanced configuration, including custom event handlers for filters.

    Key Features

    • Filter Types and Creation: Filters can be created directly on inline dashboards or added from a filter library, with the ability to apply filters to individual tabs or entire dashboards. Users with the analyticsfilteradmin role can manage the filter library.
    • Filter Groups: Multiple filters can be combined into groups, allowing users to apply or clear all filters in the group simultaneously, improving efficiency by reducing database calls.
    • Global Filters: Enabling Usage Insights filters makes them global, affecting all visualizations on a dashboard rather than isolated components.
    • Value Retention: Inline dashboard filters retain user-selected values across sessions and page refreshes unless the filter configuration is edited. Technical dashboards do not retain filter values across sessions or refreshes.
    • Export Behavior: When exporting inline dashboards to PowerPoint, filter values are preserved automatically; for PDF exports, users can choose whether to retain filter values. Technical dashboards do not retain filter values upon export.
    • Domain Filters: On domain-separated instances, domain filters allow visualizations to be filtered by domain using a specialized component.
    • Customization Limits: The default maximum number of custom filters for the user experience analytics application is 500, adjustable via a system property.

    Practical Considerations

    • Editing filters requires appropriate permissions, typically dashboard edit rights or the analyticsfilteradmin role for library management.
    • For dashboards migrated in compatibility mode, filter editing is performed through Core UI tools.
    • Customers should select the appropriate filter type first, then follow specific configuration steps tailored to that type for effective implementation.
    • Technical dashboards require more expertise to configure filters and are suitable when advanced customization is needed.

    Filter lists and data visualizations on an inline or technical dashboard. Filter by possible data value, by whether the value is true or false, or by date.

    The preceding video illustrates how to create a filter, in this case a multi-select filter for table data.

    You can create a filter for either an inline dashboard or a technical dashboard. Inline dashboards are those dashboards created and populated in the inline dashboard editor. Technical dashboards are populated in the UI Builder and are more flexible but require considerably more expertise. For example, on a technical dashboard, you have to create custom event handlers for filters to apply to lists or data visualizations.

    Note:
    When you enable Usage Insights filters within Platform Analytics dashboards, they operate as global filters. This means their effect is comprehensive, impacting all visualizations across the entire dashboard, not just a single visualization.
    Note:
    The default maximum number of custom filters you can save for user experience analytics application is 500. You can modify the number of custom filters in the uxa.query_builder.max_num_of_user_filter property.

    When you edit Core UI filters dashboards migrated in compatibility mode, you do so in the Core UI tools. For more information, see Reporting, dashboards, and Performance Analytics in the Core UI.

    Filters on inline dashboards

    For inline dashboards, you can either create a filter directly on the dashboard through the inline editor, or you can add a filter to the dashboard from the filter library. In either case, you can add filters to a specific tab or have them apply to the entire dashboard. To take these actions, you only need the right to edit the dashboard.

    If you have the analytics_filter_admin role, you can also create a filter for the library through the Filter Designer or copy an existing filter to the library.

    The filter applies to those data visualizations and list components that contain a target of the filter.

    If you want to put multiple filters on your dashboard, consider adding a filter group. In a filter group, you configure several filters and apply or clear them with one action, making only one call to the database. A filter group may therefore be more efficient than multiple separate filters.

    When you create a filter, you first specify the filter type. All further configuration options depend on the selected type.
    Important:
    When using this documentation, first select a topic for creating a filter. After you create a filter and select the filter type, follow the appropriate topic for configuring a filter of that type.

    Retaining filter values

    On inline dashboards, filters retain their values across logins or page refreshes. However, these values are no longer retained when someone edits the filter configuration. Afterward, the filter reverts to its default values for all users on their next login or page refresh. On technical dashboards and pages created in UI Builder, filters do not retain values across logins or refreshes. For an exception, see Add a dashboard to a Dashboards page.

    Filter values can also be retained when you export an inline dashboard. When you export a dashboard to Microsoft PowerPoint, filter values are applied automatically. When you export a dashboard to PDF, you have the option whether or not to retain filter values. Filter values are not retained when you export a technical dashboard. For more information, see Export a Platform Analytics dashboard.

    Domain filters

    You can filter visualizations by domain on domain-separated instances. Domain filtering uses a different component. For more information, see Create a domain filter.